By Hannah Lennon
Independent journalist and social entrepreneur, Lauren Boh, encourages students to advocate for social justice and women’s rights within the press.
“There is a reckoning happening in journalism right now, and journalists need to share their microphones with more than the old, white gatekeepers of the newsroom,” Bohn said.
The event on Thursday, Sept. 24 was sponsored by The Martin Institute for Law & Society. Director of the Martin Institute Kathleen Currul-Dykeman introduced Bohn.
Bohn originally planned to speak on campus for this event in Spring 2020 and her rescheduled appearance was forced to be over Zoom due to ongoing COVID-19 concerns.
Bohn shared her journey as an international journalist covering parts of the Middle East, and how what started as a fellowship became advocacy.
“Growing up post 9/11, I was very confused about Islam and Arab, because a lot of the journalism I received was fear mongering, and I was never really introduced to the Middle East,” Bohn said. “As a journalist, I want to dismantle the stereotypes we are fed about people from diverse religions and backgrounds.”
In 2010, Bohn received a Fulbright fellowship in Cairo, where she’s the founding assistant editor of the Cairo Review of Global Affairs.
“I wanted to create a space for Arabs and Middle Eastern thought-leaders to produce the platform we were seeing with journalism in the US,” Bohn said.
Bohn spent almost a decade in the Middle East, with the Arab Spring happening right on her doorstep.
“A lot of countries I spent time in have returned to square zero, and a lot of the young people who I interviewed in 2010 for fighting for their freedom are now in jail,” Bohn said.
Bohn’s time in the Middle East led to her realization of the gender gap in journalism.
“Seven years ago is when I really saw it. I noticed that there were so many female reporters on the ground reporting on important foreign policies, but when it came time for large networks and papers, like the New York Times, to have experts writing op-eds or making appearances, the experts were all men,” Bohn said. “The playing field is so unbelievably uneven.”
Six years ago, Bohn found that only 20% of op-eds written in major newspapers were written by women.
“I had to confront that,” Bohn said.
In an attempt to narrow the gender gap, Bohn co-founded Foreign Policy Interrupted, an award-winning initiative dedicated to amplifying female voices in foreign policy.
“The fellowship program was created to train hundreds of women how to pitch editors, and, on the other side of the coin, we put out lists of female experts and distributed them to papers and TV,” Bohn said. “Now they can’t use the excuse that they didn’t have knowledge of female experts on these topics, because we put it right in their laps.”
Bohn doesn’t only speak up for women, but for reporters of color as well.
“Journalists shape our narratives and our worldviews, and a lot of work needs to be done, because can newsrooms truly deliver good stories if they aren’t as representative as they claim to be?” Bohn said.
Bohn urged diversity in newsrooms.
“We need to be aware that when we’re hiring journalists of color they can report on arts, sports, or anything else, because having them only report on race is limiting their expertise and their talent,” Bohn said. “Journalism is for the benefit of all, not just those who claim a particular class, privilege, or race– we still have a long way to go.”
Despite the many hurdles female and journalists of color have to face, Bohn said she is educating young reporters on everything they can do to become accomplished in a more diverse field.
“To make sure that our newsrooms aren’t full of old, rich, white men we need to provide paid internships to students, make sure college students study abroad and learn about foreign policy,” Bohn said.
Bohn said she recognizes that a lot of work needs to be done to ensure gender and race and diplomats aren’t only white people.
“There’s no use in limiting the people who can enter journalism. Reporting isn’t some pay-to-play luxury sport for the upper class.”
To open the playing field to people of diverse backgrounds, Bohn urges Stonehill students to use the tools of their generation.
“As Gen Z, you have access to a whole different level– use your tools of expression on social media, question your place in society, and figure out your place in this world, there’s so much space online to interview activists and interesting characters,” Bohn said.
Bohn considers journalism a public service, especially in a time when all the information we could ever dream of is at our fingertips.
“There are a lot of older journalists who discourage social media, but it’s the world we live in today, and we have to meet people where they are, and they’re on social media,” Bohn said.
Bohn regards social platforms as innovations in journalism, but also acknowledges the risks
they pose.
“We’re seeing a lot of people with malicious intent trying to skew stories and data one way or the other, and it’s more important than ever to make sure information is credible,” Bohn said.
With Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, Facebook, and everything else in the mix, Bohn believes news journalism is central in how people consume news.
“There are so many online venues in which we can put info out there, a challenge we have as journalists is fact checking to make sure everything is accurate, we have to be careful and verify that what they’re saying on the ground is actually happening,” Bohn said.
Bohn believes social media innovation is a good thing, but knows being careful with the information we consume, and how we consume it, is even more important.
“This is a meaningful change,” Bohn said. “Journalism gives voice to the voiceless– it’s whose voices haven’t been given the microphone, and I’m just sharing the microphone.”
Bohn insists that sharing the microphone is the responsibility of people everywhere, and encourages the Stonehill community to do the same.
“It’s crucial for women and journalists of color to have allies in the white men who control the newsroom, it’s our responsibility to make sure they’re bringing in diverse voices and putting the money where their mouth is,” Bohn said.
Bohn wants unheard voices everywhere to have a chance to share their stories, and she believes diverse journalism is the way to do just that.
“We need to help people tell their narratives, we need to share the mic, and get out of our comfort zones– showing innovation as a new journalist is crucial,” Bohn said.
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