Lara Logan, a well-known South African-born journalist and war correspondent, has spent years reporting from some of the most dangerous places in the world. She gained recognition while working for CBS News, especially for her coverage of the Iraq War and the Arab Spring. Logan’s fearless journalism earned her a prestigious Peabody Award in 2002 for a report on the abduction of journalist Daniel Pearl. However, her career has not been without controversy. One of the most painful chapters in her life was when she was attacked in Egypt in 2011 while covering the chaos during the Arab Spring. She was sexually assaulted and nearly killed by a mob. Yet, her story didn’t end there.
In recent years, Logan has become more vocal about the dangers facing the media and free speech, especially in today’s world of information warfare. She claims that we are now living in a time where information is not just a tool—it’s the battlefield. According to Logan, the way we receive news and information has become a war for control of our minds, influenced by advanced technology.
Logan doesn’t hold back when discussing her concerns. She fears that we are seeing the “lights of freedom” going out across the world. But she believes it’s up to us to decide whether we can ever bring them back. She explains that, as journalists, it’s critical to stand together and fight for the truth, regardless of politics.
She criticizes the way some journalists and media outlets have attacked people like Tucker Carlson for simply doing their jobs—like interviewing powerful figures, including Russian President Vladimir Putin. Logan argues that this isn’t just a political disagreement but an attack on the basic principles of journalism and freedom of the press. In her eyes, the media has failed to defend free speech, and instead, it has been driven by political motives.
Logan reflects on her own personal experience in the media. She spent years working with 60 Minutes and CBS News, covering wars, and terror, and holding both sides of conflicts accountable. Her dedication to the truth led her to face immense personal trauma, but despite everything, she believes it is crucial to keep speaking out. She says that many of her fellow journalists have also been attacked, not just for their work, but for their character, sanity, and personal lives.
This is where Logan becomes even more forceful in her critique: the rise of “cancel culture.” She believes that what we call cancel culture is essentially a death sentence for journalists and free speech. Logan warns that there are powerful forces—media companies, government agencies, and non-profit organizations—that are deliberately shaping the information we see and hear. They are doing so under the guise of protecting democracy and preventing misinformation. But Logan sees it differently: these organizations are part of a vast censorship network meant to suppress dissenting voices.
In her passionate speech, Logan details how these groups operate. She talks about how organizations funded by the U.S. government use taxpayer dollars to influence foreign politics, often funding groups with extreme political or religious agendas. She believes that these groups are manipulating the truth and using freedom of speech as a weapon to push their own ideologies.
Logan warns that the real danger lies in the monopoly power of companies like Facebook, Google, and Instagram. These tech giants, she claims, control the flow of information and decide what billions of people see. She compares this control to the kind of power dictators like Lenin, Stalin, and Hitler once had. She fears that when freedom of speech is no longer protected, democracy itself is at risk.
Drawing from history, Logan reminds us that the Founding Fathers understood the importance of free speech, and they placed it at the heart of America’s democracy. Without it, she argues, freedom will perish.
As she concludes her speech, Logan echoes the words of a British diplomat from World War I, Sir Edward Gray: “The lamps are going out all over Europe. We shall not see them lit again in our lifetime.” She believes that we are witnessing the same thing today. The lights of freedom are going out across the world, and it’s up to us to decide whether we can bring them back.
Logan’s powerful message is clear: the battle for truth, free speech, and freedom itself is more critical than ever. And it’s a fight we cannot afford to lose.
