The Norwegian Nobel Committee Chair has awarded the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize to Filipino-American journalist, Maria Ressa and Russian journalist, Dmitry Muratov “for their efforts to safeguard freedom of expression, which is a precondition for democracy and lasting peace.”
Maria Ressa
Maria Ressa is a free speech activist who has spent about 20 years as an investigative reporter in southeast Asia for CNN. She is also the co-founder and CEO of Rappler, a Philippines’ leading digital media company that inspires community engagement and digitally fuels actions for social change with well-written stories.
The Guardian described Maria Ressa as a Courageous Journalist for “exposing abuse of power, use of violence and growing authoritarianism in her native country, the Philippines.” Also, the same institution condemned and described her conviction of cyber-libel under a controversial Philippine law against cybercrime as an attempt “designed to chill the media.” Ressa is also a teacher and author. She teaches broadcast journalism at the University of the Philippines Diliman and different courses in politics and press in Southeast Asia for Princeton University. Her two books, An Eyewitness Account of Al-Qaeda’s Newest Center (2003) and From Bin Laden to Facebook: 10 Days of Abduction, 10 Years of Terrorism (2013), unveiled the rise of terrorism in Southeast Asia—Seeds of Terror.
Dmitry Muratov
Her co-winner of the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize, Dmitry Muratov, is also editor-in-chief of Novaya Gazeta, a Russian sociopolitical newspaper that publishes news on Russian political and social affairs. Over the past 10 years, Muratov has been actively defending the freedom of speech in Russia under increasingly challenging conditions. Muratov has earned multiple awards for ensuring that every Russian enjoys the right to freedom of speech. His awards include the International Press Freedom Award (2007), Legion of Honor order (2010) – France’s highest decoration and the prestigious Nobel Peace Prize (2021).
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