Dangerous Ground

People in the news business get a sinking feeling when another journalist dies in the line of duty. ABC News announced this morning that two Iraqi journalists working for the network were killed in an ambush. CBS News Early Show anchor Harry Smith filed his daily on this latest tragedy involving war reporters and reminds us that local reporters often face the most danger.

An Iraqi cameraman and sound man who worked for ABC News were killed Thursday in Baghdad. They were on their way home when they were ambushed. Working for a news organization is a dangerous business in Iraq — especially if you are an Iraqi. About 100 Iraq journalists have been killed since the war began. CBS News employs a number of Iraqis who quite simply can go places we can't. Last May when I was in Baghdad, it was an Iraqi crew that came into our bureau one day with an interview from a Mahdi Army assassin. Incredible. And while I slept that night in the relative safety of our armed compound, these Iraqis went home to their families in Baghdad neighborhoods where death is a daily occurrence. Most of our Iraqi employees try to keep their occupations secret from their neighbors, because in Iraq, working for a news organization makes you the enemy.