Media Research Methods

Violence Against the Fourth Estate

With the rise of the internet and social media, journalism has faced and faces new challenges, including changes in publication and production styles, and journalists’ safety. Rising issues surrounding misinformation, disinformation (what some call “fake news”), and censorship have also changed the media and news landscape. Journalists have always faced threats and violence, with the responsibility for their safety often falling on themselves–though laws surrounding journalists’ safety vary by country and region. 

However, violence has been a growing threat for journalists and press freedom: for doing their jobs, 62 journalists were killed in 2020; American journalists are continuing to grapple with the events of January 6, 2021 (which holds its own weight on the standards of press freedom both nationally and internationally); and Georgian journalists have faced a huge escalation of violence, with over 600 attacks from October 2024 to October 2025. It’s particularly important to understand how online violence against political journalists affects freedom of the press, as attacks against journalists are threats to freedom of the press and democracy. 

“Our liberty depends on the freedom of the press, and that cannot be limited without being lost” – Thomas Jefferson. 

A journal article published in May of this year on Taylor & Francis Online (a reputable, peer-reviewed, academic and publishing platform with a long history), tackled the impact of public online violence against political journalists. 

The team of researchers used a survey and follow up questions to answer the following research questions (RQ). 

RQ1: What is the prevalence and nature of public violence experienced by political journalists?

RQ2: Who are the most frequent perpetrators of online public violence against political journalists? 

RQ3: What is the role of politicians in online public violence against political journalists?
RQ4: What impact does online public violence have on political journalists?

In the fall of 2022, 148 out of 400 contacted Flemish political journalists responded to a survey sent out by the researchers. For context, Belgium ranks 18/180 in terms of press freedom according to Reporters Without Borders (RSF). The average political journalist in Belgium is male, 46 years old, native-born, and considers themself to be politically center-left. The follow-up (the open-ended questions mentioned earlier from the mixed method approach) asked reporters to identify perceived political affiliation/lean of their aggressors (politicians, citizens, and anonymous internet trolls), and expand on the origins and impact of the aggression they’d experienced. The researchers exercised anonymity and confidentiality for the journalists by omitting names of the respondents and their employers. 

In addition to the 88% of journalists who said they experience online violence (the different types of online violence and their percentages are displayed on the table below), 61.5% of journalists said they face offline violence.

Female journalists were more likely to face (online) threats of verbal abuse and unwanted sexual imagery (at a discrepancy of 33.7%). Journalists who report more on political topics were significantly more likely to face threats than others; especially when covering sensitive topics like geographic disputes and domestic issues. These journalists were often accused of being politically motivated. 

Although only 14.3% of journalists said that politicians were direct perpetrators of violence on a regular basis, there was an emphasis on the idea that politician-fueled anti-media rhetoric does play a role in encouraging supporters (citizens and trolls) to commit acts of violence. All aggressors were consistently skewed right on the scale that respondents were asked to rate perceived political lean. 

The aggression affects journalists’ well-being, mental and emotional, and contributes to a mild form of self-censorship. Journalists concurred that the violence causes them to choose to speak out less on social media. Despite that, journalists did not agree that they would report less on political topics and actors, emphasizing that their priority is on honest reporting over falling victim to coercion or threats of violence. Instead, some described becoming incredibly cautious about mistakes in their work in order to minimize backlash and threats.  

As we continue to navigate a new media landscape and an ever-changing, fast-paced world, it’s important that we understand the value journalism holds for education, democracy, and equality. This study is evidence that political (online) violence does carry critical consequences for journalists on a personal, interpersonal, and democratic level. Self-censoring journalists, for fear of retaliation and violence, do not serve anyone but those who benefit from a failing democracy.