A record 171 journalists and other news professionals died
at work in 2007, paying the ultimate price for the news. But behind the
grim statistics may lie some glimmers of possible hope for a better future.
The number of journalists apparently murdered because of
their work fell for the first time in recent years, from 133 in 2006 — the
previous record year for deaths — to 120.
And the international community began to respond to the
killings and their deadly impact on freedom of expression in so many countries.
However, the number of people who died in air and road
accidents while covering the news shot up from 22 to 35 — helping make the
United States the worst country for news media fatalities outside of Iraq. All
but one of the American deaths were in accidents, including four when two news
helicopters collided while covering a police car chase in Phoenix, Arizona, last
July.
According to INSI’s statistics, compiled in cooperation with
the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), the global death toll in 2007
comprised 144 journalists and 27 support staff such as drivers, technicians and
other essential members of the news gathering and production teams in 36
countries.
In addition to murder and accidents, random crossfire claimed
the lives of 14 while the causes of two deaths could not be determined.
Circumstances often are unclear as only a handful of journalist deaths — as few
as one in 10 — are investigated and successfully prosecuted.
At least 100 died in gunfire — one assassinated in a blaze
of 50 bullets — 20 in bombings and four by beating. Two had their throats cut,
one was tortured to death and two were asphyxiated.
As always, most of the casualties were not international war
correspondents but local journalists, trying to work in their own countries, in
peace as well as conflict.
The worst single killing ground in 2007 again was Iraq where
65 news personnel died. All but one, a Russian freelance photographer, were
Iraqis, the "unsung heroes" of the war coverage. A total of 236 members of the
media now have died since the US-led invasion in 2003.
Otherwise the other most dangerous countries for the news
media were Mexico and Somalia, with nine deaths each, Pakistan (8), Brazil (7),
Sri Lanka (6), Philippines and India (5), Afghanistan (4) and Haiti (3).
"The death toll is appalling, unacceptable, and still getting
worse," said INSI Director Rodney Pinder.
"In these awful circumstances we may grasp at straws, but it
is slightly encouraging to see the fall in the number of suspected murders and
note indications of increasing awareness of this issue by the international
community. It is far too early to tell if the decline in the targeting of
journalists is the start of a trend — a reaction in many societies to the
terrible price being paid for the news — or if it is just a blip in the steady
rise recorded since the start of the millennium. We can but hope it is the
former, perhaps encouraged by the notice being taken by the international
community."
He added, however: "It is a human tragedy that the fall in
deliberate killing is matched by an increase in accidental deaths, many of them
surely avoidable. INSI continues to urge employers, and journalists themselves,
to take safety more seriously in an increasingly dangerous world."
Following a two-year campaign by INSI, the IFJ and the
European Broadcasting Union, the UN Security Council unanimously passed
Resolution 1738 on the safety of journalists in conflict on 23 December 2006. It
urged member states to end impunity for the killers of journalists, seen as one
of the driving forces behind the rise in murders in recent years. In January
this year the Council of Europe passed Resolution 1535 on the safety of
journalists in peace as well as war.
The third World Electronic Media Forum (WEMF3) in Malaysia
last month called on UN member states to observe Resolution 1738 in letter and
spirit and urged UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to appoint a Special
Rapporteur on journalist safety in his office to monitor the situation.
More than 1,200 news media professionals have now died trying
to cover the news between 1996 and mid-2007.
Details of all fatal incidents recorded by INSI in 2007 and
previous years can be obtained from
http://www.newssafety.com/casualties/2007.htm. Related article by Rodney
Pinder, INSI Director: Some Light In Darkest Year For Journalists
http://www.newssafety.com/stories/insi/killed07tribute.htm