The desperate reality

Palestinian journalist Bisan Owda and Al-Jazeera’s AJ+ Channels have been awarded an Emmy in the Outstanding Hard News Feature Story for their documentary entitled, “It’s Bisan from Gaza – and I’m Still Alive.” Armed only with an I-phone, Owda has reported from Gaza during Israel’s deadly and devastating onslaught on Gaza for nearly 12 months. Since the Oct.7 raid by Hamas which killed 1,139 in Israel and captured 250 Israelis and visitors, more than 130 journalists and media workers have been killed by Israel, Reporters Without Borders stated. Gaza’s official media office puts the figure at 173. All the fatalities in Gaza itself have been Palestinians as no foreign journalists have been allowed by Israel or Egypt to enter Gaza. This has placed the dangerous but essential burden of reporting the Gaza war on Owda and her local colleagues.

AJ+ Channels director Dima Khatib stated, “This award is a testament to young Palestinian journalists and their professionalism. Bisan’s reporting has humanised the Palestinian story after decades of mainstream media’s systematic dehumanisation of Palestinians. Winning this Emmy is a win for humanity. We feel extremely proud of this bright moment amidst ongoing genocide, and Bisan will continue reporting.” She also won a Peabody Award and an Edward R. Murrow award. The fact that these prestigious awards have been made by three prominent US organisations is significant at a time the Biden administration is arming Israel for its military campaign in Gaza and fully supporting Israel on the political level.

Born in 1997 or 1998, Owda became a storyteller at an early age and has been involved in campaigns for gender equality and climate change and is an European Union Goodwill Ambassador. She has taken traditional Arab storytelling into the social media dimension while producing programmes on Palestinian history and culture in English and Arabic. During the May 2021 Israeli assault on Gaza, she posted videos on Instagram. Owda’s films have been carried by the BBC, ABC News, and Save the Children as well as Al-Jazeera. Although her filming equipment was destroyed when Israel bombed her office, she made her I-phone her tool to depict the story of Gazans’ struggle, suffering, fear, and grief.

In the days just after Israel’s bombardment began, she uploaded video of surviving cats wandering helplessly in the rubble of their destroyed homes and followed up with her experiences while still at home. When she stopped posting for a few days, her followers asked where she was and was she still alive. She replied on Nov.10, while she was on the road walking with other refugees, “Hello, I’m still alive,” launching her full-time narrative and becoming a journalist.

Her eight-minute documentary film records Owda’s displacement journeys after fleeing her bombed-out home in Beit Hannoun while Israel’s war rages around her and fellow Gazans. She lived in a tent at Shifa hospital with her family and cat, Farah, until they were forced to flee a second time. In their walk to the Khan Younis refugee camp, she described dead bodies on the roadside and interviewed fellow travellers. In December, a pragmatic Owda stated, “I no longer have any hope of survival like I had at the beginning of this genocide.” She fell ill and was plagued with nightmares. She cut her hair as there was no water, shampoo or soap for washing. Nevertheless, she recently posted on X, “The brutality and terror of the coloniser can never force me to leave my land, to surrender or to lower my spirit.”

Owda reported on Israeli strikes on the Shifa Hospital’s ambulance, Palestinians killed and wounded while gathering around a lorry loaded with flour in 2024, and families’ repeated displacements. When she posted on social media videos on events in the war Owda would open with a version of “I’m still alive,” occasionally with tears of relief. She described everyday hardships of Gazans who face shortages of food and medicine due to the Israeli blockade. She has four million followers on Instagram as well as viewers on X and TikTok. Success has prompted critics and trolls who abuse her and accuse her of misrepresenting the desperate reality Israel has created in Gaza.

After her Al-Jazeera film was nominated for an Emmy, a pro-Israeli group called the Creative Community for Peace (CCFP) claimed Owda had “documented ties” to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), which has been designated a “terrorist organisation” by the US. The CCFP contended that the “Emmys cannot allow their prestigious award show to be hijacked by terrorists.” After the award was presented, the National Academy for Television and Arts and Sciences (NATAS) refused to rescind the Emmy.

NATAS head Adam Sharp said in a letter that the News & Documentary Emmys “have recognised excellence in television journalism for nearly half a century.” He said some of the “honored programs and reports” have “been controversial, giving a platform to voices that certain viewers may find objectionable or even abhorrent.” However, he stated, “all have been in the service of the journalistic mission to capture every facet of the story.” The judges involved in selecting candidates are independent volunteer veteran journalists from various media organisations.

When receiving the Emmy, Al-Jazeera’s senior executive producer John Lawrence said, “This award is testament to one woman, only with an iPhone, who survived almost a year of bombardment. Over 100 Palestinian journalists have been killed in Gaza, including several of our ..colleagues. Our bureau in the occupied West Bank was shut down at gunpoint just last week.” He thanked the journalists who supported the award and called for recognition that being a “journalist is not a crime.” CNN also won Emmys for its coverage of the Gaza war.

While Owda is among the most celebrated, there are dozens of other journalists reporting on Instagram, Facebook, and other electronic media

At the end of last month Reporters Without Borders organised demonstrations in 10 countries to accuse Israel of being responsible for the deaths of journalists killed in Gaza. The protests were mounted in Germany, Brazil, Spain, the US, France, Senegal, Switzerland, Taiwan, and Tunisia. Blue press vests smeared with blood were placed at iconic sites in each of these countries.

Photo: X