Sajjad Haider (

Kashmiri Kashmiri may refer to: * People or things related to the Kashmir Valley or the broader region of Kashmir * Kashmiris, an ethnic group native to the Kashmir Valley * Kashmiri language, the language of the Kashmiris ethnic group People with the nam ...

: ; born 1966) is an Indian journalist and media personality from

Jammu and Kashmir Jammu and Kashmir may refer to: * Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), a region administered by India as a union territory since 2019 * Jammu and Kashmir (state), a region administered by India as a state from 1952 to 2019 * Jammu and Kashmir (prin ...

who has been in the field of journalism since the 1990s. He is also publisher and editor-in-chief of the

Kashmir Observer ''Kashmir Observer'' is a daily English language newspaper published from Srinagar in Jammu and Kashmir since 1996. Sajjad Haider, a past president of Kashmir Editors Guild, is its editor-in-chief. Besides the print and online formats, its storie ...

, a daily newspaper being published from

Srinagar Srinagar (; ) is a city in Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir in the disputed Kashmir region.The application of the term "administered" to the various regions of Kashmir and a mention of the Kashmir dispute is supported by the tertiary ...

since 1996.

Early life

Born in Srinagar on 21 October 1966, Haider studied engineering in

Chennai Chennai, also known as Madras (List of renamed places in India#Tamil Nadu, its official name until 1996), is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Tamil Nadu by population, largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost states and ...

, and subsequently studied journalism at

Tehran University The University of Tehran (UT) or Tehran University (, ) is a public collegiate university in Iran, and the oldest and most prominent Iranian university located in Tehran. Based on its historical, socio-cultural, and political pedigree, as well as ...

. During the 1990 Gulf War, he covered the conflict for various media outlets including the

Tehran Times The ''Tehran Times'' is an English-language daily newspaper published in Iran, founded in 1979 as the self-styled "voice of the Islamic Revolution". While not state-owned, it is considered state-controlled and closely tied to the hardline factio ...

. He subsequently took up an assignment for National Iranian Radio and Television in New Delhi and moved back to Kashmir in 1994. He contributed to various international media organizations including

BBC online BBC Online, formerly known as BBCi, is the BBC's online service. It is a large network of websites including such high-profile sites as BBC News and BBC Sport, Sport, the on-demand video and radio services branded BBC iPlayer and BBC Sounds, t ...

Deutsche Welle (; "German Wave"), commonly shortened to DW (), is a German state-funded television network, state-owned international broadcaster funded by the Federal Government of Germany. The service is available in 32 languages. DW's satellite tele ...

IRNA The Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA; , ''Xabargozâri-ye Jomhuri-ye Eslâmi'' or ), is the official news agency of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Founded in November 1934 as Pars News Agency during the time of Reza Shah, it is State media, g ...

and

IRIB The Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB; ) or Seda va Sima () for short, formerly called National Iranian Radio and Television until the Iranian revolution of 1979, is an Iranian state-controlled media corporation that holds a monopo ...

from Kashmir.

Journalism in a Conflict Zone

In 1997 Sajjad Haider founded the daily Kashmir Observer of which he became the chief editor. Faced with a challenge to bring out a daily newspaper in the conflict ridden zone Sajjad Haider navigated through the difficult period overcoming the logistical nightmares and misplaced perceptions

Awards and recognition

As an expert on South Asian and Middle Eastern affairs, he has been invited to global events including the ones organized by the Arab Thought Foundation in Dubai and the World Editors Forum in Gothenburg. His views have been aired internationally by

Al-Jazeera Al Jazeera Media Network (AJMN; , ) is a private-media conglomerate headquartered in Wadi Al Sail, Doha, funded in part by the government of Qatar. The network's flagship channels include Al Jazeera Arabic and Al Jazeera English, which pr ...

, the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

CBC CBC may refer to: Media * Cadena Baja California or Grupo Cadena, a radio and television broadcaster in Mexico * Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Canada's radio and television public broadcaster ** CBC Television ** CBC Radio One ** CBC Music ** ...

, the

Voice of America Voice of America (VOA or VoA) is an international broadcasting network funded by the federal government of the United States that by law has editorial independence from the government. It is the largest and oldest of the American internation ...

and published extensively in international journals. In 2006, Mr. Haider was awarded the prestigious Chevening Fellowship by

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...

. He studied at the Centre for Security & Diplomacy,

Birmingham University The University of Birmingham (informally Birmingham University) is a Public university, public research university in Birmingham, England. It received its royal charter in 1900 as a successor to Queen's College, Birmingham (founded in 1825 as ...

and undertook extensive study tour of various European institutions including

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental Transnationalism, transnational military alliance of 32 Member states of NATO, member s ...

and EU Commissions in Belgium, Luxembourg and Ireland. In 2014 Sajjad Haider joined Trans Asia News Service as editor-in-chief. Trans Asia News is the first news service from India that provides news and analysis from an Asian perspective to the world. Coverage area spans from Pacific to Mediterranean. However special interest areas remain countries straddling ancient Silk Route. In 2017 Sajjad Haider was elected as vice president of Kashmir Editors Guild, a representative body of leading Kashmir based newspapers. In 2018 Sajjad Haider was awarded Award for Excellence by Asian Arab Chamber of Commerce. The award citation mentions Haider's "outstanding contribution in building trust among Arab and Asian countries especially through platforms like Trans Asia News." Sajjad Haider was unanimously elected as President of Kashmir Editors Guild (KEG) in 2020. Haider articulated challenges faced by the Kashmir media in various interviews.‘Freedom Of Press Is In Everybody’s Interest’
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References

External links

Kashmir Observer websiteBBC News South Asia: Viewpoint: 'Killing the truth' in KashmirMedia Monitors Network: Kashmir Perspective: Media in Conflict Zones by Sajjad HaiderTrans Asia News website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Haider, Sajjad Living people 1966 births Kashmiri Muslims 20th-century Indian Muslims 21st-century Indian Muslims Alumni of the University of Birmingham Journalists from Jammu and Kashmir People from Srinagar