Foreign Journalists and Human Rights: A Conversation with Emma Daly of Human Rights Watch

On April 17, the Association of Foreign Press Correspondents in the United States (AFPC-USA) held an educational program featuring Emma Daly, who serves as the Head of the Collaboratory at Human Rights Watch (HRW), leading an initiative that focuses on enhancing external collaboration and maximizing impact. Daly is also a former foreign correspondent who has previously worked with major media outlets in the U.S. and U.K.

This program was designed to educate foreign journalists about HRW’s global work and provide AFPC-USA members with up-to-date information on the international organization's latest human rights reports for use in their daily news coverage.

Topics covered in this educational program included:

• An overview of Human Rights Watch's structure and its engagement with world leaders

• HRW's long-standing efforts to defend human rights worldwide

• HRW's role in armed conflicts

• How foreign media can bring attention to abusive policies and advocate for change to improve people's lives

• How to stay current with the latest reports from Human Rights Watch

The program was led by Patrícia Vasconcellos, an AFPC-USA board member and White House Correspondent for the Brazilian television network, SBT.

Daly is Head of the Collaboratory at Human Rights Watch, an initiative to foster more effective external collaboration and impact. The Collaboratory’s goal is to enhance Human Rights Watch’s role as a collaborative and innovative partner in the human rights movement and explore different methodologies to bring about change. Her previous roles included overseeing the Media department and Communications team. 

Before joining Human Rights Watch, Emma Daly spent 18 years as a journalist, mostly as a foreign correspondent, working for the New York Times, the Independent, Newsweek, theObserver and Reuters, among others. She has contributed to several books including Secrets of the Press - the Penguin Book of Journalism and Crimes of War: What the Public Should Know. A native of the U.K., Daly graduated from the University of East Anglia with a BA in Philosophy and Literature.

AFPC-USA is solely responsible for the content of this educational program. Below, readers will find a summary of some of the most important takeaways from the presentation.

ON WHAT SHAPED HER VIEWS ON HUMAN RIGHTS

• Daly discusses her early interest in journalism and how she came to focus on human rights issues. She initially pursued journalism because she was interested in people's stories and being invited into communities she might not have otherwise had access to. As a general assignment reporter in Central America, she found herself covering stories about women's rights, children's rights, and the plight of refugees affected by Central American conflicts.

• Daly says she didn't initially realize these stories were human rights stories; instead, she was driven by a desire to understand people's lives and the challenges they faced, often influenced by policymakers far away. Her focus on human stories naturally led her to human rights issues, such as abuses against children and the impact of refugees fleeing conflicts.

• She notes that it took her some time to grasp the connection between the stories she was covering and human rights. She emphasizes that human rights are intertwined with everyday aspects of life, such as access to clean air, clean water, fair wages, and healthcare. These are not only legal issues but are central to people's daily lives and well-being.

• ​​Daly discusses her experiences in the former Yugoslavia, describing them as a pivotal point in her career. While she values the documentation process, she felt that merely bearing witness was insufficient and that journalists should strive for change. She realized the importance of providing detailed accounts so that politicians could not deny the consequences of their decisions on people's lives.

• Daly emphasizes that her experiences witnessing the devastation caused by policies and conflicts drove her to transition from journalism to Human Rights Watch. Her goal was not just to document human rights abuses but to advocate for change, promote government adherence to the laws of war, and protect civilians. She says these experiences “made me really want to move to a place where the whole point was to stop that from happening and to try to build a world where people's rights are respected no matter who they are or where they come from.”

ON HER ROLE AND THE WORK CONDUCTED BY HRW

Daly says HRW organizes its work in several key areas, including investigations, advocacy, legal work, and communications.

• Investigations: HRW employs researchers around the world who focus on identifying critical human rights abuses and areas where they can make a difference. These researchers are organized into regional divisions, such as Africa, Asia, and the Middle East and North Africa, as well as thematic divisions like children's rights, women's rights, crisis and conflict, and technology. The researchers work collaboratively across these divisions.

• Advocacy: While everyone at HRW engages in advocacy, there is a dedicated team that strategizes on how to influence policymakers in various regions, including Washington, Japan, and the African Union. The aim is to persuade these entities to prioritize human rights and adopt policies that reflect those values.

• Legal Department: HRW's legal team plays a critical role in analyzing international human rights law, the laws of war, and regulations around business and human rights. They assess human rights abuses and ensure that allegations are legally sound and backed by evidence.

• Communications: HRW's communications team creates content such as videos and manages the organization's social media channels. They also engage with journalists, pitching stories to help raise awareness of human rights issues.

Daly explains that HRW's original theory of change was based on the idea that exposing facts through the media could build pressure on politicians to enact change. However, she acknowledges that the current political climate, characterized by misinformation and disinformation, makes it challenging to persuade politicians to change their stance. In her role, Daly's team explores alternative methods to mobilize public pressure on politicians and change the perception and prioritization of human rights in everyday life. This includes finding ways to navigate the complex environment of information manipulation and skepticism towards facts.

Daly emphasizes the importance of Human Rights Watch's (HRW) fact-based analysis and systematic reporting on human rights abuses. She explains that gathering and presenting facts to build a case for the systemic nature of human rights issues and why they matter remains fundamental to HRW's work.  

However, Daly notes the growing need to consider how people receive information and how to persuade the public to embrace human rights. HRW is experimenting with mainstreaming human rights issues through pop culture, such as incorporating human rights themes into TV programs and films. Daly gives examples of how societal attitudes toward LGBTQ+ rights and reproductive rights have shifted due to such representations, citing the progression of LGBTQ+ rights in the U.S. and the changing attitudes in Ireland that led to the approval of abortion rights.

“Our work has to also persuade the wider public that it's important that you also stand with people who have certain legal rights, but who are also generally making your society a better place,” she concludes.

ON HRW’S IMPACT IN SITUATIONS OF ARMED CONFLICT

• Daly discusses HRW's approach to documenting human rights abuses during armed conflicts, emphasizing the organization's focus on real-time reporting and objective assessments of how conflicts are being fought rather than the reasons for the conflict. She explains that HRW reports on both or multiple sides of a conflict to expose harms to civilians and suggest ways that governments, rebel armies, and other parties could conduct themselves more responsibly.

• HRW's work aims to uphold international laws designed to protect civilians during conflicts and to improve these norms and standards. For instance, HRW recently conducted a comprehensive report on the destruction in Mariupol during the war in Ukraine, using advanced techniques such as 3D modeling and social media verification to assess damage and identify individuals with command responsibility.

• Daly notes that the impact of HRW's work may take time to manifest, but its documentation and persistent advocacy can lead to justice in the future, emphasizing the importance of evidence collection, reporting, and sustained pursuit of justice for the victims and survivors of conflicts.

ON THE DIFFICULTIES AND CHALLENGES HRW AND SIMILAR INSTITUTIONS FACE ON THE GROUND

Although HRW now has access to more technological tools for communication and data analysis, certain areas pose significant challenges due to security concerns and restricted access.

• Difficulty Assessing Areas: In places like Gaza, access for news and human rights organizations is extremely restricted due to internal and external controls. In Sudan, conflict and instability also make it challenging to gain entry and gather information.

• Security Concerns: HRW prioritizes the safety of those they interact with on the ground, including their sources and contacts. They must consider the risks associated with communications and data storage, as well as the potential dangers of engaging with HRW.

• Information Verification and Reliability: HRW employs various techniques to verify the information it receives, including triangulating data from multiple sources, geolocating videos, and using open-source material. They also conduct face-to-face interviews, asking questions to cross-check details and verify facts.

• Technological Tools: New tools such as satellite imagery, video and audio analysis, and weapons analysis help HRW in their investigations. They use these tools to document and understand the impact of conflicts on civilians.

• Balancing Judgment and Laws of War: Daly highlights the complexities of assessing the legality and proportionality of actions within armed conflicts. HRW must consider factors such as nearby military targets and the use of explosive weapons in densely populated areas.

• Campaigns and Advocacy: HRW engages in campaigns such as those to ban landmines and cluster munitions. They are also working on limiting the use of explosive weapons in populated areas to minimize harm to civilians.

ON REPORTS HRW HAS RELEASED ABOUT HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES IN THE U.S.

Daly shares details about a recent report HRW conducted on human rights issues in the United States, specifically focusing on an area known as Cancer Alley in Louisiana. This region, a 50-mile stretch between New Orleans and Baton Rouge, is home to numerous petrochemical and oil industries, primarily located in Black communities.

• HRW's report highlights the severe health impacts faced by residents in the area, including higher rates of cancer (seven times the national average), as well as detrimental effects on newborns, pregnant women, and new mothers. Daly emphasizes that the climate crisis is a human rights crisis and that living close to petrochemical industries inflicts serious harm on the local population.

• HRW aims to end the use of fossil fuels and, in the interim, regulate them strongly to mitigate harm. The report seeks to bring attention to the struggles of residents in Cancer Alley, emphasizing the need for change and the potential ease with which improvements can be made.

• Daly notes that the Biden administration recently introduced new regulations that could positively impact residents in Cancer Alley, a long-standing demand of the affected communities. HRW works closely with those most affected, listening to their needs and partnering with them to advocate for change.

ON HOW FOREIGN JOURNALISTS CAN CONTRIBUTE IN PARTNERSHIP WITH HRW

• Daly says journalists can reach out to HRW through their press desk email (hrwpress@hrw.org) and get on relevant press lists to receive updates and reports. Journalists can express interest in specific areas of coverage, and HRW can connect them with relevant experts or researchers who can provide insights and story ideas.

• Journalists can inform HRW about issues they observe, potentially aiding HRW's work, she notes. HRW is well-connected with other nonprofits and organizations, and can help journalists establish contacts with individuals who may have specific expertise or information journalists need.