Irresponsible Media - Dead Journalist

A BBC journalist who was murdered on assignment in Somalia was not wearing a flak jacket when she was shot in the back outside a hotel, an inquest heard today.

The senior producer Kate Peyton, 39, had only just arrived in the country's lawless capital, Mogadishu, in February 2005, when she was killed.

She had travelled there from her base in Johannesburg with the reporter Peter Greste to film a series of reports about the Somali peace process.

DCI David Skevington, of Suffolk police, told the inquest at Ipswich crown court today that Peyton was not wearing a flak jacket when a gunman opened fire as she went to get into a car outside the Sahafi hotel.

"The BBC will say that flak jackets were taken but were not normally worn because it was thought that it would draw unnecessary attention and invite attack," he said.

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A BBC journalist shot dead while working in one of the world's most dangerous countries "felt she had to go" to prove her commitment, an inquest heard today.

Producer Kate Peyton, 39, of Beyton, Suffolk, died in February 2005 after being shot in the back by a gunman outside a hotel in Mogadishu.

Her sister Rebecca, 36, told the inquest in Ipswich today that Miss Peyton was worried about losing her job.

Rebecca said her sister wanted a fourth year added to her contract and feared that bosses doubted her commitment.

"She had been told there were doubts about her commitment to her job," said Rebecca.

"She completely felt that she had to go to prove that she was committed.

"When it comes to news journalism, you can earn a lot of points by going to dangerous places.