Journalist Sarah Harrison is well-known for covering topics like government surveillance and national security. She became well-known in 2013 after helping Edward Snowden flee the US to Russia, where he applied for asylum because he was afraid of being persecuted for disclosing information about extensive worldwide monitoring practices.

Harrison frequently discusses the difficulties faced by reporters who are dedicated to exposing facts that might make governments or influential groups uneasy. The decline of press freedom and the growing tendency to view investigative journalism as a kind of espionage or even terrorism are two of her main concerns.

Harrison stresses in her talks how crucial it is to safeguard the sources and the records that journalists use to carry out their work. She contends that it becomes very difficult for reporters to perform their jobs without fear of retaliation when governments begin to investigate them in the same way that they would terrorists—by seizing their documents, making them give up their passwords, and asking them pointed questions.

Consider a reporter as a detective cracking a case. Journalists require sources and documentation to unearth stories that are essential for raising public awareness, just as detectives require hints and proof to solve cases. How can the detective hope to solve the crime if all the clues are removed or destroyed before they can be used? In a similar vein, journalists are unable to adequately investigate issues of public interest when they lose their sources and documents as a result of government investigations.

Sarah Harrison emphasizes the vital role press freedom plays in a robust democracy through her advocacy and work. She emphasizes the significance of protecting journalists who are committed to exposing significant truths and cautions against treating journalism as a criminal activity.