Terror groups have always looked to use the media to spread their messages and fear amongst the victimized population. In 2019, the landscape of journalism has changed dramatically since the days of traditional media. The Vietnam War was the first “living-room war” where people at home across the globe were able to watch reports from the war zone and so the role, importance and influence of the war zone journalist changed forever. Since then and the advent of the internet and handheld devices the “dinner hour living-room war” is now a 24/7 live-action reality show. The nature of war has changed drastically from states fighting one another to states fighting non-state actors that do not always respect the job of the journalists and so the job has changed once again.

This workshop aims to answer the questions of what is the role of the journalist when covering acts of terrorism, especially in war zones. What are the challenges journalists face when covering terrorist groups in war zones? How does the journalist maintain fair and balanced coverage when overwhelmed by the atrocities of war? How does a journalist compete with all the citizen journalists? Throughout the workshop, the expert panelists will give insight through their vast experience while trying to put forward solutions to some of the great challenges that journalists face when covering terrorism within the larger context of a war zone.

 

The workshop is being organized in collaboration with the Daniel Pearl International Journalism Institute, honoring journalist Daniel Pearl and journalist Steven Sotloff.