In just one year in Bosnia, thirty of my colleagues died. There is a little Somme waiting for all innocent journalists.
Interpretation
Journalists often face danger in their pursuit of truth, sacrificing their safety for the greater good.
This quote by Robert Fisk highlights the perilous nature of journalism, particularly in conflict zones. It serves as a sobering reminder of the sacrifices made by those who seek to report the truth, as they risk their lives to uncover the realities of war and injustice. The reference to the 'little Somme' evokes the memory of the devastating World War I battle, suggesting that journalists are often caught in a similar battleground where their lives are at stake.
In practice
During a speech about press freedom, one could use this quote to illustrate the risks journalists face.
The [Israelis] believed - they were possessed of an absolute certainty and conviction - that 'terrorists' were in Chatila. How could I explain to them that the terrorists had left, that the terrorists had worn Israeli uniforms, that the terrorists had been sent into Chatila by Israeli officers, that the victims of the terrorists were not Israelis but Palestinians and Lebanese?
War is primarily not about victory or defeat but about death and the infliction of death. It represents the total failure of the human spirit.
U.S. journalists I don't think are very courageous. They tend to go along with the government's policy domestically and internationally. To question is seen as being unpatriotic, or potentially subversive.
The biggest problem I have in journalism is being quoted or misquoted and then being asked to defend something I haven't said.
There is nothing so satisfying as to be shot at without effect.
After the allied victory of 1918, at the end of my father's war, the victors divided up the lands of their former enemies. In the space of just seventeen months, they created the borders of Northern Ireland, Yugoslavia and most of the Middle East. And I have spent my entire career β in Belfast and Sarajevo, in Beirut and Baghdad β watching the people within those borders burn.
Look what scares you in the face and try to understand it. Empathy is revolutionary.
Our country demands all our strength, all our energies. To resist the powerful combination now forming against us will require every man at his place. If victorious, we will have everything to hope for in the future. If defeated, nothing will be left for us to live for.
A man can't ride your back unless it's bent.
If I take a bump or bruise along the way, that's nothing compared to the sacrifices that the women whose shoulders I stand upon made along the way.
In many ways, my decision to come out changed the course not only of my personal life but of my professional one as well.
I've struggled enough in my life to be appreciated and understood. I've had to go against all kinds of people through the years just to be myself. I think everybody should be allowed to be who they are, and to love who they love. I don't think we should be judgmental. Lord, I've got enough problems of my own to pass judgment on somebody else.
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