Friday, January 23, 2009

Midterm Essay

Ryan Bissonnette

Mr. Twining

Journalism

January 21, 2008

Dangers in Journalism

When first asked to list off some of the most dangerous careers one can take in their life, people will list off occupations such as soldier, police officer, fire fighter, detective, etc. What they do not realize is that they are completely overlooking maybe the most dangerous of them all: Journalist. Now I am not talking about the regular sports reporter or a reporter that writes about the bake sale down the street. They are not making any sacrifices and are not in any danger whatsoever. I am talking about the reporters that report on rampant and meaningful issues around the world that will affect the course the Earth takes in the future. These events are usually, but not limited to wars. There is not a war going on in China but it is still extremely dangerous to report there because of the horrible relationship between the US and China. Three of the most dangerous places on Earth for a reporter to report in are Iraq, The Philippines, and Russia.

For the past few years, a war has been raging in Iraq and since it is so far away, the citizens of the US will never know what is going on without any reporters reporting on the events of the war. Luckily, there were several reporters willing to risk themselves to report the news. Over in Iraq, it is not safe whatsoever for any reporter. They often get shot, taken hostage, or worse. Just in 2008, 41 journalists were killed in Iraq. This is in 2008, a few years past the prime of the war when it was the worst. To keep safe, reporters travel with battalions of US soldiers. However, what happens if that troop does not return safely? The reporter goes with them. Reporting in a war zone is almost like being a part of the army itself.

The next area that it is extremely dangerous to report in is not a war-torn country, but the relationship between them and the US is not so great. I am talking about the Philippines. Over the past decade, 51 journalists have been murdered on the streets. That is just the number of deaths reported. Who knows how many the Filipinos are covering up and keeping away from the US government? In the past 2 years alone, 15 have been brutally murdered and even more have received death threats on the streets from below average citizens. Most of the killings occur in the provinces, especially in the conflict-ridden south where criminal gangs and rebel groups operate. Life here is cheap, abject poverty makes it easy to find someone willing to kill for as little as $100. That is not good at all. It is almost like there is a huge Vigilante movement against the Americans reporting across the Pacific. Most of the journalists killed were covering government issues, which in the provinces are complicated by corruption. Many victims have been radio commentators, who have been brave enough to challenge the system, so much so, that popular presenters such as Mr. Elmidulan have become the last resort for those desperate for help. Those seeking protection from abusive or corrupt public officials, or looking for help in filing legal cases against officials and those seeking justice for relatives in jail often call their local station to seek aid. For these reasons, traveling to the Philippines to report the news is definitely an enormous risk.

For countless years, the US has been having problems with Russia. The nation just seems to always want to cause violence throughout the world for the hell of it. That is what makes it one of the most dangerous places on Earth to report in. Russia has long suffered from the reputation of being among the world's most dangerous countries for journalists. The perception has been built over time by various international press-freedom monitors who, year after year, find Russia overrepresented among the world's developed nations and even among the Community of Democracies in terms of murdered reporters. Their colleagues in Russia have even longer lists of reporters allegedly killed for journalism. Though not as bad as the Philippines in terms of being a journalist, many of the same actions occur in Russia. Killings of journalists are widely used by analysts to measure the level of press freedom in a country. To be sure, if few or no media workers are killed, it can mean that there is so little freedom that no reporter ever sticks his neck out far enough to be killed. If many reporters are killed, it can be explained by a war zone or rampant crime and settling of scores. Still, regardless of these sliding parameters, when year after year a country produces a death list of journalists, it is a highly troubling indicator of an absence of press freedom. This lack of press freedom can be blamed on the fact that Russia has recently invaded Georgia and that maybe the government does not want any of the operations or events going on within the nation to reach outside nations so that it may arouse conflict with other nations around the world and potentially start a World War 3. These press restrictions tend to repel journalists from reporting on events in Russia.

In today’s society, being a journalist is definitely one the most dangerous occupations one can undertake in life. When reporting on harsh issues or reporting in harsh places, journalists are risking their lives just to report the facts to the average US citizen so we know what is going on across the ocean. Three of the most dangerous regions to report in are Iraq, the Philippines, and Russia because pf the lack of journalistic freedom and tension between them and the US government. So next time you are asked about heroes at the workplace, do not overlook the journalists, for they are making the ultimate risk to provide something many people throw off as nonsense or balderdash. They are the heroes of today’s society.

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