Time magazine on Tuesday announced a group of journalists it called “The Guardians” as 2018 Person of the Year, referring to individuals “who have taken great risks in pursuit of greater truths.”
Slain journalist Jamal Khashoggi was among several individuals named in the award, along with Filipina journalist Maria Ressa and Reuters’ Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo. The Capital Gazette, the Maryland media company that lost five staffers to a mass shooting in June, also was included in the honor. Time editor in chief Edward Felsenthal announced the 2018 Person of the Year on NBC’s “Today” show, noting this was the first time the weekly newsmagazine chose someone who is no longer alive. “As we looked at the choices, it became clear that the manipulation and abuse of truth is really the common thread in so many of this year’s major stories ― from Russia to Riyadh to Silicon Valley,” Felsenthal said. Time’s annual Person of the Year feature profiles an individual or individuals who had the biggest effect ― for better or worse ― on news headlines over the previous 12 months.