Some News

I’m thrilled to announce that I’ll be moving to D.C. in June to join Al Jazeera America’s flagship news program in a senior role as a digital producer.

Relentless, fiercely objective journalism has always been paramount to my work, and I see in AJA’s new channel a bold, radical opportunity to raise the bar in cable news: to do it differently and more seriously, with integrity, fairness, respect, transparency and independence.

I feel incredibly lucky to have been able to spend the last three years at FRONTLINE working to shape its digital future: helping grow the series’ digital audience by more than 75 percent, experimenting in interactive storytelling and video, creating new collaborations and digital partnerships, and reporting and producing original digital stories spanning wide-reaching topics ranging from the financial crisis and the influence of money in political campaigns to the civil war in Syria and Al Qaeda’s stronghold in Yemen. I’ve been very fortunate to work with a truly impressive team there and with irreplaceable mentors and bosses. I will miss my colleagues and work there dearly.

But I’m very excited about this new opportunity and hope you’ll follow me on this new journey. Stay tuned for more soon!

Why the Military Has a Sexual Assault Problem →

Here’s why the military has a sexual assault problem - and here’s what can be done about it: a must-read by my colleague Sarah Childress.

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Garlic naan and karahi chicken - extra spicy. Night made.

I honestly can’t remember the last time I was this excited to watch a documentary.

These Birds Walk, a film by Omar Mullick and Bassam Tariq, tells the story of a runaway boy searching for home on the streets of Pakistan, at an orphan­age and with the fam­ily he fled in the first place.

It looks like a much more complex and moving portrait of contemporary Pakistan than we usually see, and also a universal story about trying to find your place in the world.

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A shout-out to my incredible digital colleagues at FRONTLINE who made this beautifully designed, well-executed interactive exploring how retirement fees cost you big money. Math made easy.

"It certainly takes courage to speak, but it takes a different kind of courage to be silent, to listen, to trust, and speak when the time is right."

Following the speculation and errors rife in last week’s media coverage of the events in Boston, here’s a sharp, thoughtful argument about the need for silence, better timing and more pragmatism in breaking news. A must-read for every journalist.

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On Al Jazeera America’s “radical agenda: unbiased news, delivered via virtually unlimted resources.”

aljazeeraamerica:

We’re in Vogue! Check out the May issue for an inside look at the launch of Al Jazeera America.

Moved by the cover of the upcoming New Yorker, ”Shadow Over Boston.”

“A bomb at a marathon, right at the finish line of a festive occasion—it seemed almost like a mixed metaphor, incongruous and absurd,” artist Eric Drooker said. “Those are just the things that flashed through my head as I started painting.”

Locked down in Cambridge today, I can’t think of a better way of describing this madness.

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Syria Behind the Lines is the only film to document Syria’s civil war from both sides of the line. If you missed it on PBS this week, you can watch it anytime on our website, where there’s much more to explore.

A few digital highlights I’d like to point out:

• The Bombing of al-Bara, a rare, immersive video portrait I produced of the immediate aftermath of Syrian government air strikes on a civilian population. FRONTLINE filmmaker Olly Lambert takes you through the chaos, destruction, fear and terror on the ground like nothing you’ve ever seen before. It’s absolutely indelible.
• Our interactive map of the Orontes River valley illustrates a powerful microcosm of the conflict’s emerging sectarian divide - a once-peaceful valley now at war. This data is incredibly difficult to collect and you won’t find it anywhere else. It’s an especially immersive experience on an iPad.
• The photo above is from Olly Lambert’s jarring behind the scenes photo essay that crisscrosses the fault lines of Syria’s war.
• A grenade costs about $80 in Idlib province today. Two years ago, it cost about half that. In this piece for FRONTLINE, TIME’s Rania Abouzeid explains the flow and politics of the weapons in Syria’s war.
• What’s behind the world’s inaction on Syria? My colleague Sarah Childress breaks it down.
• Our managing editor Philip Bennett thoughtfully explores questions of genocide and Syria’s future. It’s worth reading and reflecting on.
• And lastly, how has Syria’s embattled president Bashar al-Assad managed to hold on to power for so long? The Regime Responds, a film by FRONTLINE producer Marcela Gaviria, traces the roots of the Syrian rebellion, from the lingering, deep-seated resentments that stem from repression under Hafez al-Assad’s regime, to the failed hopes for reform promised by his son, to the spread of the current uprising. It’s the history and context you need to understand what’s happening in Syria today.

I’ve spent the last few weeks producing “The Bombing of al-Bara,” an immersive digital short film about Syria.

FRONTLINE filmmaker Olly Lambert was in the village of al-Bara in Idlib province filming Syrian rebel commander Jamal Maarouf when government jets dropped bombs on homes 300 meters away from him. Though the blast knocked him to the ground, Olly kept filming for the next hour, journeying to the scenes of each strike.

I produced the footage into this 36-minute digital film, vividly narrated by Olly. It captures the chaos on the ground as villagers try to rescue family and friends trapped under the rubble, the bombing’s effect on ordinary civilians whose lives literally have just been blown apart, the terrible fear when the government jets return for a second bombing run, and the ensuing calls for revenge that illustrate the country’s descent into a no man’s land of hatred, suspicion and terror.

I hope you’ll watch.

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An incredible shot from FRONTLINE’s coming film, Syria Behind the Lines: A rainbow from the vantage point of a Syrian soldier at a government checkpoint in Aziziya.

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The Iraq War began 10 years ago this week and has cost 16 times what the Bush administration predicted: $800 billion (and counting). Add it up for yourself with our interactive.

Also explore our deep portal on the war’s legacy, where you can also watch all of FRONTLINE’s reporting on the subject over the years.

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Today marks the two-year anniversary of the Syrian conflict. What began as peaceful protests in a small farming town 60 miles south of Damascus is today a bloody nationwide civil war with no end in sight.

Here’s a jarring scene from our coming film Syria Behind the Lines: A woman pushes her child in a stroller just moments after an air strike in al-Bara.

"Give your daughters difficult names. Give your daughters names that command the full use of tongue. My name makes you want to tell me the truth. My name doesn’t allow me to trust anyone that cannot pronounce it right … Give your children difficult names, so the world may learn how to unfurl its tongue in the direction of our stolen languages."

Moved by this piece on the Quvenzhanés, Warsans and Azmats of the world.

In my humble opinion, Biryani Park is hands down the most delicious restaurant in the Boston area. Pure Sri Lankan goodness from some of the warmest, most enthusiastic owners you’ll meet.