Join our Global Journalism Seminar Series online from January to March 2024

A worldwide line-up of guest speakers from Africa, the Middle East, East Asia, the US and beyond will deliver our first series of Global Journalism Seminars for 2024. The discussions cover an exciting range of topics important to the world of journalism including podcasting, sports coverage, #MeToo, AI and climate reporting. They will also look at the news media’s role in two of the world’s major general elections.

The events are part of our Journalist Fellowship Programme and are open to the public. They are hosted by Mitali Mukherjee, Director of Journalist Programmes and Caithlin Mercer, Associate Director of the Journalist Fellowship Programme. They are held online on Wednesdays at 13:00 (UK time). See more information and sign up for each one below.

10 January. On exposing corruption through humour. Chip Tsao is a seasoned journalist, author, and satirist known for his sharp wit and incisive commentary. He will share his insights into the power of satire as a tool for dismantling corruption and fostering positive change in society. Co-hosted in person and online at the Blavatnik School of Government. | Sign up

17 January. On sports journalism that challenges the status quo. Sharda Ugra has been a sports journalist for over three decades writing for a range of publications including Mumbai’s Mid-Day, national daily The Hindu, India Today magazine and ESPNcricinfo.com / ESPN India. She has also co-authored a number of high-profile cricket autobiographies. | Sign up

24 January. On an Arab podcasting movement. Ramsey Tesdell is co-founder and executive director of the Sowt podcasting company based in Jordan. Sowt, meaning "voice" or "sound" in Arabic, has produced over 30 shows and thousands of episodes since its launch in 2016. | Sign up

31 January (note: 10:00am start). On the importance of Indonesia’s election. Sana Jaffrey is a Research Fellow at the Australian National University's Department of Political and Social Change and a nonresident scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. She is a scholar of political violence with over 15 years of experience in conducting original quantitative and qualitative research in Indonesia. | Sign up

7 February. Elda Cantú, is an editor in the New York Times' Mexico City bureau. Azam Ahmed is an investigative correspondent with the paper. They will discuss violence, fear and mental health issues across Latin America and whether they could mobilise voters in Mexico's upcoming election. | Sign up

14 February. On holding AI accountable. Hilke Schellmann is an Emmy-award winning journalism professor at New York University and a freelance reporter covering artificial intelligence. Her work has been published in The Wall Street Journal, The Guardian and MIT Technology Review among others. Her recently-published book, The Algorithm, explores artificial intelligence and the future of work. | Sign up

21 February. On two years of the war in Ukraine. Yaroslav Trofimov is the chief foreign-affairs correspondent of The Wall Street Journal. He has covered the war in Ukraine extensively and has worked there since January 2022. Two years into the war he will share the lessons he's learned. | Sign up

28 February. On six years of #MeToo reporting. Rosamund Urwin is the media editor at The Sunday Times behind the Russell Brand scoop. She'll reflect on six years of reporting since the #MeToo movement gained traction in 2017. What lessons have we learnt about how we investigate and report these stories, and the backlash that ensues? | Sign up

6 March. On the key elements of India’s election. Gilles Verniers is a Senior Visiting Fellow at the Centre for Policy Research where he works on various projects concerning Indian elections and contemporary Indian politics. His research interests include the study of India’s political class, electoral analysis, political representation and participation and democratisation across South Asia. | Sign up

13 March. On Africa's untold climate change stories. Wanjira Mathai is Vice President and Regional Director for Africa at the World Resources Institute and has over 20 years of experience advocating for social and environmental change in Africa. In recent years she was named one of the 100 Most Influential African Women. | Sign up