Broadcasters attending the fourth World Electronic Media Forum (WEMF 4) have called for sustained and concrete international action to address the murder of journalists in peacetime and in war.

"Most journalists are killed not in war zones but in their own countries as they try to shine the light of the truth into the darkest recesses of their societies," they said in in a declaration adopted unanimously at the end of a two-day meeting in Mexico City.

More journalists have been killed in Mexico this year than in any other country in the Western hemisphere, many of them for reporting on drug trafficking and related corruption.

"Governments are primarily responsible for the safety of all their citizens, including those in the news media," the declaration said. "They have a responsibility to protect those citizens, pursue their killers and ensure freedom of expression." (Click here for full text.)

Like its three predecessors - in Geneva (2003), Tunis (2005) and Kuala Lumpur (2007), WEMF 4 was organized by the world's eight regional broadcasting unions.

Apart from journalist safety, other topics addressed by the conference included the relation between broadband and broadcasting, electronic journalism and citizen reporters, and the value of archives and cost of preserving them.