[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 27 (Friday, February 17, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E229]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


         PASSING OF NEW YORK TIMES CORRESPONDENT ANTHONY SHADID

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                          HON. ADAM B. SCHIFF

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Friday, February 17, 2012

  Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life and legacy of 
Anthony Shadid, a New York Times correspondent who died yesterday while 
reporting from Syria.
  As a foreign correspondent for many different papers over the years, 
Anthony informed our world view, gave us insights no other journalist 
could, and bore witness to history being made in the Middle East.
  We learned of world events from his dispatches from the other side of 
the globe--from the fall of Sadaam Hussein, to the Arab Spring, and 
most recently the turmoil rankling Syria and Libya. There were always 
other stories, but his were the gold standard.
  But what I admired most about Anthony Shadid was his persistence, 
even in the face of mortal peril. He exemplified what a free press 
should strive to be. During his assignments in the Middle East, Anthony 
was shot, harassed, hounded, arrested . . . abused. But those acts of 
violence could not deter him, and he continued to report on the events 
shaping our world.
  Jill Abramson, the Executive Director of the New York Times, put it 
best--``his empathy for its citizens' struggles and his deep 
understanding of their culture and history set his writing apart. He 
was their poet and their champion.''
  Anthony's intrepid spirit and story-telling ability is irreplaceable, 
and will live on. My heart goes out to his wife, son and daughter, and 
parents.

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