Sometimes passion is just not enough. This is the story of Anaïs Renevier, a young foreign correspondent for Francophone media based in Beirut, but it could be the story of any freelance journalist worldwide. World news has always been Anaïs’ passion ever since she can remember. She would be following in the footsteps of her father, a lead engineer in television, but she wanted to pave her own way to get there. She went to Berlin to study cinematography and then interned for a regional French television station. In 2012, she decided to move to Lebanon to cover the news after her first visit to the country in 2009. Anaïs’ latest assignment was as a national correspondent for an international francophone television channel for their Lebanon coverage. The job was demanding but thrilling. Soon, however, Anaïs said she realized that the news industry would keep demanding more from her without offering her much financial or moral support in return. In a blog post entitled “La petite mort des correspondants” (The slow death of correspondents), Anaïs explained why despite loving her work, she feels compelled to take a step back and contemplate all her career options: A 27 ans, je retourne chez mes parents et je laisse derrière moi des correspondances pour des médias renommés, un réseau que j’ai construit pendant trois ans et un pays que je prenais plaisir à couvrir. Tout cela, car à 27 ans, je ne vis pas de mon métier [..] En moyenne, j’ai gagné environ 800 euros par mois pendant trois ans. Pour ces 800 euros, j’ai été pendant trois ans joignable 24h/24, 7 jours sur 7 : l’info n’attend pas. Pour ces 800 euros, j’ai été plusieurs fois prise dans des tirs croisés de snipers et une fois pourchassée par un hélicoptère du régime syrien (1). Pour ces 800 euros, j’ai été les yeux et les oreilles de plusieurs médias francophones au Liban. Et avec ces 800 euros, j’ai payé moi-même mon permis de résidence, ma caméra et mon assurance santé. Ma situation financière n’est pourtant pas mon problème principal. Nous sommes journalistes et nous sommes aussi des fantômes. Certains chefs sont-ils conscients que lorsqu’ils refusent un article sur la Syrie parce que «de toutes façons personne n’y comprend rien», c’est aussi nos sensibilités et nos vécus qu’ils heurtent? Petit à petit, ces voix s’éteindront, étouffées par une information de masse, des dépêches écrites à la hâte, des informations diffusées avant d’être vérifiées. C’est la petite mort des correspondants. Cette agonie peut encore être évitée, par le public en suivant et soutenant les médias qui font entendre nos voix, et par nous en pensant le journalisme autrement. At 27, I am moving back to my parents’ house and leaving behind all my work for renowned media, a network that I built for three years and a country I enjoyed covering. All this because at the age of 27, I cannot make a living from my profession of choice […] On average, I earned about 800 euros per month for three years. For those 800 euros, I spent three years being available 24/7 because the news never waits. For 800 euros, I was repeatedly caught in crossfire between snipers and once chased by a helicopter from the Syrian regime. For those 800 euros, I was for a long time the eyes and ears of several Francophone media in Lebanon. And with those 800 euros, I had to pay for my own residence permit, my camera and my health insurance. My financial situation, however, was not my main issue. As foreign correspondents, we are journalists but we are also ghosts. Are newsroom editors aware that, for instance, when they refuse an article on Syria because “nobody understands what is going on there anyway,” it is also our very existence and our personal experiences that they insult? Gradually, these voices will be extinguished, choked by the mass media machine that post dispatches written hastily, with information disseminated before being fully verified. We are seeing the slow death of correspondents. Yet this disappearance can still be avoided if the public were to follow and support media that make those voices heard, and if we can imagine a new kind of journalism. Global Voices caught up with Anaïs to unpack her analysis of the media and understand her career choices. Global Voices (GV): Your post entitled “The slow death of correspondents” resonated with many people in the industry and elsewhere who struggle to make a living from a once robust industry. From your standpoint, what are the main causes of the malaise in journalism nowadays? Anaïs Renevier (AR): J'ai été surprise et touchée par l'étendue du partage alors qu'au départ je n'avais mis le lien que sur ma page Facebook, à destination de mes amis et contacts professionnels au Liban.