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AG Sulzberger, publisher of The New York Times warned on Tuesday that “when the free press erodes, the erosion of democracy almost always follows,” sending a call to protect journalists as fatal attacks on journalists are on the rise – especially in the war in Ukraine.
In a speech at the United Nations event to honor the 30th anniversary of World Press Freedom Day, he called on world leaders to protect independent journalism, whether by securing legal protection in their own countries or condemning attacks on journalists elsewhere.
Journalists around the world face increasing levels of violence. The Committee to Protect Journalists, a watchdog group, reported that at least 67 journalists and media workers were killed in 2022, most during the war in Ukraine or in Latin America. Since Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine last year, the killings of 14 journalists and media workers have been confirmed there, the committee said.
A record number of journalists have been jailed, including The Wall Street Journal correspondent Evan Gershkovich, who previously worked for The New York Times. Mr Sulzberger said he was in Russian custody “on false charges and should be released.”
Mr. Sulzberger said the vision of journalists playing a fundamental role in supporting human rights and a free society is “at great risk.”
“All over the world, autocrats – and those who aspire to join their ranks – have used censorship, media repression and attacks on journalists to consolidate power,” Mr Sulzberger said. “That’s because gaining control of information is essential to controlling everything else.”
He noted, he made the statement “with a little optimism,” given the global decline of press freedom in recent years.
In countries with strong press freedoms — a group that includes the United States — journalists face “a systematic campaign to undermine their credibility, followed by attacks on the legal protections that protect their work,” he said.
Mr. Sulzberger noted that “in Russia, journalists who dare to even acknowledge the war in Ukraine face long prison terms.”
As of December 1, 2022, the committee found that 363 journalists were detained – a new global high that exceeded last year’s record by 20 percent.
Mr. Gershkovich was arrested in late March while reporting to the Russian city of Yekaterinburg and charged with espionage, a charge the United States says is false. Full-page ads in the Journal, The Times and The Washington Post last week described Mr. Gershkovich’s arrest as “the latest in a troubling trend in which journalists are harassed, arrested or worse for reporting the news.”
The program that day, in the UN General Assembly Hall, is also scheduled to include an address by Almar Latour, publisher of the Journal. World Press Freedom Day was officially celebrated on Wednesday.
Mr. Sulzberger’s speech also touched a note of optimism, saying that he was “inspired” by the work of four journalists who have been detained in their country or abroad: Maria Ressa in the Philippines, José Rubén Zamora in Guatemala, Pape Alé Niang in Senegal. and Austin Tice in Syria, among others.
In total, the show will tell the story of “the worldwide attack on journalists, their work and the public’s right to know,” Mr. Sulzberger said. “And it will only be solved if the countries that created this body act.”
Among the World Press Freedom events at the UN, panel discussions will focus on threats to journalists, journalism to promote human rights and the future of media.
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