Journalist death toll rises to 68 in 2009, says CPJ

At least 68 journalists worldwide were killed for their work in 2009, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists' (CPJ) annual census.

The highest ever number recorded by the yearly report, the number of deaths in 2009 rose steeply after 31 media workers, including 29 journalists, were killed in the Philippines last month.

Other fatalities were the result of neglect or mistreatment during imprisonment for work-related charges and revenge attacks carried out by the subjects of investigative stories.

The new figures represent a 60 per cent rise in the death toll from the 42 deaths recorded in 2008. All but two of the victims in 2009 were local journalists and nine were freelancers, according to the census.

"This has been a year of unprecedented devastation for the world's media, but the violence also confirms long-term trends," says Joel Simon, CPJ executive director, in a press statement.

"Most of the victims were local reporters covering news in their own communities. The perpetrators assumed, based on precedent, that they would never be punished. Whether the killings are in Iraq or the Philippines, in Russia or Mexico, changing this assumption is the key to reducing the death toll."

The deaths in the Philippines were deadliest event in the CPJ's history and the result of long-term, unpunished violence against journalists in the country, the committee said.

CPJ is still investigating the deaths of 20 other journalist in the past year to decide if they relate to their profession. These additional deaths would tally the committee's report with that released by the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA) last month, which says 88 journalists had been killed so far in 2009.

The organisation will release an updated list of journalists killed in 2009 in January. Full details of the CPJ's census and individual reports on the deaths can be found on the database at this link.

Free daily newsletter

If you like our news and feature articles, you can sign up to receive our free daily (Mon-Fri) email newsletter (mobile friendly).