On disposable journalists – Nagham Zbeedat in Haaretz:

‘The Israeli airstrike on Nasser Hospital in Gaza, which killed 22 people including five journalists and photojournalists, has sparked widespread condemnation. Just weeks earlier, an Israeli strike targeted a media tent near Shifa Hospital, killing Al Jazeera correspondent Anas al-Sharif and four of his colleagues.
The killings and the reactions to them in the international press now have many Palestinians discussing whether Western media has lost its credibility – and questioning the relationship between foreign news outlets and the Gazan journalists on the ground.
Increasingly, Palestinian journalists in Gaza are refusing interviews with foreign media. Their families, friends and colleagues now fear their loved ones are putting their lives on the line, while being treated as easily replaceable contributors to news cycles that seem to prioritize headlines over the lives behind them.’

(…)

‘Khoudary accused foreign media of treating Palestinian journalists as disposable headlines rather than colleagues worth defending. "We are being hunted and killed in Gaza while you watch in silence," she wrote. "For two years, your fellow journalists here have been slaughtered. What did you do? Nothing. Or maybe it's because we are Palestinian journalists – we don't count as 'real' colleagues in your eyes."’

(…)

‘Around the same time, Valerie Zink, a Canadian freelance photographer who had worked with Reuters for eight years, publicly announced her resignation following the death of one of the agency's cameramen in the same strike. She accused Reuters of enabling attacks on journalists in Gaza by uncritically repeating Israeli claims, stating: "It's become impossible for me to maintain a relationship with Reuters given its role in justifying and enabling the systematic assassination of 245 journalists in Gaza," citing the death toll reported by Palestinian authorities.’

(…)

‘Former photojournalist Abdullah Sh., who once worked in Gaza, announced he would no longer continue his work after a January 2024 Israeli strike killed the wife, son, daughter, and toddler grandson of Al Jazeera journalist Wael Dahdouh. He said the decision came out of fear for his own family's safety.
"In my opinion, Wael Dahdouh gave more to Gaza and the Palestinian people than anyone else since the war began. His family was killed simply because he was showing the world the genocide happening in Gaza," Abdullah told Haaretz. "But after the killing of his children, grandchild, and wife, did anything change? No. That's why I decided I have a responsibility to protect my family before anything else. The world already sees what's happening here, and risking the lives of the people I love just to show it again to an audience of onlookers is not a sacrifice worth making."’

(…)

‘When asked about the lack of Palestinian voices in international coverage, as many local journalists now refuse to speak to foreign media, he replied: "We've been speaking for two years and nobody listens. Whether we speak or stay silent, the result for Palestinians is the same. Foreign media is only concerned with profit, and our stories are no longer profitable. We've become unprofitable headlines."’

(…)

‘Families describe the anguish of watching their loved ones risk their lives for international outlets that, in their view, mistreat Palestinian journalists. The word "disposable" comes up in every conversation. Their grief is deepened by mistrust, as many question whether foreign media truly value their local colleagues, or simply see them as interchangeable in an endless news cycle.
Wafa H., a Palestinian elementary school teacher from Rafah, shared her own experience with Haaretz. "My cousin, who had worked in journalism for nearly four years, was killed along with her family in an Israeli strike." Like Ismail, Wafa also chose not to name her cousin. "She wasn't the first journalist to be assassinated. And still, Western media continue to give their platforms to Israel's false claims. The whole world knows these statements are just tricks meant to distract from the real tragedy."’

(…)

‘When asked why he continues to post despite the danger, Muhammed replies immediately: "Because this is all I can do. And staying silent feels worse than death."
"The same Western media that say they want the truth," he said, "are the ones who look away when the truth is what we give them."’

Read the article here.

‘Whether we speak or stay silent, the result for Palestinians is the same.’

But also: ‘Staying silent feels worse than death.’

An editor-in-chief of a (Dutch) newspaper once told that he was in the business of producing news. He added, ‘it’s not that we are lying and I don’t mean to be cynical, but that’s our business.’

Also in that business, the employees are disposable, some more than others.