The batteries are running down

46 year old Sebastian Junger launched his career as a war reporter 15 years ago by travelling to Bosnia with no credentials or contacts. Following a stint in Nigeria, where he reported on militants attacking foreign oil companies, he ended up spending last year with U.S. soldiers in the Korengal Valley in Afghanistan. Talking to the Aspen Times he can see an end to his days working as a conflict reporter,

“I can feel my batteries running down on it… It’s no longer as exciting, and the scary parts feel more threatening. I can feel that early excitement draining out of me.” Junger mentions two factors that have made the job of the war correspondent feel even more dangerous than it had been. One is that, as weapons have become more devastating, and tactics more brutal, civilians are at greater risk in war zones. Then there was the case of Daniel Pearl, a reporter for the Wall Street Journal who was kidnapped and beheaded in 2002 in Pakistan, while investigating links between al Qaida and Pakistan’s intelligence operations. “Since Daniel Pearl, everyone thinks, god, there’s no more rules anymore,” Junger said. link