Barry Bearak, Pulitzer-Winning NYT Correspondent, Taken Into Custody In Zimbabwe

Barry Bearak, the Pulitzer Prize-winning New York Times correspondent covering the Zimbabwe elections, was arrested today in the capital city of Harare.

New York Times Executive Editor Bill Keller released the following statement (via Radar):

Barry Bearak, a Times correspondent based in Johannesburg, was taken into custody today by police in Harare, Zimbabwe, where he was covering the elections. We do not know where he is being held, or what, if any, charges have been made against him.

We are making every effort to ascertain his status, to assure that he is safe and being well treated, and to secure his prompt release. Barry is an experienced and respected professional who has reported from many places. He won a Pulitzer prize in 2002 for his deeply affecting coverage of daily life in war-torn Afghanistan.

Bearak wrote today's front page story, but requested that the paper withhold his byline for security reasons. The paper later added his byline to the online version of the story, and made the following comment (via Editor & Publisher):

"We withheld Barry Bearak's name at his request as a security precaution," Diane McNulty, Times executive director of community affairs and media relations, told E&P in an e-mail. "But as more Western journalists used their bylines and as the story grew more prominent, Barry felt it was time to use his byline, which appeared in the latest editions of the newspaper."

From Friday's New York Times:

"I can confirm that we have arrested two reporters at York Lodge for practicing without accreditation," a police spokesman, Wayne Bvudzijena, told The New Zealand Times.

Bill Keller, the executive editor of The New York Times, said that Mr. Bearak "was apparently one of a number of Americans and other foreign nationals rounded up today. An American consular official who visited him at the central police station reported that he was being held for 'violation of the journalism laws.' We are making every effort to assure that he is well treated, and to secure his prompt release."

Comments

[Darwinita]

I pray for this brave man and wish him and his family a safe recovery from his kidnappers.

[kmdippenger]

I think most people care about these things but are tired of feeling powerless in their lives. I'm very sorry that Mr. Bearak and his loved ones are in the control of Mr. Mugabe and his despotic regime. I have been anxiously reading the results of this important election and regret deeply that someone so dedicated to bringing truth out of this corruption is suffering as a result. My thoughts are with you.

[vokey23]

mugabe is a sad disaster of a man who has been a demon to his country

[SmootyBooty]

Four comments. No one in America cares...

[Mesaywar]

You got it. Shame.

[Artisbey]

If he'd been caught in a fancy hotel with a high-priced hooker, it'd be all over the news.

Hopefully, he'll be okay.

[rfshunt]

For what it's worth, I"ll add my comment and my hopes that Mr Bearak is well and safe.

[seeyouinthepark]

Your comment is utterly contemptible. Mr. Bearak has provided some of the finest journalism ever published in this country. At great personal risk, he has traveled the world to bring news to the U.S. and keep Americans informed about faraway places that increasingly affect our daily lives and our country's foreign policies. He has been a dear friend of mine for decades, and I can assure you that I and his many other friends and admirers are eagerly awaiting word of his release and care a lot about his plight. The only consolation I can take from reading your misguided, offensive and sophomoric comment is that it comes from someone without care or concern for others. I can;t imagine living in a world like that. I feel sorry for you -- no matter what invective you may hurl at me after I post this.

[ZimboChick]

I am so sorry that your friend is going through this. I really hope that they release him soon. Zimbabwe has these numerous laws that make it impossible for foreign journalists to report from the ground. That's why journos camp out in South Africa. BBC is completely banned but they always have accurate coverage - I do not know how they get their stuff. My biggest fear is that he went in there using a false name and false passport. My prayers are with him and his family. I am surprised that people are not paying attention to this story. Zimbabwean jails are not like American jails. Its next to inexplicable. Make noise people!!!!!!!!!!! Stop the Hillary Obama bickering for a moment and do what needs doing.

---
OBAMA 08

[AlphaDoc]

Smooty may have been lamenting the fact that there were only four comments posted at the time he or she entered this thread, which made it seem as though no one cared about Mr. Bearak. I myself am slightly amazed that there are now only 11 comments, though when I posted my first one, I was at a loss for words. I almost feel like I'm holding my breath . . . I sincerely hope Mr. Bearak is okay and that he returns home soon. My thoughts are with him.

[GoreyFantod]

I think SmootyBooty is on your side. He/she seemed to be lamenting the lack of comments on this post as evidence of a lack of concern.

I understand that your emotions are probably running justifiably high, but I do believe your anger with SmootyBooty is misplaced.

As far as the seeming lack of concern demonstrated by a dearth of comments here, I suspect it has more to do with the nature of the story. Anecdotally, international incidents such as Mr. Bearak's abduction by Mugabe's government seem to make Americans feel more powerless than the banality of our own electoral politics.

[UnqleFungus]

I pray for Barry's safety.
It pains me deeply what our government has done - in our name - to foreign detainees in it's care. Abu Ghraib, Gitmo, extrordinary rendition, enhanced interogation techniques, waterboarding... and that's just the stuff that's public knowledge.
I am ashamed to say it, but I hope that Zimbabwe is more civilized than America.

[MrDeadeye2U]

What an angle. You are right. What would we say if they called him an enemy combatant and held him without charges for years? Thanks Bush.

My prayers to Barry and his family.

[Laserbeam]

A by-line is where the publication credits one for one's authorship of a particular article, usually right under the story's headline.

I hope Mr. Bearak is treated well and released VERY soon.

[AlphaDoc]

>I hope Mr. Bearak is treated well and released VERY soon.<

Indeed.

[jojojojojo]

What's a "byline"? Do they mean "withhold his name"?

[finethnx]

yes