Looking evil in the eye through the lens of a camera

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James Foley, Syria, 2012. Photo: Manu Brabo.
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James Foley, Syria, 2012. Photo: Manu Brabo.
James Foley, Syria, 2012. Photo: Manu Brabo.

The execution of American photojournalist James Foley by ISIS terrorists is an evil, despicable act and a harrowing reminder of the heroism of our war-zone journalists. Foley, a former Stars and Stripes reporter, left his home and family in New Hampshire to cover the civil war in Syria two years ago, and before he was kidnapped on Thanksgiving Day, he played an important role in exposing the unspeakable crimes committed by the Assad regime against its own people.

Without men and women like James Foley, the world would be a darker place where acts of evil could go on undetected for years, decades, or centuries without being brought to public consciousness. The reporters who take notepads and cameras to the world’s most dangerous locales are serving on the front lines of the fight for human rights–educating the world by giving a voice to the voiceless and a face to the forgotten.

Journalists don’t wear a uniform or a badge, but they’re public servants and the work they do requires courage and a constancy in the pursuit of what is good and true. Many reporters work to expose corruption and crime, but only a special few are brave enough to look evil in the eye.

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