There is no better reminder of the value of freedom than when it is taken away. After being arrested in Cairo and charged with terrorism offences while working as a foreign correspondent for Al Jazeera, it became clear to Professor Peter Greste that national security legislation can pose a threat to journalistic transparency and integrity. Professor Greste proposes a solution to protect the rights of journalists in Australia: a press freedom law. Professor Peter Greste is the UNESCO Chair in Journalism and Communication at The University of Queensland. He came to academia in 2018 after 30 years as a foreign correspondent for the BBC, Reuters, and Al Jazeera in some of the world’s most volatile places, including Afghanistan, Latin American, Africa, and the Middle East. He is best known for becoming a headline himself in 2013, when he and two of his colleagues were arrested in Cairo while working for Al Jazeera, and charged with terrorism offences. In letters smuggled from prison, he described the arrests as an attack on media freedom. The letters helped launch a global campaign that eventually got them released after more than 400 days in prison, earning him numerous human rights awards. In 2017, alongside two of his colleagues, he established the advocacy group, the Alliance for Journalists’ Freedom. In his talk, Peter will share his academic research investigating the impact of national security legislation on public interest journalism. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx