Journalist Safety
Journalist Safety
Editor’s note: Find more safety resources on the Covering Protests, Digital Security, Mental Health, Pandemic Reporting Safety and Public Safety pages. (Photo/US National Archives via Creative Commons)
RECENT UPDATES
Acos Alliance: Freelance Journalist Safety Principles
API: The Inclusive Guide to Online Safety
UNESCO: Safety for Women Journalists Resources
CPJ: Psychological Safety – Covering Gun Violence in Your Community
Press Freedom Tracker: Incidents Database
A searchable and downloadable database from the US Press Freedom Tracker of attacks on journalists.
MMJ/TV REPORTING SAFETY
SPJ MMJ Safety Guidelines
Safety and security, legal, ethics and mental health resources for multimedia journalists.
CPJ: Why Going Solo is a Risk for Female Journalists in US, Canada
TVNewsCheck Reporter Safety a Story That Won’t Go Away
Change.org: Stop Solo Live Shots
Telling the Story Blog: Safety for Solo Video Journalists Deserves Greater Examination
Deseret News: Reporter Hit by Car on Live TV Spurs Conversation of Dangers of Reporting Alone
Occupational Safety and Health Administration
Video: Live Shot Safety
Tips for broadcasters on how to safely set up a live shot.
Quill: Accident Brings Attention to Safety of Lone Journalists in the Field
Discrepancy Report: OSHA staff launched investigation after seeing reporter hit by SUV on TV, exposing regulatory blind spot
Occupational Safety and Health Administration spokesperson told Discrepancy Report that the reporter Tori Yorgey’s television station did not report the incident after she was hit by a car on live TV.
Discrepancy Report
Site, launched in 2020, looks in-depth at various social issues, including reporter safety. It is run by Joe Douglass, who worked for 16 years in TV news for Fox and ABC affiliates in Los Angeles, California, Portland, Oregon, and Pensacola, Florida as a producer and writer.
TV News Check: MMJs Prodded to Insist on Safety
CPJ 2022 Global Impunity Index
Track crimes against journalists internationally.
Mojo Manual
A fantastic, free guide of resources and tips for mojo reporters. Built by Corinne Podger and several others, it looks at safety, storytelling, data journalism and much more, all through a mobile reporting lens.
MORE SAFETY RESOURCES
Press Freedom Tracker: Incidents Database
A searchable and downloadable database from the US Press Freedom Tracker of attacks on journalists.
Committee to Protect Journalists: Journalist Security Guide
Download from Kindle for a dollar.
CPJ: Guide to Legal Rights in the US
CPJ Safety Kit
Security guide, safety notes, resource center, first aid videos.
CPJ Video: How to Prepare to Cover a Demonstration
CPJ Video: What to Do When Demonstrations Escalate
CPJ Video: How to Deal with Teargas
RiotMedicine.net
Free medical guides to treat wounds and other needs for people in protests, covering riots, etc.
GIJN: What to Do When You are Followed
International Media Support Group: Journalist Safety
Medical training, how to set up a live shot, covering protests, etc.
James Foley Foundation: Journalist Safety
UNESCO: Safety of Women Journalists
Jam Lab: How to Cover Civil Unrest Safely
Jeff Belzil, IWMF’s security director, offers many useful tips.
CPJ: Psychological Safety – Covering Gun Violence in Your Community
GIJN Tipsheet: Essential Steps for Journalists in Emergency Situations
UNESCO: Safety for Women Journalists Resources
James F. Foley Foundation Journalism Safety Modules
A downloadable .PDF of tips and resources to keep journalists safe when doing their jobs.
James F Foley Foundation Journalist Safety Curricula
The Associated Press: Journalist Safety
RTDNA: SAFE Journalist Training and Resources
Resources are designed to provide newsroom managers, field journalists and freelancers with the knowledge and tools to stay safe during daily reporting and escalated events including civil unrest.
National Union of Journalists: IFJ Safety Guidelines for Covering Demonstrations
This is a .PDF that will auto-download when you click on the link.
Acos Alliance: Freelance Journalist Safety Principles
Poynter: Should Reporter Safety Trump Open Contact Details for Newsrooms?
Article raises serious concerns about supplying readers TOO MUCH information about reporters to the audience in the interest of transparency. It can open them up to trolling or worse.
API: The Inclusive Guide to Online Safety
Trollbusters: Generation Zeitgeist Resources
Cool, visual infographic guides to help you understand everything from how the internet works to how to keep your data safe.
Reuters Institute: Protecting Journalists From Online Abuse: A Guide for Newsrooms
GIJN: Safety and Security Videos
World Association of News Publishers: Journalist Safety
UK: National Committee for the Safety of Journalists
GIJN: Essential Steps for Journalists in Emergency Situations
Nieman Lab: How Risky is it for Journalists to Cover Protests
The New York Times: At Protests Across America, Guns Are Doing the Talking
SPJ’s Ethics committee offers tips and resources.
GIJN: The Journalism Security Assessment Tool
A safety evaluation guide for watchdog journalism groups. Take a survey for assessment.
Council of Europe: Safety of Journalists
Free Press Unlimited: Journalist Safety
International Women’s Media Foundation: Guide to Protecting Newsrooms and Journalists Against OnlineViolence
A resource for newsrooms to better protect staff targeted simply for doing their jobs.
Dart Center: How to Safely Cover Street Protests
From Judith Matloff, senior adviser, safety training: “Covering civil unrest can be frightening and dangerous. A crowd may turn violent with little warning and police can target journalists or mistake them for rabble rousers. It’s particularly challenging to maintain social distancing during a riot, so take extra precautions to stay on the edge for quick exit. Bring extra masks, gloves and sanitizer for gear.”
ROAAAR
A personal safety training initiative that gives you some basic and easy to use tools to help you feel safe. It specializes in self-defense for journalists.
GIJN: What to Do If Authorities Invade Your Home
Dart Center: Covering Riot Control in the U.S.
Dr. Anna Feigenbaum, author of the book Tear Gas: From the Battlefields of World War I to the Streets of Today, shares a riot control primer for journalists covering protests across the United States.
RTDNA Guidelines for Covering Civil Unrest
Lenfest Institute: A Journalist’s Guide to Safely and Responsibly Covering Protests
Internews: Covering a Protest? Resources to Keep You Safe
Available in English and Spanish. Offers mobile security resources, too.
Protection of Journalists: Safety and Justice in Latin America and the Caribbean
This e-book, “Protection of Journalists: Safety and Justice in Latin America and the Caribbean,” is a compilation of 14 stories focused on four big topics: 1) coverage of protests, 2) reporting on violent conflict, 3) development of protection mechanisms, and 4) investigation and prosecution of violence against journalists.
Washington Post: Digital Mobs Are Now Coming for Student Media
UNESCO Observatory of Killed Journalists
The UNESCO platform provides data on journalists killed since 1993, including their name, nationality, and gender. The judicial inquiry status of the case, country in which the journalist was killed, DG condemnation (link), and Member State response (when available) are also provided.
Poynter: Guidelines for Journalists to Safely Cover Protests
How the NY Times Acts When a Reporter’s Safety is Compromised
Reporters Without Borders: Safety Guide for Journalists
Dart Center: Covering Volatile Street Protests
Reporters Without Borders: Safety Guide for Journalists
IWMF: Covering Injustice — Safety Tips for Reporting on Protests
American Assoication of University Women: Workplace Harassment
Organization advocates for fair pay and economic opportunity for women — and the battle continues: Women still get just 83 cents for every dollar paid to a man, and men continue to dominate the top roles and highest-paying professions.
TrollBusters: Global Safety Resource Hub
A map of security tools from around the world.
Trollbusters Video: A Conversation on Media Safety and Coverage
This panel brings together educators teaching journalism in the face of increased violence in the streets targeting journalists and student journalists. Strategies for staying safe at protests and online come from educators at HBCUs and minority-serving institutions and from Dr. Michelle Ferrier, Founder, TrollBusters.com.
IJNET: Tips for reporting on anti-police violence protests in the U.S.
Poynter: What to Do if You’re Pepper-Sprayed
University of Georgia: Tips for Journalist’s Covering Protests
Freedom of the Press Foundation: What to Do if Your Phone is Seized by Police
Surveillance Self-Defense List
Go over this checklist before heading out to cover a protest. Tips on encryption and other digital and personal safety. Includes tips on what to do if your device is confiscated.
Nieman Reports: Why Some Journalists Are Centering Trauma-Informed Reporting
IJNET: Staying Safe While Covering Protests
Medium: Dressed for Excess: Gear for Covering Riots, Protests, Etc.
Amnesty International: Safety During a Protest
Journalism.co.uk: How to Report on Online Hate Groups Safely
CJR: Covering Protests Has Become the Riskiest Job in Journalism
Minneapolis Star Tribune: KARE Reporter on Receiving Vulgar Slur from a Minnesota Man
Offers good advice on dealing with these situations.
Twitter Thread: What to Do if Your Protest Rights are Violated
IJNET: Mental Health Tips and Resources for Journalists
A single page of safety tips and outreach contact information.
Nieman Reports: Protest Photography Can Be a Powerful Tool For and Against Black Lives Matter
Washington Post: Are Police Trying to Stop You from Taking That Cell Phone Video?
Education Writers Association: EWA Reporter Guide for Inclusive Coverage
NPPA: Practical Advice About Covering High Profile News Stories
Some great tips in this Mickey Osterreicher piece about covering protests and elections.
Journalist Safety Gear List on Amazon
Nieman Lab: How Journalists Are Managing Their Mental Health
TRFilter
This tool from Thomson Reuters allows users to document and manage online harassment and abuse, so they can take control of their social media feeds and focus on their professional activities.
Journalism Source of Safety
An in-progress database that produces, compiles and organizes checklists, tips, gear advice, and other necessary security training elements for all journalists, including freelancers and students, with an emphasis on equity and ethics. It is intended to be a globally networked resource that centers transparency and accessibility in addressing specific risk management tools, techniques and considerations for journalists with diverse bodies and backgrounds reporting in a variety of environments.
The Taliban Detained Me for Doing My Job. I Can Never Go Back.
Foreign Policy columnist Lynne O’Donnell on a harrowing return to Kabul, almost one year after the United States left Afghanistan.
Related
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