National Press Club Mourns Death of Photojournalist in Ukraine

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Sep 03, 2014, 07:23 ET

WASHINGTON, Sept. 3, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The National Press Club president expressed sadness on Thursday at news that a Russian photojournalist had been found dead in Ukraine.

Andrei Stenin, who worked for the state-run Russian news agency Rossiya Segodnya, had been missing since Aug. 5. His employer said in a statement today that he was found dead in a car. The circumstances of his death are not completely clear.

"Andrei Stenin worked for a Russian state-run news organization, but he was not a combatant," said NPC President Myron Belkind. "Too many reporters are being treated as if they are belligerents in the world's conflicts--and are paying a terrible price for being misconstrued as such. Reporters observe wars, they do not wage them. We call on both sides in the Ukraine war, and combatants everywhere, to protect reporters and respect their role as nonpartisans."

The National Press Club, located in Washington, D.C., and founded in 1908, is the world's leading professional organization for journalists. Through its Press Freedom Committee, the Club speaks out on behalf of press freedom and transparency worldwide.

Contact: John M. Donnelly, Chairman, NPC Press Freedom Committee: [email protected]; 202 746 6020.

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SOURCE National Press Club