Journalist organizations condemn violence against journalists in MiddleEast conflicts

[caption id="attachment_20333" align="alignleft" width="300"] National Press Club[/caption]

Gordon Matila----"The recent police attacks on journalists in Turkey are part of a pattern of violence, impunity and a disregard for freedom of the press," National Press Club President Angela Greiling Keane said.  "The Turkish government and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan must immediately carry out a comprehensive and unbiased investigation into the attacks on journalists, and Turkeyshould forbid its police from impeding journalists' efforts to cover public protests."

Around the world journalists put themselves at risk in order to cover the news. In areas where there is violence, they are at particular risk, as the National Press Club recently has condemned the attacks against journalists in Turkey.

Over several days journalists working in Turkey for a number of news groups sustained injuries from rubber bullets and a grenade.

Journalists reported that some of the police began the attacks on them well knowing they were assaulting members of the media. The police initiated the attacks after checking the press credentials.

One of the journalists, freelancer Ahmet Sik, told Reporters Without Borders that police were aggressive in trying to prevent him and other journalists as people were arrested near Taksim Square in Istanbul. The police even threatened the journalists with rubber bullets.

The recent assaults come after a summer of crackdown on many of the journalists covering the "Occupy Gezi" demonstrations, according to the Association of Turkish Journalists.

 Turkey is the world's largest jailer of journalists, human rights groups maintain.

Reporters Without Borders, joining the National Press Club's remarks, issued a statement about the violence against reporters in Egypt. The organization described a "heavy toll" on journalists in Egypt since the coup that overthrew President Mohammed Morsi, arresting, attacking, deporting and killing them.

In Syria female reporters have taken the lead, including a number of outspoken Syrian women.Samar Yazbek, a female Syrian writer and journalist speaks of the bravery of these women,  “Syrian women didn’t pick up arms, but kept helping the revolution by documenting violations, organizing, writing and in the media.” Syria has a more open society when it comes to the rights of women and women do not face the sexual violence they do in Egypt in general and when working as reporters.

Journalists increasingly face death, danger, occupational hazards

Carol Forsloff —While many people debate the ethics, policies, and reporting of journalists worldwide, an increasing number are killed or seriously wounded as part of an occupational hazard to report the news.

Richard Engel, one of the world's top journalists, was released by his captors, said to be Syrian troops loyal to the government.  There has been a news blackout from major networks during the six days he was in captivity, as part of an agreement to protect his safety and allow negotiations and investigations to take place. Engel is known for his high profile stories of Middle East conflicts, most recently his work during the protests in Egypt.

The Committee to Protect Journalists reports 2012 to be the year of the highest number of journalists killed in combat situations since the organization began keeping records in 1992. The organization tells us that murder is the leading cause of journalists' deaths around the world.

In some situations, journalists are captured and held for either ransom or prisoner exchange, as is reported to have been the case with Richard Engel. In other places, they are targeted for reporting on criminal activities involved in the drug wars in places like Mexico. In August, the Huffington Post wrote the Mexican government put the number of Mexican journalists killed by drug cartels at 67 by July of 2012. The article points out the obvious reason, that journalists have the occupational hazard of reporting things people don't want reported.

Some of the stories about the killing of journalists reveal that journalists are often killed in terrifying ways.  In May 2012, Reuters reported police finding the body of Marco Antonio Avila, who had been kidnapped by gunmen at a car wash near the town of Ciudad Obregon. He had been tortured before being killed, and a threatening note was left on the body, which police say is typical of drug gangs. Avila had been reporting on drug-related violence in Mexico.

In the United States and other places in the world people the media is criticized for its reporting of troublesome and violent events. Following the recent school shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newton, Connecticut, many people accused the media of sensationalizing the news and presenting wrong information about the identity of the shooter before the authorities had a chance to complete their initial investigations of the killer of the 26 adults and children. So journalists face severe public criticism during times when they are reporting news about violence in sometimes  tragic circumstances where information can be difficult to obtain and details confused.

The risks to journalists physically and emotionally continue to increase in combat areas, targeted crime areas and in situations where extreme violence occurs. The hazards remind us that journalism has its heroes and detractors and is therefore not a job for the fearful or the ill informed.