States of Journalism

Journalism can challenge power and hold it to account. It can inform and transform society through meaningful insights into the world around it. But it can also be co-opted through repression and manipulation.

Journalists are at the frontlines of this action, championing the freedom to expose the truth and deliver accountability. But they have also become victims of defamation, imprisonment, and even assassination when they refused to toe the lines of those in power.

Motivated by the recent killing of journalist Shireen Abu Akleh in occupied Palestine and what many have described as double standards in international media narratives on Ukraine versus the Middle East, The New Arab's States of Journalism series is a sustained, ongoing exploration of freedom, repression, and accountability in MENA and beyond, in global media landscapes. This space will be updated regularly.