Panel to address press freedom while working in conflict zones, March 24
International reporting provides domestic audiences a window to understand the world around them. But when journalists cover life in a conflict zone, it's not unlike a soldier's deployment. Correspondents and photographers safeguard themselves as best they can, they leave worried loved ones behind, and they befriend and rely on in-country colleagues – often in areas with much less trust of the media than domestic audiences.
In “Press Freedom in Conflict Zones – Coverage, Crisis, Closure,” National Press Club panelists will go beyond the physical and mental preparation for working in conflict zones. They’ll discuss firsthand and practical measures to cope with emotions and the complex situations that can arise. All have implications for the stories told – and going untold – for audiences back home.
The discussion will take place from 6 p.m. to 7:15 p.m. Tuesday, March 24, at the Club. Tickets are $10; $5 for Club members. Claim your tickets online today.
About the panelists
Sebastian Meyer is an award-winning photographer and filmmaker, and recipient of multiple grants from The Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting. Meyer’s editorial photographs have been published in Time, Fortune, The Sunday Times Magazine, the FT Magazine, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, The New York Times, among many others. Meyer has also made films for National Geographic, PBS NewsHour, Channel 4 News, CNN, and HBO. His current book, "Under Every Yard of Sky," is an unprecedented and intimate journey through modern Iraqi Kurdistan. For 10 years, Meyer covered the Kurdistan region of Iraq. During that time, he co-founded the first Iraqi photo agency with his friend, Kamaran Najm, an Iraqi photojournalist. Their agency, Metrography, trained a generation of Iraqi photographers. In 2014, Kamaran was kidnapped by insurgents. Meyer threw himself into the search that continues to this day. Meyer will have copies of the book available for purchase and signing after the event.
Liz Frank is the Director of Programs and Operations at Hostage US, a nonprofit organization that supports families of Americans taken hostage abroad and hostages when they return home. Frank leads the Family Support Program and oversees the support delivered to families and former hostages and oversees business operations. Prior to joining Hostage US, Frank focused her career in the nonprofit sector spending time in Nepal as part of a post-earthquake rebuild team focused on rebuilding damaged homes and schools.
Moderator Elizabeth Hagedorn is a freelance journalist covering Syria, Iraq and the wider region for outlets including Middle East Eye, The Guardian, Public Radio International and The National. Her recent work has focused on Syrians displaced by the war and communities recovering from ISIS in Iraq. She is currently serving as the vice-chair of the Club's International Correspondents Team.
Please direct questions to Jim Kuhnhenn, National Press Club Journalism Institute Press Freedom Fellow, at [email protected].