News

The dangers of reporting Ukraine for Russian journalists extend from the frontline to the homefront

Even as a shaky ceasefire holds, the Ukrainian conflict remains a dangerous assignment for Russian journalists – both on the frontline, and on the homefront. “Apparently even the fact that Russia’s waging a war is a taboo now. At least for regional media, that cannot hire bodyguards for the journalists,” Russian journalist Andrey Babitsky told the World Editors Forum in a recent interview.

The New Yorker’s Jon Lee Anderson on freelancers, Edward Snowden and the Arab Spring

Jon Lee Anderson is one of the world’s leading war correspondents. Currently working for The New Yorker, he has covered conflicts in Syria, Libya and Ireland over the course of his 30-year career. Anderson recently delivered an address to the School of Journalism at Paris’ Sciences Po university, in which he tackled issues ranging from the risks of freelance conflict reporting, to the murder of his friend James Foley, the perils of social media, and the role of Edward Snowden: “[He] is a spy, he’s not a journalist”.

World Editors Forum commissioned by UNESCO to conduct study on the protection of journalists’ sources in the digital age

Is it possible to keep journalists’ sources confidential in the digital age? What laws exist globally to support journalists’ ethical obligation to protect their sources from unmasking? To whom do these laws apply? How are legislative protections being adapted to digital realities? And what are the potential consequences of this shifting landscape for acts of investigative journalism? These are some of the questions to be interrogated in a significant study being undertaken by the World Editors Forum for UNESCO, under a project funded by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida).

WAN-IFRA appalled by gruesome murder of war correspondent Steven Sotloff

WAN-IFRA has condemned the apparent beheading of US journalist Steven Sotloff by Islamic State (ISIS) militants. “We are appalled by the gruesome murder of Steven Sotloff”, WAN-IFRA Secretary General Larry Kilman said in Paris today.

Women’s work: recognising female achievement in the newsrooms of Africa

WAN-IFRA and the African Media Initiative have teamed up to create a new award to recognise women occupying senior positions in African newsrooms.

South African media expert derides potential SAPA take-over bids

“Sapa is little more than a shell”. Prominent South African journalism professor Anton Harber has issued a scathing critique about investment group Sekunjalo’s bid for ailing South African national news agency, Sapa.”It is hard to see how a national agency can be owned by one newspaper company, especially since Sekunjalo has shown little respect for editorial freedom or independence.” Harber told the World Editors Forum.

Reporting Ebola: a story of divergent Western and African experiences

Harrowing stories of human suffering are coming out of West Africa as the Ebola crisis continues, but the outbreak is also revealing stark differences between the way Western correspondents and African journalists are able to protect their own health when covering it.

Coverage of Robin Williams’ death is a reminder of the need for responsible reporting

Press guidelines for appropriate coverage of suicide stories have been in place for a long time, but are they actually being followed?c

Police threats and social media wildfire: the challenges facing journalists in crisis-hit Ferguson

The threat of arrest for journalists covering civil unrest in the US town of Ferguson continues after Getty photographer Scott Olson was taken into custody overnight. According to The Guardian, Olson is believed to have turned down an instruction by police to leave the area. He was back at the scene two hours later, however, according to Poynter.

A disappearing act: is The Telegraph exerting its own right to be forgotten?

A story about the controversial EU ‘Right to Be Forgotten’ ruling has done a mysterious disappearing act on The Telegraph’s website, before reappearing a few days later.