Hinda Mohamoud is the Chief Editor of Bilan Media, Somalia's first all-women media team. Hinda leads a team dedicated to covering social issues often overlooked by traditional media in Somalia, such as climate change, people living with albinism and HIV/AIDS, and period education for young girls. Hinda's story begins in a conservative environment w…

Nolwazi Tusini, an award-winning broadcast journalist, queer feminist, social justice activist and Program Director, Amplify South Africa. Nolwazi shares her experiences with loss, particularly the impact of losing her mother at a young age. This profound loss not only shaped her personal journey but also influenced her career path, pushing her tow…

Ruth Butaumocho is an award-winning Zimbabwean journalist, gender, and development trainer with over 25 years of media experience. She is also the Managing Editor of The Herald Newspaper in Zimbabwe. As a journalist, Ruth has dedicated over a decade to gender reporting, using her platform to highlight the issues faced by women in Zimbabwe. Her pers…

Omnia Shawkat & Raghdan Orsud are two remarkable women who have co-founded media organizations (Andariya and Beam Reports) dedicated to serving the Sudanese community. Their journey is not only inspiring but also highlights the challenges faced by female entrepreneurs in a male-dominated industry. As female co-founders, Omnia and Ragdan reflect on …

Amie Joof is a journalist, activist, and women’s rights advocate, with over 35 years of experience. Madame Joof discusses her passion for journalism, her commitment to gender equality, and the importance of mentorship in empowering the next generation of women leaders. She also shares insights into the challenges and triumphs of advocating for wome…

Gloria Edukere is a talented writer, advocacy specialist and corporate communications expert from Nigeria. She found her passion for writing at a young age, often retreating under the dining table to craft her stories. This early love for writing laid the foundation for her successful career in corporate communication. Gloria discusses her career p…

Melkamsew Selomon is a journalist with over 15 years of experience and also a Board Member of the Ethiopian Media Women Association (EMWA). Melkam shares her inspiring journey from growing up in Addis Ababa to becoming a prominent journalist and advocate for gender equality in media. She discusses her early life challenges, her pursuit of education…

Mwape Kumwenda is an accomplished journalist and co-founder of Crown TV, Zambia with over 1o years of experience. She shares her experience growing up in Kabwe, Zambia where she witnessed firsthand the vulnerabilities faced by women and girls in her community. This early exposure to gender-based violence fueled her passion for justice, initially le…

Sarah Mawerere is a senior broadcast journalist at Uganda Broadcasting Corporation (UBC). She shares her experience growing up in the rural Busoga Region of Uganda, where she faced numerous challenges, including the loss of both parents at a young age. Despite these hardships, she pursued her dream of becoming a journalist, inspired by the voices s…

Regine Akalikumutima is a remarkable teacher turned media owner and gender activist from Rwanda. She shares her personal experiences and involvement in the Kigali Declaration, a pivotal step in combating gender-based violence in media across Africa Her journey into media was sparked by the challenges she observed as a teacher. Many of her students …

Pamella Makotsi is a prominent Kenyan journalist and media executive with a career spanning over two decades. Pamella shares her inspiring journey from a humble upbringing in Kenya to becoming a prominent figure in the journalism world. She discusses the impact of her large family on her confidence. She also talks about how her early experiences sp…

Sophia Kudjordji is a Ghanaian Corporate Communications expert with a rich background that spans over two decades. In this episode, Sophia shares her journey, challenges, and the lessons learned along the way, from her dynamic childhood in Ghana to becoming one of the top ten most influential women who have risen to the top in journalism and public…

Asmaa James is a renowned journalist, activist, and philanthropist from Sierra Leone with over 20 years of experience in broadcast journalism, management and advocacy for women's rights In this episode, Asmaa shares her journey from being a volunteer in a local radio station to rising through the ranks to become a ​presenter, ​producer, ​editor ​of…

Introducing Her Media Diary, a podcast where Dr Yemisi Akinbobola speaks to some of the most influential women leaders in media. From personal experiences of workplace dynamics to burning global issues like climate change, food security, and peacebuilding. Her Media Diary tackles these topics and more. Bringing you first-person accounts and solutio…

Rosebell Kagumire is a trained journalist, rights advocate, digital strategist, public speaker and award-winning blogger, with expertise in human rights, gender, peace and conflict issues. In this episode, Rosebell recounts the challenges and dangers she faced as a young female journalist reporting from the front lines in South Sudan. These experie…

Peace Hillary is an accomplished Rwandan journalist with over 20 years of experience in the media profession. She currently serves as the Managing Director of Family Magazine, which focuses on gender issues, family promotion, women’s empowerment, combating Gender-Based Violence (GBV), and family conflicts. Peace shares her journey from surviving th…

Phathiswa Magopeni is a South African-born media personality, and former Head of News and Current Affairs at the South African Broadcasting Corporation. She currently sits on the Board of Directors for the SABC. Phathiswa recounts her journey from her early life in rural South Africa, through her university years, and into her impactful career at S…

Her Media Diary Episode 24: "Honing the Craft" with Eugenia Abu Eugenia Abu is a distinguished broadcaster, author, media consultant, and one of Nigeria’s finest broadcasters and compères renowned for anchoring the 9:00 pm news on the Nigerian Television Authority for seventeen years. Eugenia’s advice to aspiring broadcasters is clear: focus on the…

Kim Fox is a Professor of Practice in the Department of Journalism and Mass Communication (JRMC) at The American University in Cairo (AUC) Egypt. She primarily teaches Audio Production and other journalism courses, and her research interests include Podcasting, Audio, Radio, Media Representation, Teaching with Technology, and Social Media. Her stor…

Dr Sarah Macharia is a gender equality champion, women’s rights advocate, and the global coordinator of the Global Media Monitoring Project (GMMP), which is the world’s longest-running initiative focused on researching and promoting gender equality in media. This episode unpacks the slow pace of change despite extensive efforts in advocacy and trai…

Professor Nancy Booker is an Associate Professor and the Dean at the Graduate School of Media and Communications, The Aga Khan University, Kenya. Her story speaks to women and media scholars who understand the need to show up regardless of how inconvenient it might be, just to ensure that they are seen and heard by people who might just need their …

Prof Lilian Atanga is an accomplished scholar and researcher in Gender and Discourse Studies. Her research interests lie at the intersection of language, gender, politics, and the media in African contexts. Prof Atanga’s story speaks to all media scholars and educators who have made their marks in the industry and to prospectives who wish to make a…

Comfort Mussa is a prolific, multi-award-winning Cameroonian journalist with over 15 years of experience covering underreported stories, with a special focus on issues affecting women and girls. Comfort's story speaks to all women out there who experience any form of chastisement for speaking up for themselves and refusing to conform to social cons…

Annonciata Byukusenge is a multimedia journalist with 12 years of experience. She holds a bachelor's degree in Journalism and Communication from the University of Rwanda and a certificate in Media Management from Women in News. She has worked with a number of media houses and NGOs including rwandanews24 and theforefrontmagazine. In this episode, An…

Annie Zulu is an accomplished freelance journalist with a remarkable career in the media industry spanning over 7 years. She has earned numerous awards for her outstanding contribution to Journalism. Her focus is on investigative stories that are often underreported, particularly those that address issues affecting women, children, climate change, …

Marverine Cole is a multi-award-winning broadcaster and journalist with over 30 years of experience working as a reporter and news anchor for the UK’s leading media stations including the BBC She has produced several radio documentaries, including Black Girls Don’t Cry which earned her ‘Journalist of the Year’ at the Mind Media Awards in 2019. In t…

Verah Okeyo is an award-winning journalist, communications manager, and media trainer with over ten years of experience covering global health with a focus on maternal and child health, infectious diseases, and underrepresented communities. In this episode, Verah shares her journey from her childhood to the newsroom while battling with clinical dep…

Adelle Onyango is a Kenyan media personality, podcaster and founder of the Adelle Onyango Initiative, an organisation that empowers youth and provides psycho-social support to African women survivors of rape. Through her podcast, Legally Clueless, she captures the raw human stories of everyday Africans. In this episode, Adelle shares the stories be…

Qaanitah Hunter is a multiple award-winning journalist and political editor at News24, South Africa. She is the author of 'Balance of Power: Ramaphosa and the future of South Africa' and recently co-authored a book called 'Eight Days in July: Inside the Zuma unrest that set South Africa alight'. In this episode, Qaanitah shares her journey from chi…

Moyo Thomas is a news reporter and strategic communications specialist. Describing herself as a humanist and a womanist she is a sexual and gender-based violence advocate fighting for women's rights, security and safety. In this episode, Moyo Thomas discusses the representation and presentation of sexual harassment and gender-based violence in Nige…

Soyem Osakwe is a specialist in Global communications, campaigns and advocacy. In this episode, Soyem speaks passionately about her work using effective communications strategies to raise awareness and advocate against gender-based violence. If you are a journalist or content creator, if you work for an NGO or simply want to lend your voice to real…

In this episode Yemisi Akinbobola Interviews @rachel_ombaka media editor, trainer and public speaker shares her experiences of sexual harassment in the newsroom and speaks passionately about her activism against this. Her interview is honest and personal, as she shares how childhood memories of gender-based violence impacted her own relationship wi…

In this episode of #HerMediaDiary Kenyan journalist, Julia Majale talks about her journey to becoming the Managing Editor of Tuko Media. Julia discusses how her early life shaped her leadership skills and the enduring influence of her father and grandmother. She challenges journalists to seize opportunities and to take on extra roles that stretch t…

This podcast series looks at labour migration in Africa and focuses on how women experience it on different levels. It highlights how African women experience labour migrations locally, regionally and internationally; featuring expert analysis and tips for journalists who report on labour migration issues. In this episode we discuss: AWiM Co-founde…

This podcast series looks at labour migration in Africa and focuses on how women experience it on different levels. It highlights how African women experience labour migrations locally, regionally and internationally; featuring expert analysis and tips for journalists who report on labour migration issues. In this episode we discuss: The experience…

This podcast series looks at labour migration in Africa, and focuses on how women experience it on different levels. It highlights how African women experience labour migrations locally, regionally and internationally; featuring expert analysis and tips for journalists who report on labour migration issues. In this episode we discuss: Labour migrat…

This podcast series looks at labour migration in Africa, and focuses on how women experience it on different levels. The series focuses on gendered stories that highlight how African women experience labour migrations locally, regionally and internationally; featuring expert analysis and tips for journalists who report on labour migration issues. H…

Her Media Diary Episode 8: Nelisiwe Nkosi In this episode, South African photographer, Nelisiwe Nkosi talks about how photography helped her work through the trauma of being sexually assaulted on two occasions. Her photographic series, “Breakeven” expresses the feelings of shame, violation, vulnerability and a yearning to be invisible. “Breakeven” …

In this episode of Her Media Diary with Josephine Mahachi, A Deutsche Welle Journalist, founder of Click Africa and host of Live Chat with Josey, we talk conquering fears, perseverance, support systems and strength. Growing up in a family where the girl child played second fiddle to the boy child, she defied all odds and self-sponsored herself into…

“If we focus less on leaving a good impression and focus more on presenting the best impression of who we are, we stand a chance of then giving people the truest, most authentic picture of ourselves”. Arit Okpo, is a television presenter, voice over artist, documentary filmmaker, TV producer, and current host of CNN African Voices ...and a food lov…

This week on #HerMediaDiary Podcast, I interview South African award-winning journalist, documentary and film director, Diana Neille. Diana discusses business models, taking storytelling for brands to a new level by involving journalism in traditional advertising and building credibility. She challenges journalists to dig deep and find new ways of …

‘Your network is your networth’ is an adage that we often hear about. In this episode, Kenyan multiple-award winning journalist and writer Christine Mungai, shares with us how her network paved her way into journalism after studying for a science degree. Her journey is aspiring and intriguing as she chronicles how she goes beyond descriptive journa…

It was a privilege to interview the writer, performer, and advocate Bassey Ikpi for the third episode of #HerMediaDiary podcast. We talk writing, finding yourself and mental health. Bassey talks about her diagnosis of bipolar and her journey in developing a successful career. This interview was recorded in October 2018, and since then her book ‘I’m…

In this episode with Emmy-nominated journalist, Ruona J. Meyer, we discuss investigative journalism, how to pitch yourself and your stories, and making use of the platforms available to you. Her undercover investigation ‘Sweet, Sweet Codeine’ highlighted the plight of young Nigerians addicted to codeine syrup. Less that 24 hours of broadcasting Swe…

In this episode, we speak about the mental health of journalists and duty of care of editors and senior management in news organisations, to journalists. Dr Yemisi Akinbobola, is joined by Qaanitah Hunter, Politics Editor at South Africa's News24, and Stephanie Busari, Editor at CNN Africa.By AWiM

In our third episode of our four-part podcast series, Covid-19 for Journalists, Dr Yemisi Akinbobola is joined by Jane Godia, Capacity Building Manager, Africa, for WAN-IFRA's Women in News; Motunrayo Joel, Africa Checks' Nigeria deputy editor, and Paul Bradshaw, BBC data journalist and Associate Professor at Birmingham City University. We talk abo…

In this second episode of COVID-19 for Journalists, we discuss innovative reporting and exploring emerging best practices. I am joined by Ferial Haffajee, Daily Maverick, South Africa; Chidi Uguru, Big Cabal Media, Nigeria; Blaise Aboh, Orodata, Nigeria; Culton Scovia from Uganda, and Eunice Kilonzo from Kenya. We talk: Maps, surveillance, digital …

This is the first of a four-part podcast series called COVID-19 for Journalists. In this episode we speak with Queenter Mbori and Maria Salazar-Ferro. Queenter Mbori is an Editor with The Standard Group and the President Standard Group Women Network. Maria Salazar Ferro is director of CPJ’s Emergencies Department, overseeing the organization’s assi…

Hodan Nalayeh was the founder of Integration TV, a platform she set up to change the narrative of Somalia. She talks about starting up a digital platform, developing your brand, and effective use of digital. Hodan was killed in an Al-Shabaab bombing on 12 July 2019.By AWiM