Staff Editorial: Daniel Pearl, 1963-2002

Towering over Freedom Park in the Roslyn section of Arlington, Va., there stands a monument like no other in the world.

The shimmering glass structure, vaguely reminiscent of a flame, stands in memory of the journalists who have lost their lives in the line of duty.

There are nearly 1,400 names inscribed onto the its translucent panels. When the memorial is rededicated in honor of those newsmen and newswomen killed in 2001, another 47 names will join the honor roll.

And when it is rededicated the following year, the name of Wall Street Journal South Asia bureau chief Daniel Pearl will join them.

Kidnapped by Pakistani militants over a month ago, the American and Pakistani governments and The Journal confirmed yesterday that there is conclusive evidence that Pearl has been killed by his captors.

Pearl, like the rest of those immortalized in Arlington, died in pursuit of a story. He died in pursuit of the truth. He gave his life as part of the noble effort to keep us informed.

The story of Pearl and his pregnant widow is heartbreaking. His murder was a senseless act, rightfully called barbaric by President Bush. His death serves no purpose beyond further obscuring the truth about the war on terrorism.

Daniel Pearl did not go to Karachi as a biased American seeking to throw an unfavorable light on the Islamic world but as a journalist dedicated to reporting accurately and without prejudice what he saw.

Daniel Pearl, like his fellow martyrs and every other journalist who puts his life at stake and his safety at risk in the course of a day's work, is a hero.

The free and active press is an essential element of any democracy, and the free world is poorer today for Daniel Pearl's loss.

Violence perpetrated on innocents is always abominable and inhuman. It is never justified.

Pearl's death, then, is made only more tragic by the fact that he was killed working tirelessly and selflessly to uncover the elusive truth.

Daniel Pearl did not die in vain. He died in service of democracy.

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