Oleksandra Kushynova died on March 14 in the village of Horenka north of Kyiv when the vehicle in which she was travelling was hit by incoming fire killing her and Irish cameraman Pierre Zakrzewski, as well as wounding Fox correspondent Benjamin Hall. Kushynova was 24 years old and had been working as a “fixer” for Fox News for a month. Fox News national security correspondent, Jennifer Griffin, described her as a “bright light and talented journalist”.
Many journalists, particularly broadcasters covering foreign conflicts for international news organisations, have reason to be intensely grateful to fixers like Kushynova. These locally hired staff help reporters, producers and correspondents to identify stories, find sources, negotiate local bureaucracy and – crucially – translate unfamiliar languages and dialects. Often, they keep the incoming journalists safe, sometimes at great risk to themselves.
Some fixers – like Kushynova – are local journalists who lack the contacts to sell their work abroad. Others are passionate idealists determined to promote a cause or country. Almost all are capable of combining the role of translator with that of expert local guide. For many fixers, the arrival in their country of international journalists hungry for compelling stories is a golden opportunity to work with prestigious organisations.
