Al Jazeera Journalism Review
Ilya U Topper, born in Spain in 1972, is a Spanish journalist focusing on Mediterranean countries. Since 2011 he has worked in Istanbul as a correspondent for the Spanish news agency Efe.
Writer’s Articles
A Half-Truth is a Full Lie
Misinformation is rampant in modern conflicts, worsened by the internet and social media, where false news spreads easily. While news agencies aim to provide unbiased, fact-based reporting, their focus on brevity and hard facts often lacks the necessary context, leaving the public vulnerable to manipulation and unable to fully grasp the complexities of these issues.
Your Words Are Your Weapon — You Are a Soldier in a Propaganda War
Narrative warfare and the role of journalists in it is immense; the context of the conflict, the battleground has shifted to the realm of narratives, where journalists play a decisive role in shaping the narrative.
The Perils of Unverified News: A Case of Nonexistent Flotillas
Can you hide one thousand ships in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea? I would say not. But some of my fellow journalists seem to believe in magic.
Journalists beware! The silly season is upon us
With parliaments on recess and all the movers and shakers off on their holidays, journalists can find themselves scrabbling about for any old news to report. But be careful what you resort to
The correspondent's job: Ask people, don't tell them
Should foreign correspondents and their media organisations ever take a stand on another country’s political divisions?
Field notes from an earthquake - reporting on human misery
REPORTER'S NOTEBOOK: Where do you draw the line when covering human suffering? When does reporting on a devastating earthquake cross over from objective journalism to tasteless voyeurism?
Beware of trying to ‘cause’ the news to happen
How rumours and speculation about a refugee ‘Convoy of Light’ descending on the Greek border with Turkey were taken up by some members of the press - when it never actually happened
Beware of activist journalists - they won’t always tell the ugly truth
It is the job of journalists to report the full truth - even when that might cast the ‘good’ guys in a ‘bad’ light