On December 10, 2020, the digital platform for media activism and media literacy in the MENA region Diraya.media was launched by a team of researchers from Södertörn University Media and Communication Studies and Lebanese American University Institute for Media Research and Training.

Diraya.media is a digital platform that maps media activist practices advocating human rights and gender equality in the Middle East and North Africa region. Diraya means “know-how” in Arabic and the platform presents six different case studies from media activist organizations from Lebanon, Palestine, Tunisia, Iraq, Egypt and Jordan. On the website, young activists have shared their organizational practices, media tactics, constraints and policies with a wider international audience. These media activist organizations are at the forefront of the usage of media technologies aimed for advocacy of fundamental rights. From these case studies, the team of researchers has developed learning materials which can be downloaded from the website and used by media educators, journalists, activists and students with the aim of learning with and from these innovative practices.

The project began in April 2020 amidst the global pandemic, challenging the team to connect with media activists across the region with unstable WiFi connections, and work remotely between Sweden and Lebanon. The website, designed by MA Student and Researcher Farah Al-Saati, was launched in November and the learning materials have already been put to use in media activism courses in universities in Sweden, Lebanon and Qatar.

The initiative is funded by Creative Force, a Swedish Institute (SI) funding programme for the development of international collaborations that use art and media to strengthen democracy, human rights, and freedom of expression. 

The launch event will be an online lunch seminar led by the research team with the presence of the activists for a discussion on their experiences with media activism for human rights and gender equality in the MENA region. The event is free and open to the public. 

When: December 10th, 12-14 (Stockholm) // 13-15 (Beirut)

RSVP through this link to get the Zoom link via email: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/B29RKB6

Facebook event: https://www.facebook.com/events/844723459616999/?active_tab=about