University to set up public archive on work of journalist Robert Fisk

Funding of 200,000 euro has been given to Trinity College Dublin to set up a publicly available archive on the work of the late renowned journalist Robert Fisk.

Fisk was one of the best known Middle East correspondents who spent his career reporting from the region and won accolades for challenging mainstream narratives.

Fisk died in November 2020 at a hospital in Dublin, shortly after falling ill at his home in the Irish capital.

Notes and documents from Fisk’s 50-year journalistic career were donated to Trinity College Dublin’s library by his widow, Nelofer Pazira-Fisk.

Fisk received a PhD in political science from Trinity in 1985 and was awarded an honorary doctorate in 2008.

Trinity College Dublin has pledged to make the archive fully accessible, both online and in person, as soon as possible.

It said this would involve two years of “extensive work” to catalogue, conserve, preserve and digitise such a significant archive, and that the government funding of 200,000 euro would facilitate this.

Ms Pazira-Fisk said: “I am grateful to people in Ireland for their moral stand against oppression and injustices – and to the Irish Government for this kind financial support.

“Robert said we must bear witness and record what we see, so no one can say that they did not know.

“At a time when a dark curtain of censorship is extending across the Western democracies, when journalism is under attack, reporters face death and targeted assault, false labels and accusations undermine the work of anyone who dares speak out. The preservation and dissemination of information has become more pressing.”

She added: “Robert and I often discussed our wish to pass on our archive so the future generations could make use of it with the hope that it will foster questioning and debate. And that knowledge of history enables humanity to say no to violence of all kinds.”

Born in Kent, Fisk began his career on Fleet Street at the Sunday Express and went on to work for The Times, where he was based in Northern Ireland, Portugal and the Middle East.

He moved to Beirut in 1976, a year after Lebanon’s civil war broke out, and continued to work and live from an apartment located on the city’s Mediterranean corniche until his death.

In 1982, he was one of the first journalists at the Sabra and Shatila camp in Beirut, where Christian militia had slaughtered hundreds of Palestinian refugees.

Fisk’s archive includes material from his first posting in Belfast in 1972 for the The Times, up until the posthumous publication of his final book, The Night of Power: Betrayal of the Middle East (2024).

Notes from his interviews with Osama Bin Laden in the caves of Afghanistan will be included in the archive, as well as photographs, audio files of interviews, drafts for published works, and correspondence of letters and emails.

The collection also includes artefacts such as explosives shells and salvaged items such as the strip of an oil painting taken from a church by Islamists.

Trinity College Provost Dr Linda Doyle said it was honoured to receive the donation of Fisk’s archive.

“It will advance teaching and research into the conflicts covered by Robert Fisk over so many years and will act as a vital resource for researchers, policy makers and the public,” she said.

“Today’s announcement will contribute to the archive’s conservation and accessibility for the future.”

Librarian and college archivist, Helen Shenton, said: “Robert Fisk was unfaltering in his commitment to frontline journalism and being a witness to history, with one-on-one access to sources – many of whom are no longer alive today.

“The exceptional archive includes ‘born digital’ content, containing email correspondence, representing a new archival area of the 21st century.

“The Library of Trinity College will ensure the physical and digital preservation of this archive and make it accessible in the near future and for posterity. It will be available through our Research Collections Study Centre and online through our virtual Trinity library programme.”

Minister for Further and Higher Education, Patrick O’Donovan, said Fisk’s “incredible career spanned numerous significant events”.

“The funding announced today will provide Trinity with the necessary resources to undertake an essential two-year conservation project.

“The availability of these materials will undoubtedly enrich the academic experiences of students and researchers alike.”