Killed and imprisoned journalists – “The Guardians'” – have been named 2018’s “Person of the Year” by Time.

Four different Time covers feature journalists from around the world.

Jamal Khashoggi, who was killed in the Saudi embassy in Turkey earlier this year, appears alone in one, while staff from the Capital Gazette, the US newspaper where five people were killed this year, feature in another.

Pictures of Maria Ressa, Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo appear on the final two.

Ms Ressa is the editor of Rappler, a Philippine news website critical of the country’s leadership, while Reuters journalists Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo were imprisoned in Myanmar for investigating the massacre of Rohingya Muslims.

According to Time, they were chosen “for taking great risks in pursuit of greater truths, for the imperfect but essential quest for facts, for speaking up and for speaking out”.

Last year, the magazine named “the Silence Breakers” – women and men who spoke out against sexual abuse and harassment – as its “Person of the Year”.

This year’s readers’ poll chose Korean pop band BTS as their winner, with Planet Earth coming second.

The magazine’s tradition – begun in 1927 as “Man of the Year” – recognises the person who “for better or for worse… has done the most to influence the events of the year”.

The great majority of people selected have been individuals – but by no means all. In 2014, “Ebola fighters” were recognised while in 2011 “The Protester” acknowledged the significance of the so-called Arab Spring.

It was in 1950, Time explains, that the magazine decided groups, as well as individuals, could be chosen as “Person of the Year”.

“The American fighting-man” was chosen that year, and was followed by the Hungarian people in 1956 and later on Scientists, Americans under 25 and Mr and Mrs Middle America.

In 2006, the Person of the Year was simply “You”, with a mirror cover design, reflecting the importance of user-generated internet content.

Source: Read Full Article