Honoring Brent Renaud, a journalist killed in Ukraine

 

Brent Renaud

My heart is heavy tonight at the news that an American journalist, documentary filmmaker Brent Renaud, has been killed outside the Ukrainian capital city of Kyiv.

 Renaud, 50, worked with his brother, Craig Renaud, on award-winning video journalism and documentary filmmaking projects for HBO, Vice and other major international news organizations.

At the time of his death, he was wearing a NYT news badge. But the Times, while praising his character, dedication and professionalism, said he was not affiliated with the organization when he was killed.

According to Time magazine, he currently was working on a project for the company on the global refugee crisis.

Working with his brother, Craig, Renaud won a Peabody award for a Vice News documentary about a school in Chicago, among several other accolades that included two Overseas Press Club awards and two duPont-Columbia University awards.

His death is a reminder that a free and open flow of information, the very lifeblood of any democracy, sometimes comes at a terrible cost to those who strive to deliver it.

It is worth remembering that Russian dictator Vladimir Putin has moved to deny his own people the right to know what is really transpiring as a result of his murderous invasion of the independent – and, lest we forget it, democratic – Ukraine.

And it comes at a time in our own country when journalists working to provide the American people with accurate and balanced information are under relentless attack by those under the thrall of would-be authoritarian Donald Trump and by a political party frightened into subservience to him. Their contempt for reputable news organizations is unrelenting – and politically motivated to hide an insidious and destructive assault on the foundations of American democracy.

For 15 years, I worked on the International desk of The Dallas Morning News and supervised reporters who regularly were sent to what euphemistically are known as conflict zones – in other words, places where they could get killed as they worked to provide DMN readers an accurate and understandable picture of what was happening.

Thanks be to God, none were hurt in the process. My consistent message to them all was this: “Don’t be a hero. No story is worth getting killed over.”

 But knowing them as I did, I know they took chances – calculated risks to go where they needed to fulfill their obligations to meet their professional responsibilities. Some they told me about. Others they kept to themselves.

 I’m quite sure Brent Renaud had contemplated the risks he faced in being in the chaotic and deadly place where he met his end. He was experienced and smart and courageous. Unfortunately, he miscalculated and paid the price.

 He did it because he believed that freedom of information was worth the risk. I honor him for his dedication and for the ultimate sacrifice he made.

Not all reporters face the same desperate choices that Renaud did. Not all put their lives on the line every day so you can know what is happening in the world in which you live and work and play. But they all are laboring under terrible pressures and often in difficult circumstances. They are doing it for me – and for you.

Trust me, it’s not for the money or the fame. These days, those are in pitifully short supply.