Ressa co-founded Rappler, a digital media company for investigative journalism in 2012. She still heads it. Rappler had provided critical coverage and documentation of the Rodrigo Duterte regime's controversial, murderous anti-drug campaign.
The campaign has led to so many deaths that it has begun to appear like a war against the country’s own population. Ressa and Rappler had also documented how social media is being used to spread fake news, harass opponents and manipulate public discourse.
Dmitry Andreyevich Muratov founded the Novaja Gazeta newspaper in 1993 in Russia. He has been its editor-in-chief since 1995.
“Since its start-up in 1993, Novaja Gazeta has published critical articles on subjects ranging from corruption, police violence, unlawful arrests, electoral fraud and “troll factories” to the use of Russian military forces both within and outside Russia,” the statement by the Nobel Committee said.
Six of the newspaper’s journalists had been killed since it started, including Anna Politkovskaja who wrote revealing articles on the war in Chechnya.
But Muratov had refused to abandon the newspaper’s independent policy. He had consistently defended the right of journalists to write anything they want about whatever they want, as long as they complied with the professional and ethical standards of journalism.
Free, independent and fact-based journalism served to protect against abuse of power, lies and war propaganda, the statement said.
“Without freedom of expression and freedom of the press, it will be difficult to successfully promote fraternity between nations, disarmament and a better world order to succeed in our time. This year’s award of the Nobel Peace Prize is therefore firmly anchored in the provisions of Alfred Nobel’s will,” the Committee said.
