The case of the American journalist being shot dead and the harsh reality of the profession

Reporters Without Borders said that from the beginning of the year to August 2015, 22 journalists were killed and more than 160 were imprisoned.

The shooting of two American journalists on August 26 in Virginia is shaking public opinion in the United States. The two victims, reporter Alison Parker, 24, and cameraman Adam Ward, 27, working for WDBJ7 (Roanoke, Virginia), were shot dead while filming live.

Female journalist Alison Parker, 24 years old, was interviewed on a live TV show of WDBJ7 in Virginia (USA) on August 26. Photo from WDBJ7 clip.

According to police, the suspect in this shooting is Vester Flanagan, 41 years old, an African American. Updates on the social media account of a person who appears to be Flanagan show that the suspect has a previous dissatisfaction with WDBJ7, the station fired him 2 years ago.

However, while being chased by police after the shooting, the suspect Flanagan committed suicide and later died in the hospital. This is just one of many attacks and murders of journalists in the US.

More than 10 American journalists have been shot dead since 1991.

According to RT, more than 10 American journalists have been shot dead in connection with their work since 1991. These incidents have shaken public opinion for a long time.

In August 2007, Oakland Post investigative reporter Chauncey Bailey (57 years old) was shot repeatedly by a masked man on the streets of Oakland. It is known that Mr. Bailey had just been the Editor-in-Chief of the Oakland Post for 2 months before he was murdered.

Investigative writer Chauncey Bailey. (photo: RT)

The man who murdered journalist Bailey, Devaughndre Broussard, turned himself in the day after the crime. He said he was angry about an investigative article about his employer, Your Black Muslim Bakery. Journalist Bailey believed the bakery was involved in criminal activities.

Two years after Bailey's death, police discovered that the mastermind behind the murder was a bakery owner named Yusuf Bey IV. He plotted to kill Bailey because Bailey was about to expose his crimes.

In October 2001, America was once again shaken by the death of 63-year-old journalist Robert Stevens, a photo editor for The Sun newspaper in Boca Raton, Florida. Robert Stevens was assassinated by an item containing the deadly anthrax virus sent to him. The perpetrator was identified as microbiologist Bruce Ivins, who committed suicide in 2008 after hearing that the FBI was preparing to charge him with murder.

In connection with the September 11 attacks, freelance photojournalist Bill Biggart, 54, was killed while traveling to the WTC twin towers to photograph the event. His body and camera were discovered under the rubble on September 15, 2001. His photos of the September 11 tragedy were later exhibited by the American Museum of History and the International Center of Photography.

Article about brave photojournalist Bill Biggart. (photo: RT)

On October 18, 2000, journalist James Edwin Richards was murdered at his home in Venice, California. He was the editor of Neighborhood News, which specialized in exposing the truth about shootings, drugs, and theft. He even went to the scene to investigate and take photos of drug trafficking. This made Mr. Richards a target of many hate criminals who killed him.

Journalist Manuel de Dios Unanue was the host of a radio show called “What Others Try to Silence,” where he exposed drug lords on the air. He also published a book about drug trafficking organizations, as well as a series of photographs of their crimes. On March 11, 1992, he was assassinated in a Queens bar under the control of a Colombian drug lord.

Additionally, three Haitian-American journalists were murdered in Little Haiti, Miami, within three years. Jean-Claude Olivier, who worked at radio station WLQY, was murdered on his way out to his parking lot on February 18, 1991, because of his outspoken political views. Olivier supported then-newly elected Haitian President Jean-Bertrand Aristide, who was overthrown by a military junta later that year.

Olivier's colleague, Fritz D'Or, a radio host for WLQY, a prominent activist and public figure in Little Haiti, was assassinated on March 15, 1991, after receiving repeated threats for his support of President Aristide.

Dona St. Olite was a Haitian-born reporter for Miami radio station WKAT. He was murdered on October 24, 1993, after raising funds for the family of Fritz D'Or. He was also a supporter of Haitian President Aristide.

Journalists around the world face threats every day.

Danger has long been seen as part of the journalism profession. According to USA Today, murders of journalists in the US are rare, but they are often under mental pressure.

Journalists in the US face personal harassment, threats of violence, online abuse…. These acts can be carried out simply with a click on social media channels.

More frighteningly, emotional harassment can turn violent and cause unforeseeable consequences. Remember, earlier this year, on January 7, all 12 people working at the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo were killed in a shooting.

The remaining Charlie Hebdo staff after the attack. (Photo: Reuters)

This satirical magazine, based in Paris (France), was founded in 1970 and is famous for its daring caricatures and daring satires aimed at politicians, public figures and even religious icons.

The cause of the Charlie Hebdo shooting is believed to have stemmed from caricatures of IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, which put the newspaper in the crosshairs of Islamic extremist organizations.

Amnesty said the Charlie Hebdo incident had awakened the world to the harsh reality of the threats thousands of journalists face every day.

Just a few days ago, on August 7, journalist Gleydson Carvalho, who works for a radio station called Radio Liberdade FM in Camocim, Ceara state (southeast Brazil), was shot 5 times in the studio, 3 of which were in the head.

Carvalho was rushed to hospital but died en route. He was known to be a fierce critic of government corruption. AFP quoted police as saying they suspected it was a politically motivated murder.

Danger has long been seen as part of journalism. (photo: Flickr / Birger Hoppe)

According to Reporters Without Borders, Brazil is the third most dangerous country for journalists in Latin America, after Mexico and Honduras, with 38 journalists killed between 2000 and 2014.

According to Amnesty International, 22 journalists were killed and more than 160 imprisoned from the beginning of the year to August 2015. In 2014, nearly 100 journalists died because of their work.

“Anywhere in the world you can find stories of journalists being harassed, threatened or even killed,” said Susanna Flood, Director of Communications at Amnesty International.

"Journalists are not criminals. They are the eyes and ears of society. They deserve to be protected while doing their jobs legally," Ms. Susanna Flood emphasized./.

According to VOV