People are learning new ways to attack journalists. Сan we defend them?

As of early December 2025, 124 journalists have been killed worldwide, and 377 are behind bars. These figureswere published on the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) website. The number of journalists killed has already matched last year’s record-breaking figure. More than 50 of them died during the war in Gaza. According to CPJ Executive Director Jodie Ginsberg, in recent years Israel has deliberatelytried to portray journalists as terrorists or their sympathizers. This is done to undermine public trust in them. As a result, it creates an environment where no justification is needed for killing journalists.Today, there are also some positive developments in reporting on the war in Gaza. Ginsberg believes that people are finally doing their work as journalists, no longer taking Israel’s official position as the ultimate truth. They are asking uncomfortable questions, verifying information, and gathering facts to find out what is really happening. However, previous coverage of events in Gaza will have consequencesfor journalism for decades to come.The trend of branding journalists as a security threat is also observed in other countries. “If journalists arebranded as security risks simply for wanting to find out information and facts and disseminate them, restricting their work becomes increasingly justified» CPJ’s executive directoremphasizes. The conversation between Nataliya Gumenyuk and Jodie Ginsberg covers the “normalization” of journalist killings, the state of American journalism during President Trump’s tenure, whether it is possible to protectemployees of propaganda media, and the pressure on journalists through legal means.This publication was compiled with the support of the International Renaissance Foundation. It’s content is the exclusive responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily reflect the views of the International Renaissance Foundation.Do you like our podcast? Support the Public Interest Journalism Lab with a Donationhttps://www.journlab.online/donations