On the eve of World Press Freedom Day, the UN chief , Antonio Guterres, warned that media organizations are under attack across the globe.
He urged all nations to stop targeting truth and those who report it. Guterres highlighted an “unbelievable” 50% increase in the killing of media workers in 2022 and stressed that freedom of the press is crucial for democracy and justice, and it is currently threatened.
In 2022, at least 67 media workers lost their lives. Additionally, digital platforms and social media have enabled extremists to spread false narratives and harass journalists.
“Truth is threatened by disinformation and hate speech seeking to blur the lines between fact and fiction, between science and conspiracy,” UN chief Guterres said in a video message for the U.N. commemoration of 30th anniversary of World Press Freedom Day.
It was first proclaimed by the U.N. The General Assembly authorized the observance of World Press Freedom Day every May 3, in December 1993.
Guterres said the collapse of the media industry, which has led to closures of local news outlets and consolidation of media “into the hands of the few,” is threatening freedom of expression.
So are threatening new laws passed by governments worldwide, such as Russia’s 2022 law that anyone publishing information about its military that Moscow deems to be false could face up to 15 years in prison.
Detention Of Evan Gershkovich
Russia detained Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich in late March, accusing him of spying. Journal publisher Almar Latour vehemently denied the accusation at Tuesday’s commemoration.
He said the Journal is “tremendously grateful” that President Joe Biden is personally working to secure Gershkovich’s release.
He added that his Russian lawyers have said, “Evan is thankful and reading every letter that he’s getting at the moment.”
Former journalist and Pulitzer Prize-winning author Samantha Power, who now heads the U.S. Agency for International Development, accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of not only wrongfully arresting Gershkovich but of targeting journalists elsewhere. Including Ukraine, “where his forces have shelled broadcasting towers, seized editorial offices, and killed nine journalists” since the invasion on Feb. 24, 2022.
Secretary-General Guterres strongly criticized those who target media workers, both on and offline. He stated that such individuals routinely harass, intimidate, and detain journalists.
He further added that online violence against women journalists is pervasive, with nearly three-quarters of them having experienced it. Moreover, one-quarter of women journalists have faced physical threats.
The secretary-general said the world must unite to stop threats, attacks and imprisonment of journalists for doing their jobs. And to stop the lies and disinformation.
“As journalists stand up for truth, the world stands up with them,” he said.
Audrey Azoulay, director-general of the U.N. Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization,which organized the commemoration, said the advent of the digital era has changed the entire information landscape.
While digital platforms have provided new ways for expression and information, she said, “they are also proving fertile ground for those who sow disinformation, hate speech and conspiracy theories.”