UNESCO is marking the 25th anniversary of World Press Freedom Day. This year’s event comes as we absorb this week’s news of the slaughter of at least nine journalists in a bombing attack in Kabul. Around the world, journalists are being killed, assaulted, maimed and imprisoned as they attempt to do their jobs.
As members of the Society for Advancing Business Editing and Writing (SABEW), we resolutely stand with our fellow journalists. We know that what we do – pursuing truth and transparency – is under attack amid rising authoritarianism and extremism around the globe.
In recent weeks, we have seen one outrage after another: In Afghanistan, explosions killed at least 9 journalists; in Italy, police thwarted a plot to murder a reporter; near the border of Columbia and Ecuador, kidnappers abducted two reporters and their driver; along the border of Israel and Gaza, gunfire killed two Palestinian journalists. And in too many countries, detentions and disappearances drag on; in Syria, freelance reporter Austin Tice has been missing since 2012.
In the United States, as civil discourse declines, dedicated journalists often find themselves facing hostility, insults and threats, both in public and via social media. Just this week, President Trump tweeted that journalists are “fake” and “totally unhinged” and “truly bad people.”
In marking World Press Freedom Day, let us all remember the courage of journalists who stand up to insults, threats and violence as well as those who have given their lives while doing their work.
At SABEW, we are making press freedom and defending the First Amendment a priority. Access to accurate economic data and other financial information is vital to having a free and fair press in a robust democracy.
Please consider supporting quality business journalism through a gift to ensure the future of trustworthy, ethical reporting that empowers citizens. You can do so online through Razoo’s secure site or by mailing a check to: SABEW, Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication, ASU, 555 N. Central Ave., Suite 302, Phoenix, AZ 85004-1248.
