✍️🎥🎙️Multimedia journalist in the Middle East | The New Arab, WIRED, The National + | Nearer East podcast
Amman, Jordan
Joined November 2023
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On the outskirts of Hama, Syria, @sergioattanasi8 and I met Awad Al-Alawi, who lost his sight after a landmine exploded as he helped his uncle transport construction blocks to rebuild their home. Reporting for @The_NewArab and @altreconomia
A physiotherapist taught himself 3D printing on YouTube. Now he's helping provide affordable prosthetic limbs to Syrians living with limb loss.
My latest feature for @WIRED is out: wired.me/story/this-physioth…
Had a great time hosting a freelancing workshop with The Idea Chamber.
Freelancing taught me it’s more than projects—it’s running a one-person business. From personal branding to invoices, the behind-the-scenes work really matters. Hope it was useful for everyone who joined.
Refugees are often portrayed as helpless, especially children. But that image is shaped by a colonial lens. In my convo with Yafa El Masri, we talk about how Western media and aid systems amplify vulnerability, stripping refugees of their agency.
youtu.be/j9KC6V8Pszc?si=-Iif…
What we call “objectivity” in journalism often reflects dominant power structures, presented as universal truth. Acknowledging this doesn’t weaken journalism, it makes it more honest and more trustworthy.
Read on Substack: francesmarlo.substack.com/p/…
From the U.S. to Iraq, Joe Snell reports stories that often go unheard. In Nearer East podcast, we talk about his work in Erbil, the Assyrian community and the responsibility of telling these stories.
Listen ↓
youtu.be/KQ7zfXIeEMI?si=l3Mr…
Yemen changed everything for Laura Silvia Battaglia, not just her reporting, but her life. In Nearer East, we explore what it means to belong between worlds and where Western coverage often goes wrong.
youtu.be/jRam4VdLWhU?si=1zWV…
Iran’s attacks terrify Westerners in Dubai. “This is not supposed to happen here.” War seems distant, until it hits Western lives, while millions elsewhere are ignored.
Read here: substack.com/home/post/p-190…
Palestinian-American journalist @daoudkuttab spoke about the Italian edition of his new book "State of Palestine NOW" in Amman. Kuttab says recognising Palestine even “for a day” could help restore momentum for meaningful talks.
Read the full article: substack.com/home/post/p-188…
I had the honor of interviewing actress Saja Kilani for The Jordan Times. In the Oscar-nominated The Voice of Hind Rajab, she plays a Red Crescent rescuer who tried to reach 6-year-old Hind Rajab in Gaza in January 2024.
Full interview here: jordantimes.com/news/feature…
What happens to Syria’s Kurds now. The Kurdish-led SDF were key to defeating ISIS. They ran territory, governed locally, and guarded thousands of detainees. That leverage is fading.
Listen to the latest episode of Nearer East.
youtu.be/knLZDxj4QgE?si=yDRR…
Francesca Maria Lorenzini retweeted
"From quantum physics to ballistic missiles: the tragic fall of Iran's oldest science magazine." @jordantimes has a story on my series of interviews with Nobel Prize laureates for Daneshmand Magazine, which I had detailed in a December @newlinesmag essay
jordantimes.com/news/feature…
Francesca Maria Lorenzini retweeted
📝 What starts as a thesis at CJS doesn’t end in the classroom.
Recent graduates have transformed projects into deeply reported stories on global politics, migration, education, culture and human rights—published by @nytimes, @AJENews, @BBCNews and more: journalism.columbia.edu/news…
What if everything you think you know about Iran comes from a narrow frame? In this episode of Nearer East, Iranian journalist @KZiabari explores how Western media narratives contribute to the dehumanization of Iranians.
Listen here: youtu.be/u8vWUKw-hog?si=Tusb…
During a rally for Palestine in downtown Amman a few months ago, one woman caught my attention as she held a doll’s head, standing in for the children killed in Gaza by Israel since October 2023.
This week, I traveled to Lebanon to cover Pope Leo XIV’s visit, part of his first pastoral tour.
The visit offered a moment of relief amid Lebanon’s ongoing political and financial turmoil, shaped by the financial crisis that began in 2019, tensions and attacks from Israel.
This week I have joined 2 airdrop missions to Gaza for multiple outlets. Here’s some highlights.
With most land crossings closed since Israel broke the ceasefire with Hamas in March, these airdrops remain a fragile but critical source of relief for thousands of people.
