Refusing to Be Silenced: The Importance of Exiled Media
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By: Sharon Moshavi | 04/25/2024 Today, 71 percent of people live in countries that are considered autocratic. That's up from 48 percent just a decade ago. The independent research institute at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden that published these figures also found that nearly four dozen more countries are "autocratizing."
The implications of this are profound. In the most oppressive autocracies, freedom of expression, freedom of association, free and fair elections and other democratic values are absent. In others, they may be present in part but insufficient. In the work we do at ICFJ, we see these trends up close. It is particularly evident in the increasing number of journalists forced to flee their homes due to threats designed to silence them. They come from every region of the world, countries like El Salvador and Nicaragua, Syria and Türkiye, Belarus and Russia, Hong Kong and Myanmar…the list goes on and on.
Recognizing the growing need, we have ramped up support for exiled journalists, many of whom face threats even after relocating. Examples include: The needs of exiled media are urgent and unique, which is why tailored, increased support is so important. It helps ensure talented, courageous journalists who have lost so much can continue to empower their communities with information that pushes back against propaganda and disinformation - even from afar. Journalists in every corner of the world have received support from ICFJ since the organization was founded 40 years ago. They include reporters, editors and producers, as well as people on the business side of media, technologists working on media innovation, journalism faculty and students, and representatives of our partner organizations across the globe. Together, they make up the unparalleled ICFJ network.
The Syrian Civil War has claimed the lives of more than 500,000 people since protests against the government during the Arab Spring ignited into conflict in 2011. Nearly 7 million Syrians have fled abroad in a mass exodus, and an equivalent number have been displaced inside the country - in total, over half of Syria's pre-war population. The war has since faded from global attention but Syrian journalists continue to report on it today, while bearing witness to the crimes committed in what has been one of the 21st century's deadliest conflicts.
Anubha Bhonsle is an Indian journalist whose career has focused on developing new kinds of storytelling. Based in Delhi, Bhonsle has led groundbreaking initiatives related to gender and sanitation. She's the founder of Newsworthy.Studio, and covers India, the Global South, current affairs, gender, climate adaptation and rights.
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