Journalists Maria Ressa and Dmitry Muratov Win 2021 Nobel Peace Prize

Journalists are honored for their efforts to safeguard freedom of expression in the Philippines and Russia.

The Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded to journalists Maria Ressa and Dmitry Muratov. Both have faced legal and physical threats during their careers, as their respective governments cracked down on the rights of journalists.

They are known for investigations that have angered their countries' rulers and have faced significant threats.

"Free, independent and fact-based journalism serves to protect against abuse of power, lies, and war propaganda," Berit Reiss-Andersen, chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, said as she announced the prize in Oslo on Friday.

Ressa is the CEO of Rappler, a news outlet critical of Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte's regime. She was a CNN correspondent and "TIME" Person of the Year who started the independent news outlet Rappler in the Philippines.

Dmitry Muratov is the longtime editor of Novaya Gazeta, an island of independence in a sea of media silenced or controlled by the Kremlin. Other independent Russian journalists have been detained and outlets banned or declared foreign agents, the same designation given to the country's leading opposition figure, Alexei Navalny.

The Nobel committee called the pair "representatives of all journalists who stand up for this ideal".

Following is UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ statement on the awarding of the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize, today:

"I congratulate Maria Ressa and Dmitry Muratov on being awarded the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize.  Throughout the world, a free press is essential for peace, justice, sustainable development, and human rights — and the cornerstone for building fair and impartial institutions.  No society can be free and fair without journalists who are able to investigate wrongdoing, bring information to citizens, hold leaders accountable, and speak truth to power."

“The fact that a journalist from the Philippines and a journalist from Russia won the Nobel Peace Prize tells you about the state of the world today, and the state of the Philippines,” Ms. Ressa said on her Rappler site after the prize was announced.