Rakib Ahmed

In 2021, I published a paper called: 'Journalism in Onset of COVID-19 Pandemic in Bangladesh: Governance and Coping Strategies of Newspaper Journalists'. In this study, we [I and two other authors] shed light on the challenges that newspaper journalists encountered while carrying out their professional duties during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic in Bangladesh. Furthermore, this research explored the strategies that journalists followed to adapt themselves to the changed working atmosphere during the pandemic. In order to understand the professional lives of journalists in the pandemic crisis, we conducted in-depth interviews with 12 journalists, working for three Dhaka-based national dailies. The results suggested that journalists had experienced mental pressures while working under the pandemic because of multiple factors that included -- limited access to protective gear and fear of infection; protection of family members; adapting themselves to the changed working environments; and tension of losing the job in the pandemic crisis.

Definition of journalists' safety

The safety of a journalist is largely determined by the level of freedom he or she enjoys in his or her professional work. Society itself should come forward to ensure protection for professional journalists. Having said that, I think there should be provisions in a state to accommodate a journalist's professional freedom and personal safety. The state should safeguard a journalist's right to access information in almost every tire within the state including the government bodies and state offices. In addition, a journalist should not face any form of legal obstacles, pressure, and intimidation in the process of gathering and publishing news. On the other hand, news organisations should ensure job security and sufficient payment to journalists. A journalist should not experience any kind of intimidation because of his or her critical role against any person, organisation, or institution. The news organisations and civil society groups should provide legal support to journalists if they face legal charges due to their professional activities.

Future plans for research on journalists' safety

I have a plan to conduct a study focusing on the financial insecurity of Bangladeshi journalists. In general, the majority of journalists working in Bangladesh's news industry are underpaid. The scenario is even worse in the case of the local correspondents of newspapers, TVs, and radio stations. I would like to explore the factors that determine low payment [no payment in many cases] of journalists in Bangladesh and how it affects the quality of the professional work and personal well-being of journalists in Bangladesh. In the present world, ensuring financial security to journalists is crucial to improve the standard of journalistic content also to promote ethical practices in journalism.