Al Jazeera Journalism Review
Podcasters, content creators and influencers are not journalists. Are they?
Are podcasters, content creators, and influencers really journalists, or has the word 'journalist' been stretched so thin that it now covers anyone holding a microphone and an opinion? If there is a difference, where does it sit? Is it in method, mission, accountability, or something else? And in a media landscape built on noise, how do we separate a journalist from someone who produces content for clicks, followers or sponsors
Latest Articles
‘It takes courage to be a journalist in India’ - charting the collapse of press autonomy
THE LONG READ: With a rising number of journalists in India receiving ‘summons’ from the police and even finding themselves in prison just for doing their jobs, we ask - why has the profession come under so much pressure in recent years?
Bangladesh’s Digital Security Act is criminalising journalism
Bangladesh has been quietly strengthening its laws curtailing freedom of expression - with dangerous results
Beyond bystanders: Citizen journalism during the Egyptian revolution
A journalist looks back at the founding of RASSD News Network during the Egyptian revolution, which trained and supported ordinary citizens to become journalists
‘The bottom of human misery’ - reporting on Rohingya refugee women and girls
THE LONG READ: How should we go about reporting on members of vulnerable communities in an ethical way? We examine the case of Rohingya refugees, overwhelmed and struggling for survival in the refugee camps of Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh
Moscow’s journalistic lights are dimmed, but their story needs to be told
Russia is waging a war on independent journalists who dare to question or contradict the official government line - we must do more to support them
How smartphones are changing the face of news journalism
The telegraph transformed the way that newspapers could report the news more than 150 years ago. Now, smartphones are doing the same for TV news organisations
Opinion
Derick Matsengarwodzi
Podcasters, content creators and influencers are not journalists. Are they?
Are podcasters, content creators, and influencers really journalists, or has the word 'journalist' been stretched so thin that it now covers anyone holding a microphone and an opinion? If there is…
Daniel Harper
The Power to Write History: How Journalism Shapes Collective Memory and Forgetting
What societies remember, and what they forget, is shaped not only by historians but by journalism. From wars to natural disasters, the news does not simply record events; it decides which…
Ilya U Topper
Journalism in Spain: Why Omitting Ethnicity May Be Doing More Harm Than Good
In Spain, a well-intentioned media practice of omitting suspects’ ethnic backgrounds in crime reporting is now backfiring, fuelling misinformation, empowering far-right narratives, and eroding…
Diaries
A Sudanese Journalist in the Grip of the Rapid Support Forces
She was arrested, tortured, nearly raped, threatened with death, and subjected to degrading abuse. Her brother was brutally mistreated in an effort to locate her. In the end, her family had to pay a ransom to secure her release. She sought refuge abroad, but eventually returned to Sudan to continue documenting the war’s toll, particularly in El Fasher, a city now under siege. This is the harrowing account of a Sudanese journalist detained and tortured by the Rapid Support Forces.
Anas Al Sharif; Killed by Israel, but His Final Words Will Echo far Beyond His Death
For over a year and a half, Anas Jamal al-Sharif refused to leave northern Gaza, documenting the destruction and loss that others tried to hide. Tonight, Israel silenced his voice, but his final words, written on April 6, will echo far beyond his death.
Charged with Being a Journalist in Sudan
Between the barricades of the conflicting parties, sometimes displaced, and sometimes hiding from bullets, journalist Iman Kamal El-Din lived the experience of armed conflict in Sudan and conveyed to Al-Sahafa magazine the concerns and challenges of field coverage in a time of deception and targeting of journalists.
Reports
Zapatismo and Citizen Journalism in Chiapas, Mexico
In Chiapas, independent journalists risk their lives to document resistance, preserve Indigenous memory, and challenge state and cartel violence. From Zapatista films to grassroots radio, media becomes a weapon for dignity, truth, and survival.
Lost in Translation: The Global South and the Flaws of Content Moderation
Global Rules, Local Consequences: How Biased Moderation Fuels Disinformation in the Global South. Unequal systems of AI and human oversight are failing to protect and often silencing non-Western voices online.
Propaganda: Between Professional Conscience and Imposed Agendas
When media institutions first envisioned editorial charters and professional codes of conduct, their primary goal was to safeguard freedom of expression. However, experience has shown that these frameworks have often morphed into a "vast prison", one that strips journalists of their ability to confront authority in all its forms. In this way, Big Brother dons velvet gloves to seize what little space remains for the practice of true journalism.
Journalists Under Occupation; Palestinian Journalists in the West Bank
Palestinian journalists in the West Bank face extreme physical danger, psychological trauma, and systemic targeting under Israeli occupation, yet continue to report with resilience, amplifying the voices of their people despite global indifference and media bias.
Narrative Without Debate: The Telegraph’s Comment Ban on Gaza Coverage
What does it mean for readers when their voices are deliberately cut off? This content analysis of The Telegraph, a UK-based conservative newspaper known for its pro-establishment stance and alignment with right-leaning narratives, shows it systematically disabled Instagram comments on Israel-Gaza posts, blocking dissent and shaping a one-sided, pro-Israel narrative.
The Silent Death of Urdu Newspapers in India
With a 200-year history, Urdu newspapers in India are now facing a silent death—trapped in a cycle of decline where circulation has fallen by nearly 25%, advertising is absent, and government support is scarce. What vanishes is more than print: it is the erosion of a cultural and political lifeline that once bound Hindus, Muslims, and Sikhs in common debates and carried the voices of the marginalised into India’s public sphere.
