Researchers from the Department of Communication and Media at the University of Liverpool have launched a unique one-stop online resource on journalists’ safety in-cooperation with UNESCO and the Worlds of Journalism Study for academics and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) to collaborate on improving safety for journalists globally.
The platform http://safetyofjournalists.org aims to make academic research more accessible for NGOs and journalists, promote evidence-based policy making and, above all, make it easier for all organisations to work together towards the common goal of improving journalists’ safety.
Journalists working in exile or in countries with significant restrictions on press freedom can use the platform to access information about key organisations, tools and resources. Civil society organisations can use the platform to draw upon hundreds of studies to improve their practices in supporting journalists in need. The platform also contains interviews with champions of journalists’ safety who offer ways forward for improvement.
Journalists across the world are still subject to threats, violence, imprisonment and even death when trying to exercise freedom of expression. Digital and legal threats are also on the rise worldwide. Working with UNESCO and the Worlds of Journalism Study, researchers at the University of Liverpool aim to use the platform and their research to help create a free and safe environment for journalists.
Platform lead, Dr Vera Slavtcheva-Petkova, Reader in Global Journalism and Media at the University of Liverpool, also collaborates with colleagues from the Worlds of Journalism study which maps the environment that journalists work in across 120 countries.
Dr Slavtcheva-Petkova said: “The platform is an excellent resource for anyone working on improving journalists’ safety as well as for journalists, students and scholars. It contains hundreds of excellent studies, interviews with champions of safety, reports, toolboxes, databases and profiles of academic experts and key NGOs.
“I am grateful to all academics and NGOs for making their work available free of charge and to our partners for supporting this initiative. It is brilliant to see so many people united by this common cause of improving journalism safety and journalists’ ability to serve their societies worldwide.”
The Chief of Freedom of Expression and Safety of Journalists Section at UNESCO Guilherme Canela De Souza Godoi said the platform is “a very important element in the overall endeavour of producing better knowledge sharing and knowledge management.” He said it will provide policy-makers with the evidence they need to achieve a better impact in improving the safety of journalists worldwide and the issue of impunity, stating “It is a pleasure for us to join this initiative. I’m sure our teams not only in Paris but in our different field offices will make a lot of use of the knowledge that is shared in this portal.”
Professor Thomas Hanitzsch, Chair of the Worlds of Journalism Study, said: “This is a very important move forward in helping journalists deal with safety issues, and in terms of policy making, spreading knowledge about what the situation of journalists is around the world and what we can do to improve it.”
Guy Berger, former UNESCO Director covering policy in digital and media development and freedom of expression said: “This is a unique resource about researchers and civil society organisations and their outputs on the topic of protecting journalists from attacks. It’s a really useful one-stop knowledge shop.”
The project is funded by Research England, Public Policy Quality-Related Funding 2022-5 scheme.