The Wire Staff 
New Delhi: Alt News co-founder Mohammed Zubair is one of the three nominees for the journalism category of the 2023 Freedom of Expression Awards, which is handed out by the Index on Censorship for people carrying out “courageous, high-impact and determined journalism that exposes censorship and threats to free expression”.
Zubair is one of three nominees, with the Index on Censorship recognising his efforts to “address flaws in the Indian media ecosystem, such as overt political pressure on media outlets and opaque methods by which government funding was awarded to media outlets”. It also lauded Alt News for dismantling propaganda networks and its political fact-checking to scrutinise claims; debunking social media rumours; and examining media misinformation and bias.
The Index referred to Zubair’s arrest in June 2022, saying it is representative of the significant threats he has faced after challenging mis and disinformation propagated by influential members of the ruling party.
The two other nominees for the award are Bilan Media, Somalia’s first women-only media organisation and newsroom; and Mortaza Behboudi, an Afghan journalist who was detained by the Taliban in January this year.
Index on Censorship CEO Ruth Anderson said that the Freedom of Expression Awards are a “chance to recognise the astonishing work being done in extraordinary circumstances by artists, journalists, and campaigners around the world”.
The Index is a nonprofit organisation that campaigns for and defends free expression worldwide and publishes work by censored writers and artists.
Previous winners of the journalism category of the Freedom of Expression Awards include Huang Xueqin, a Chinese journalist who was recognised in 2022 for the significant role she played in covering the MeToo movement. She disappeared in September 2021, with the authorities later confirming that she and labour activist Wang Jianbing had been charged with “inciting subversion of state power”. She remains in detention.
In 2021, Niger journalist Samira Sabou won the award. She was arrested by the authorities on multiple instances, once in 2020 for highlighted corruption in the defence ministry and again in 2021.