Ian Birrell is a British columnist, foreign correspondent, and former speech writer to Prime Minister David Cameron. In his speech at the 2015 Oslo Freedom Forum, Birrell describes his life as a journalist and how speaking truth to power is a luxury often taken for granted in the West. Birrell warns us that in a war of words with despots and tyrants, advocates for freedom and democracy must fight for the truth, for words can be misused, manipulated, or used against you.