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Nov 2023
1h 16m

Reporting the Truth About Palestine & th...

AFIKRA
About this episode

Dima Khatib, managing director at AJ+, is leading crucial work to speak truth to power in the face of what we’re witnessing in Palestine: tackling misinformation, dismantling false narratives on multilingual platforms, and standing apart in the current media landscape.

We start with a reflection on the targeting of journalists and the assassination of the truth from Iraq to what we’re witnessing right now in Gaza. We explore the idea of war of information and “embedded journalists”. Dima shares her first-hand experience in combating misinformation and replacing dehumanizing narratives, explaining AJ+’s approach to speaking to different audiences in their own languages about what’s happening on the ground. 

We ponder about western media, the notable absence of journalists speaking up against injustice and war crimes, and the debilitating but far reaching double standards that permeate western media and popular narratives. 

In a more hopeful light, Dima points to the powerful role of Gen Z on platforms like TikTok and Instagram and the fact that vocabulary such as “Nakba” and “settler colonialism” is becoming part of a common, global language. 

Finally she shares reading recommendations from Jewish, Israeli and South American writers that have helped her understand what is happening in Palestine and to Palestinians, and the realities of colonialism and idigineity. 

This episode was recorded on Tuesday November 14 at 6:45pm Palestine Time 

Please note that we're recording special podcast episodes relevant to understanding historical context to what is happening in Palestine. Make sure to check out the other highly informative conversations with guests from completely different disciplines who are generously sharing their time and insight in these dark times.

About Dima: 

Dima Khatib is the managing director of the award-winning AJ+ channels in four languages: English, Arabic, Spanish and French. She joined the Network in 1997 as a junior broadcast journalist in Qatar and went on to become the first female executive within Al Jazeera. Later, Dima set up bureaus in China and Venezuela where she was Al Jazeera’s bureau chief for almost a decade. Dima has reported from over 30 countries in five continents, interviewing presidents and people from all walks of life. Dima is a polyglot who has published the book “Love Refugee”. She has been classified as one of the most influential Arabs online since the early days of social media.

***** ABOUT THIS SERIES ***** 

The afikra Podcast is our flagship program featuring experts from academia, art, media and beyond who are helping document and/or shape the histories and cultures of the Arab world through their ‎work. Our hope is that by having the guest share their expertise and story, the community walks away with a new ‎found curiosity - and maybe some good recommendations about new nerdy rabbit holes to dive into head first. ‎ 

Explore all afikra Podcast episodes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-0voh_EioBM&list=PLfYG40bwRKl5xaTkBDrUKLCulvoCE8ubX 

****** ABOUT AFIKRA ******‎ 

afikra | عفكرة is a movement to convert passive interest in the Arab world to active intellectual curiosity. We aim to collectively reframe the dominant narrative of the region by exploring the histories and cultures of the region – past, present, and future – through conversations driven by curiosity. 

📍 Local events in 30 locations worldwidehttp://afikra.com/chapters 

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Hosted by: 
Mikey Muhanna 👉 https://www.instagram.com/mikey_mu/?hl=en-gb

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THIS SERIES IS PART OF THE AFIKRA PODCAST NETWORK 
Explore all episodes in this series: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLfYG40bwRKl5xaTkBDrUKLCulvoCE8ubX&feature=shared

ABOUT AFIKRA
afikra | عفكرة is a movement to convert passive interest in the Arab world to active intellectual curiosity. We aim to collectively reframe the dominant narrative of the region by exploring the histories and cultures of the region – past, present and future – through conversations driven by curiosity.
📍 Local events in 40+ locations worldwide http://afikra.com/chapters
🎧 New podcasts + videos weekly http://afikra.com/podcasts
⚡ Become a member: https://www.afikra.com/membership
🔗 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/afikra_
🔗 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/afikra.official
🔗 Twitter: https://twitter.com/afikra

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