News

On Assignment? Improve Your Digital Safety With These Simple Steps

Over the last few years, computer security has finally become a discussion for more than just system administrators. These days one of the main concerns, understandably, is the security of data once it's left your machine. Once the data is out of your hands, it seems to be uncommonly easy to intercept.

Encryption goes a long way to prevent "across the air" surveillance, but there’s also a mentality in the computer security world: If someone has physical access to your machine, nothing can stop them.

When at home, most of these concerns can be managed.

Improving Security for Mexican Journalists who ‘Too Often Pay with their Lives’

The violence that continues to rock Mexico has created a “zone of silence” where reporters have to choose between reporting and dying, or keeping quiet and surviving, said Jorge Luis Sierra, the International Center for Journalists’ (ICFJ's) Knight International Journalism Fellow focusing on digital security. Sierra spoke during a March 18 panel discussion on Capitol Hill organized by Freedom House and ICFJ.

2014 Knight Award Winner: ‘Journalism Gave Me Platform’ to Change Society

Oluwatoyosi Ogunseye, winner of the 2014 Knight International Journalism Award, says that journalists should view every story they work on as equally important.

“People ask me, ‘What’s your best story?’ And I say, ‘Every story that I’ve done.’ Because whether it’s a big story or a small story, I give the same dedication, I give it the same commitment that is required of me.”

And for Ogunseye, that mentality is about more than just her duty as a journalist.

“All the stories I’ve done are so dear to my heart

Open-Data Movement Proves 'Data is Everywhere'

Ever since information became readily available on the web, transparency advocates have pushed for public open-data formats. Groups like ILDA in Latin America and the international OGP Open Data working group strive to not only research and analyze the openness of public data, but also assess how infomediaries are using open data.

Journalists, civic hackers, academia and civil society organizations are some of the most active open-data users, transforming data into consumable information for the public.

Advice from 2014 Knight Award Winner: 'Keep Your Passion Alive'

Alejandra Xanic von Bertrab, winner of the 2014 Knight International Journalism Award, says the key to becoming a successful journalist is to find “ways to keep your passion alive and healthy.”

The Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist adds that journalists must also stay positive. "The newsroom can become a very, very hard place where we run into people who have either become mad or become isolated or become a bit sour," she said.

Knight's Ibargüen: 'If you care about journalism, you have to care about technology'

Radical changes introduced by the digital age have created exciting possibilities for journalism to inform and illuminate the public, said Alberto Ibargüen, president of the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.

In accepting the W.M. Kiplinger Award for Distinguished Contributions from the National Press Foundation, Ibargüen emphasized the importance of maintaining core journalistic values while embracing the changes brought on by the technology revolution.

Journalists at Risk Map Illustrates Stunning Number of Attacks on Journalists in Mexico

The dangers faced by journalists around the world have been a prominent subject in the news lately. From reporters captured by ISIS to those whose computers have been hacked by their own governments, attacks on journalists come in many forms.

Introducing New Standards and Principles for Journalists’ Safety

Independent journalists face new, alarming threats around the world.

How Knight Fellow Nasr ul Hadi is Transforming Newsrooms in India

Knight International Journalism Fellow Nasr ul Hadi has worn a lot of hats throughout his journalism career.

He’s been a copy editor, tried every medium from broadcast to print to online and even taught the next class of journalists as a professor. Throughout his career, Hadi has worked with the editorial and business sides of news production and alongside interns, reporters, editors and upper management.

His wide-ranging knowledge of media will help him face his next challenge.

Meet the New Director of the Knight International Journalism Fellowships

The International Center for Journalists (ICFJ) has named Benjamin Colmery as the director of the Knight International Journalism Fellowships. He replaces Jorge Luis Sierra, who will become a Knight Fellow specializing in global security initiatives for journalists.

Since 2010, Colmery has been the deputy director of the program.