The Hollings Center recently hosted Zainab Al-Suwaij at a public event at its office in Istanbul. Zainab Al-Suwaij is a co-founder of the American Islamic Congress (AIC) and has been its executive director since AIC’s inception in 2001. In the wake of the 9/11 terror attacks, Zainab left her teaching position at Yale to launch […]

As the last U.S. troops withdrew from Afghanistan on August 31st, many questions remain about the future of Afghanistan and its relations with the international community. The takeover by the Taliban has implications for the country's internal stability and security, as well as for neighboring countries and beyond. What went wrong? What should we expect in Afghanistan next? What will be the global consequences of Afghanistan's transition? To discuss these issues and to look back on the current history of Afghanistan, the Young Professionals in International Relations talk series hosted Haluk Karadağ, assistant professor at Başkent University in Ankara, Turkey, on September 15, 2021.

From global climate change demonstrations and strikes to protests against ruling elites, corruption, and inequality, the world witnessed mass youth protests in the last year. Despite youth’s remarkable political mobilization, their messages are often devalued or ignored. This is mainly related with the contradictory perceptions of youth as being ‘troublemakers’ or ‘victims’, or ‘agents of […]

Why are least developed countries (LDCs) and conflict zones particularly vulnerable to the COVID-19 pandemic? Has there been adequate attention given to the needs of war-affected populations and LDCs during this crisis? Why is helping LDCs and war-affected communities particularly important in the global fight against the coronavirus pandemic? To answer these questions and to […]

The COVID-19 pandemic created what the World Health Organization has called an ‘infodemic’ – massive amounts of misinformation passing through the airwaves and billions of social media feeds every day. In times like these, people need information to be accurate, cross-checked, and useful, as this can literally save lives. During a virtual meeting of the […]

What new realities do new media platforms present? Robert Rosenthal discusses the great opportunities provided by new platforms. Robert Rosenthal is currently an executive producer at The Center for Investigative Reporting. He joined CIR as executive director in 2008, a position he held until 2017. When Rosenthal joined CIR, it had a staff of seven. […]

How do you produce multimedia news stories in different countries? Mayada Ghazala discusses the challenges of producing multimedia stories from countries where journalists are not based. Mayada Ghazala, is a multimedia producer at Middle East Broadcasting Networks. Before joining MBN, she was in Cairo covering the Egyptian revolution from a social media perspective at a […]

Why is media and information literacy important? Bayan Tal discusses the media and information literacy program at the Jordan Media Institute. Bayan Tal is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Crown Prince Foundation and senior adviser at the Jordan Media Institute where she also manages the Media and Information Literacy (MIL) Program […]

What are the common needs of journalists in different countries? Fatima Bahja, who has worked with journalists in many countries discusses success stories of cross-border collaboration. Fatima Bahja is research & proposal coordinator of New Initiatives at the International Center for Journalists (ICFJ). In this role, she is responsible for writing and preparing proposals, tracking […]

What are the essential elements of trust in the media? Claudia Kozman discusses the challenges of preserving trust in the media and why trust is necessary. Claudia Kozman is an assistant professor of multimedia journalism in the Department of Communication Arts, and is the research director of the Institute of Media Research and Training at […]