From the very first moment of the genocidal war waged by Israel on Gaza, Al Jazeera correspondent Hisham Zaqout has been a witness to hunger, devastation, war crimes, and the assassination of his colleagues in the field. It is a battle for survival and documentation, one that goes beyond mere coverage and daily reporting.

Cameroon’s 2025 presidential election exposed a troubling paradox: a nation voting under the watchful eye of power, while its press remained silenced. From the arrest of a teenage reporter to bans on political debate and digital manipulation, freedom of expression is under siege, and journalism is on trial.

As a journalist, reporting on the murder of my father meant answering questions about my own position as an objective observer.

Will the story of Gaza be reduced to official statements that categorise the Palestinian as a "threat"? Or to images of the victims that flood the digital space? And how can the media be transformed into a tool for reinforcing collective memory and the struggle over narratives?

AI is reshaping Arab journalism in ways that entrench power rather than distribute it, as under-resourced MENA newsrooms are pushed deeper into dependency and marginalisation, while wealthy, tech-aligned media actors consolidate narrative control through infrastructure they alone can afford and govern.

Mauritania holds the top position in the Arab world in the Press Freedom Index published by Reporters Without Borders. However, behind this favourable ranking, the media and journalists face significant challenges, chief among them the ambiguity surrounding the definition of a "journalist" and the capacity of media professionals to fulfil their roles in accountability and oversight. Despite official efforts, the defining feature of Mauritania’s media landscape remains its persistent state of fluctuation.