PF Africa Environmental Journalists Violence
Metadata
- PF Africa Environmental Journalists Violence
- July 4, 2024
- Content Type Package
- Language English
- Transcript/Script ((PLAYBOOK SLUG: TV PF Africa Environmental Journalists Violence HEADLINE: Dangers to media covering environment beat are rising TEASER: Coverage of illegal poaching, mining, pollution increases risk of attack or threat, analysts say PUBLISHED AT: 7/4/24, 2:57 pm BYLINE: Robin Guess CONTRIBUTOR: DATELINE: VIDEOGRAPHER: VIDEO EDITOR: ASSIGNING EDITOR: Jessica Jerreat SCRIPT EDITORS: JJ, Baragona VIDEO SOURCE (S): AFP, ZOOM, JoyNews, AP and Reuters PLATFORMS (mark with X): WEB __ TV x RADIO x TRT: 3:25 VID APPROVED BY: Baragona TYPE: EDITOR NOTES: For Press Freedom. Questions and review: Jessica Jerreat jjerreat@voanews.com Robin Guess rguess@voanews.com )) Frame Footage here: https://app.frame.io/projects/3a7571d0-52e9-4c82-b870-af9ea49e1d64/f6e7f13a-32d7-4603-9835-a985a553a936 ((INTRO)) [[Violence against reporters covering environmental issues is trending upwards, according to UNESCO and media advocates. For VOA News, Robin Guess reports.]] ((VIDEO: “Over 30 fully-armed military...” 5:08)) Ghana’s Joy News covers illegal gold mining destroying the country’s forests. ((0:43-0:51)) ((NAT SOUND)) “Abandoned pits and mining settlements dot the road leading to the remaining part of the forest.” ((2:10 Erastus standup)) When journalist Erastus Asare Donkor went to investigate, ((shots from 3:06-3:29 military men)) armed men in uniform confronted him and his crew. ((Erastus Asare Donkor, Environmental Journalist )) ((Male, English)) ((Erastus Asare Donkor at 12:10)) ((Mandatory credit: Zoom)) “They wrestled with my camera technician for the camera and broke it in the process. They made him delete all of the footage on the camera. They smashed our windscreen and punched my driver several times in the face. It was horrible.” ((optional cutaway to shots of broken camera, mirror, windshield)) ((VIDEO: Poisoned for Gold/ :22 Erastus reporting with tainted river background CUT TO video Forests Under Seige at 21:56 illegal mining operation with back hoes in use/CUT TO 2:54 murky water flows around branch and transitions to side shot of dirty river.)) ((Mandatory Credit: JoyNews)) CUT TO ((VIDEO: Reuters, Safrica-Rhino @2:09 rhino dead/to @ 2:21 measuring horn/ CUT to Nigeria Wildlife tusk being packed up :23/ cut to Diamond at :07 loose diamonds to wide, medium to tight shot)) ((Mandatory Credit: Reuters)) ((NARRATOR)) Ghana’s 2022 journalist of the year, Asare Donkor documents the environmental costs of illegal gold mining. His stories expose the connections of illegal mining to the spread of disease, deforestation and widespread pollution in rivers and streams. The International Federation of Journalists finds reporting on poaching, illegal mining and illegal logging is hazardous across Africa. But legal mining is also problematic. ((For Radio: Here’s Louis Thomasi, Africa director of the International Federation of Journalists)) ((Louis Thomasi, International Federation of Journalists))((Male, English))((Louis Thomasi at 2:20)) ((Mandatory Credit, Zoom)) “Journalists who report on the activities of these big corporations are seriously threatened. They are seriously threatened and they are not actually allowed to report on such activities, especially when it comes to environmental degradation.” ((VIDEO: Reuters Safrica-Mining nat full 2 seconds rocks being shaken at :53 allow to roll/ cut to 4:42 workers moving tubes allow to roll to sign “no entery”/ cut to Video AP DRC child miners at :55 sack of mining haul placed on child’s back and carried away )) ((Mandatory Credit, Reuters)) ((Mandatory Credit, AP)) ((NARRATOR)) Thomasi says environmental journalists face attacks, detention and arrests. And in Africa, he adds, dangers exist in every nation with valuable and exploitable resources. ((Louis Thomasi, International Federation of Journalists,))((Male, English)) ((Louis Thomasi at 2:40)) ((Mandatory Credit, Zoom)) “They are subjected to serious threats which actually force them to abandon the line of thought or the reports that they are engaging.” [[VOA GFX being produced showing 749 journalists, media outlets attacked; 44 killed globally. GFX data already copy edited]] [[Back up footage if GFX delay: ((Video: Illegal Forests Under Seige at :22 tight shots of forests to wide aerial shots of forests, ((Mandatory Credit: JoyNews)) Video: AP Video AP DRC child miners at 2:29 man crawls out of mine hole/ cut to Video: Over 30 fully-armed… at 1:09 captured illegal miners sitting on ground)) ((Mandatory Credit: AP)) ((NARRATOR)) In its May report, Press and Planet in Danger, UNESCO finds 749 journalists and media outlets attacked globally from 2009 to 2023. And 44 reporters slain for their environmental coverage. ((For radio: Here’s Guilherme Canela, UNESCO Chief of Freedom of Expression and Safety of Journalists Section)) ((Guilherme Canela, UNESCO)) ((Male, English)) ((Guilherme Canela at 4:07) ((Mandatory Credit, Zoom)) ( Video Editor: this is probably too short to cg) “It shows it is a planetary problem. Journalists who are trying to uncover corruption, or whatever, related to environmental issues, they are being attacked everywhere.” ((VIDEO: Fight Against Illegal Mining at 3:35 military intervention of illegal mining)) ((Mandatory Credit, JoyNews)) ((NARRATOR)) According to UNESCO, attacks against environmental reporters are rising sharply. ((Guilherme Canela, UNESCO))((Male, English)) ((Guilherme Canela at 6:18) ((Mandatory Credit, Zoom)) “The number of attacks, they are concentrated, they are higher over the last five years. So, it’s now only that it is a lot, but it is showing that there is, unfortunately, a trend of a growing number of attacks and violations.” ((Narrator)) For journalists on the ground, the risks are ever present. ((Erastus Asare Donkor, Environmental Journalist)) ((Male, English)) ((Erastus Asare Donkor at 4:23)) ((Mandatory credit: Zoom) “So, constantly I face danger. I face a lot of danger during my work. Armed people, people who wouldn’t want the truth to come out and so I must say every trip is a risk.” ((VIDEO: Video: Over 30 fully-armed… at 2:09 Erastus reporting let roll/ cut to 4:45 wide shot of destroyed forest and mining operation/cu to polluted river 5:04 )) ((Mandatory credit, JoyNews) Asare Donkor says he’s only armed with a camera, a drone and his crew. But adds he cannot let the violence stop him from revealing the environmental damage being done. ((Robin Guess, VOA News))
- NewsML Media Topics Arts, Culture, Entertainment and Media
- Subtitles / Dubbing Available No
- Network VOA
- Embargo Date July 4, 2024 15:40 EDT
- Byline Robin Guess
- Brand / Language Service Voice of America - English