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
Witnessing the killing of Muhammad al-Durrah in Gaza - the cameraman's tale
Twenty-one years ago, a video of a 12-year-old boy being killed in Gaza reverberated around the world. Talal Abu Rahma, the cameraman who shot the video, described that day.
How to Use Social Media for Newsgathering
Social media platforms are too easily dismissed as ‘not serious’ when it comes to newsgathering. But you can use them as you would the news wires - here’s how.
Will Zimbabwe’s journalists be harmed by new cyber laws?
Zimbabwe’s Cybersecurity and Data Protection Bill aims to protect privacy and guard against child sexual abuse depicted online. But it could also seriously hamper a free press.
Leaks - a badly behaved guest in the newsroom
The recent 'Facebook Files' - revelations about the inner workings of the tech giant published by the Wall Street Journal - were based on leaked internal information. But while leaks can be a valuable source of information for journalists, they can also be used to manipulate them.
Have you been hacked? - What Pegasus spyware revelations mean for journalists
How to protect yourself following the news that sophisticated spyware has been used to hack the smartphones of journalists, activists and politicians around the world.
‘Journalism is sacred work’ - Afghanistan’s frontline reporters
THE LONG READ: Afghanistan ranks as one of the world’s most dangerous countries for journalists. Yet despite targeted killings and an uncertain future, many Afghan reporters are determined to stay and bear witness.
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.
