The tools used to monitor journalists — once confined to intelligence agencies — are now commercially available, widely deployed, and capable of accessing a phone without the target ever clicking a link. On World Press Freedom Day, May 3, the International Federation of Journalists put that reality at the center of its annual assessment of global press conditions, publishing findings that describe not a gradual erosion of media freedom but an accelerating one.

The IFJ, which represents more than 600,000 media professionals across 148 countries, called the global state of press freedom “deplorable.” UNESCO’s latest World Trends Report on Freedom of Expression and Media Development adds the statistical frame: press freedom has fallen 10% since 2012, a decline the IFJ said is comparable to some of the most unstable periods of the 20th century.

128 deaths, and counting

The human cost in 2025 was 128 journalists killed. The IFJ said additional deaths have already been recorded in 2026. Reporters working in conflict zones face the sharpest risks — in Ukraine, Palestine, Lebanon, and Sudan, journalists have been arrested, displaced, or killed while carrying out their work. Individuals identified as press are increasingly becoming deliberate targets rather than incidental casualties.

IFJ General Secretary Anthony Bellanger described each attack as an act with consequences beyond the individual.

“Every attack on a media professional is an attack aimed at silencing a story intended to inform citizens,” Bellanger said, adding that restrictions on journalism ultimately prevent the public from making informed decisions.

Spyware without borders

In a study published April 28 — “Global Surveillance of Journalists: A Technical Mapping of Tools, Tactics and Threats” — the IFJ documented what it describes as a convergence of state intelligence capabilities, private-sector tools, and weak regulatory frameworks.

The report, which draws on cybersecurity expert interviews and technical investigations conducted between 2021 and 2025, identifies commercial spyware systems including Pegasus, Predator, and Graphite as now widely available beyond their original government-intelligence markets. All three are capable of “zero-click” intrusions — accessing a target’s device with no interaction required from the user.

The IFJ found these technologies are frequently deployed with limited oversight, leaving journalists monitored without accountability and with few legal avenues for redress.

AI as force multiplier

The IFJ study also raises concerns about artificial intelligence extending the reach of existing surveillance infrastructure. Data gathered through digital monitoring — communications, location history, online activity — can be fed into AI systems that analyze it at scale. In conflict environments, the report said, such systems can combine telecommunications data with drone feeds, enabling the identification and tracking of journalists in the field.

Beyond targeted surveillance, the IFJ warned of AI-driven disinformation, identity theft, and automated content systems that bypass editorial standards entirely.

Lead study author Samar Al Halal said the effects compound in ways that damage journalism even when no direct harm occurs.

“When journalists are watched, sources disappear, investigations stop, and self-censorship becomes normal,” Al Halal said. “The public doesn’t just lose information, it loses the ability to hold power accountable.”

What the IFJ is demanding

The organization is calling on governments to enact laws protecting press freedom and regulating surveillance technologies, restrict the export and use of commercial spyware, and strengthen legal safeguards for journalists’ sources. The surveillance report specifically recommends increased investment in digital security training and stronger protections for encryption and anonymity.

The broader context makes those demands urgent. A 10% global decline in press freedom over 13 years, 128 journalists dead in a single year, and surveillance tools that require no mistake from their targets — the infrastructure for silencing reporters has rarely been more capable or more available.

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Most brands have no idea whether ChatGPT recommends them, ignores them, or gets them wrong. Gist — a subsidiary of ProRata, founded by Bill Gross, the entrepreneur credited with inventing the pay-per-click advertising model — launched Gist GEO on April 21 to close that gap.

The platform tracks and improves how brands appear in AI-generated answers across ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews, Gemini, and Perplexity. It is available now at gist.ai/geo.

The problem GEO is built to solve

Traditional SEO tells a brand where it ranks in search results. It says nothing about whether a brand gets cited, recommended, or accurately described when a buyer asks an AI assistant a question. That gap — between SEO visibility and AI visibility — is the market Gist GEO is entering.

The platform measures brand performance across six metrics: AI Mention Share, Share of Citations, Share of Citations Found, Share of Earned Media, Share of Recommendations, and Prominence. Those feed into four Brand Health dimensions — Awareness, Sentiment, Authority, and Recall — updated weekly with directional deltas and trend lines.

Features include an AI Visibility Dashboard, Brand Opportunity Reports, Competitive Benchmarking, Content Gap Analysis, and Strategic Recommendations. The Growth tier ($349/month) covers up to three brand profiles across four AI engines (ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, and Google AI Overviews), with 300 basic tracking queries and 30 deep analysis queries per month. Basic access runs $99/month for a single brand profile, ChatGPT only, with 60 basic tracking queries and 5 deep analysis queries. Enterprise offers unlimited profiles, all AI engines, and custom query volumes at custom pricing. All new accounts start with a 14-day free trial on the Growth tier (credit card required).

Funding and backing

ProRata has raised more than $75 million since its 2024 launch, including a $40 million Series B. The company is partnering with top-tier publishers and positioning Gist GEO as part of a broader suite that includes publisher monetization tools. CMO Peter Sloterdyk is leading the go-to-market push; Gist discussed the launch at the GROW LA roundtable on April 22.

Gross, whose pay-per-click model reshaped online advertising in the late 1990s, is framing Gist GEO as a similarly structural intervention — this time for a world where AI answers are displacing the search results page entirely.

Where GEO fits in the emerging taxonomy

Gist distinguishes GEO from the related but distinct discipline of AEO (Answer Engine Optimization). In its framing: SEO determines where you rank in traditional search; AEO shapes how you appear in AI-generated direct answers; GEO ensures your brand is cited accurately and favorably within the AI narrative. The distinction matters because AI systems don’t just return results — they construct answers, and brands that aren’t structured for AI comprehension can be misrepresented or omitted entirely.

The platform’s “zero-click” framing captures the underlying pressure. AI answers increasingly appear above ranked search results, meaning users never visit a brand’s site at all. A brand that doesn’t show up in that layer may as well not exist for that query.

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