2024 was deadliest year for journalists with 124 reporters killed, Committee to Protect Journalists says
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Record Number of Journalists Killed in 2024
Above: Funeral of Al-Jazeera cameraman Hamza Al-Dahdouh, who was killed alongside freelance video journalist Mustafa Thuraya in an Israeli drone strike, in Rafah, Gaza. Image copyright: Stringer/Contributor/Anadolu via Getty Images
The Spin
Narrative A
This rise in the global number of journalists killed poses a threat to global democracy and freedom. Information is power, and ongoing threats to the safety of those individuals courageous enough to document conflict and geopolitical instability is a worrying trend that could lead to the further curtailing of freedoms.
Narrative B
The rising numbers of journalist deaths are not a cause in themselves, but a symptom of broader global instability and rising populism. With democracy across the world "in a state of persistent decline," all while polarization expands and public trust in establishment bodies suffers, journalists are naturally facing more and more threats. Data also suggests that conflict and political violence rose significantly in 2024, meaning an increase in the rates of journalists killed was to be expected.