Survey on risks in covering 2020 campaign

Rallies, campaign events, protests—they are all part of the election beat, and they are also potential flashpoints for the journalists covering them. During elections, journalists are at increased risk of attack, arrest, and physical or digital harassment, the Committee to Protect Journalists has found.

Ahead of the U.S. presidential election on Nov. 3, CPJ’s Emergencies team is strengthening the resources and advice available to the journalists planning to cover it. CPJ needs to hear from reporters, editors, photographers, camera operators, and bloggers who plan to cover the campaign and election about any risk they anticipate — be it physical, digital, or psychological–and what access they have, or would like to have, to safety resources. 

To gather this information, CPJ is distributing an online survey, which you can find linked to here. In an effort to reach as many journalists as possible across the country, CPJ is asking press and news associations in every state to help distribute it. We would like to receive responses by Friday, Jan. 10

The link to the survey is here: https://forms.gle/RyCuneLGrBM7Turx9

Survey responses will remain confidential, and data will be released publicly only in a form that does not identify the individuals who provide information. CPJ will use the survey data to update its Journalist Safety Kit for election coverage with resources tailored to the needs of journalists working in the U.S. All related safety resources will be updated throughout 2020 and publicly available to interested journalists and newsrooms.