We caught up with Yara El Murr, winner of the Young Journalist Award 2023, to find out how her life has changed since scooping the main prize for her investigation: Intercepted At Sea', a three-part series examining the human cost of border enforcement in Lebanon.
Following her move from Beirut to Toronto, she explains how she keeps in touch with issues back home, shares her passion for a new role mentoring young local journalists and tells how the Thomson-sponsored trip to London led to an exciting career opportunity.
Q & A You've swapped Beirut for Toronto, why the change?
There are many challenges working as a journalist in Lebanon because you are living all the issues and crises that youre reporting on. It was very hard to take care of myself mentally and physically. I was spending time with many people who were going through really hard times, while at home I also had to struggle wondering do I have electricity today? Do I have running water? We take these things for granted but they really bring down your morale and productivity. Also, a lot of the issues we reported on at The Public Source* brought about safety and security concerns because we were doing uncompromising journalism that was critical of the authorities.
How do you keep in touch with issues back home?
Despite being physically far from Beirut, a lot of my work still focuses on the Middle East and whats happening in Palestine and Im still connected to the region with some of the projects Im doing from here. It was a very tough decision to leave, but I feel that one of the main goals in my career is still to do public service journalism for my community wherever I am.
Is there a Lebanese community in Toronto?
I think there's more Lebanese living abroad than there are in the country because were in the middle of a huge crisis. I have a very nice Lebanese community here, many that also recently immigrated to Toronto. Its really great to have gatherings where you speak Arabic, eat Lebanese food and it just feels like a mini version of home away from home.
You recently started mentoring local young journalists, tell us about that.
I am working at The Green Line Toronto* on a pilot project with 15 to 28-year-olds and were training them in community reporting. I spent a month teaching them the basics of video interviewing, editing and writing skills. And now throughout the summer, I will be mentoring them on producing their own stories about their community - its one in Toronto that receives very little media attention and when it does, its mostly about crime or homelessness. So really, its a project to help the youth drive better media coverage. Its my first-time teaching and I found that its such a beautiful thing to empower other young aspiring journalists.
How has winning the Young Journalist Award impacted your career?
Its really helped me forge a network of connections that have been really helpful. For example, we visited the Guardian newsroom and met editors who Ive been in touch with since. I have written several articles, including one about Palestinian-Canadians trying to get their loved ones out of Gaza (https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2024/mar/13/canada-gaza-outrage-faulty-visa-program). It was the first article coming out of Canada that really pointed out how the (Canadian) government's visa programme was failing. The piece really sparked outrage and I dont want to take all the credit, but I've seen it used by a lot of rights organisations to advocate and push for more to be done.
What was it like meeting the other YJA finalists in London?
We shared the experiences of being women journalists in countries where we have much less support and less resources. We are all writing stories with the hope of driving an impact in countries that lack the mechanisms to hold governments accountable. The three of us talked about the challenges at our newsrooms and in our countries. I think we were each others biggest cheerleaders in that sense, trying to just encourage and cheer on one other for the stories that weve done. Also, we are all young journalists at a different stage of our careers, so we sort of saw ourselves in each other and that was something really beautiful.
Why is it important that the Young Journalist Award champions journalists from countries with a GNI under US$20k?
A lot of the time, stories that go viral are from international outlets coming into these countries and reporting about the crisis that they are going through. We dont hear a lot from the people in their localities with all of the nuances that a journalist living through these conditions can bring. I think the inclusion of young journalists from countries with a GNI under US$20k, is really empowering. Many of us come with a lot of self-doubt and imposter syndrome but (the award) really proves that our work is as worthy and even though we dont have the same resources, it doesnt mean we aren't able to produce stories that are as impactful, or as important, to the global discourse.
What are your plans for the future?
There are a lot of opportunities to go in so many different directions, whether thats continuing with writing investigations or to pivot a bit more into documentary work. I dont see myself in just one place, and Im really interested in experimenting with different kinds of media. There are so many things I want to write about and make documentaries on. For now, I'm in Canada but Im still attached to Lebanon and Im still following the stories, writing about the region and am involved in projects. However, I am also trying to make space for being here in Toronto and doing journalism for the local community that Im part of now. I think ultimately, its going to be a balance of both.
*The Public Source is a Beirut-based independent media organisation.
Explore our projects across
Europe Stories
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
07/10/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced the latest Long-Term Supported (LTS) release of Dalet Flex. Build...
06/09/2026
June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
22/07/2026
Library now available in Engine Player
Another of Eduardo Tarilonte's popular sample libraries has just been moved over to Engine Audio's Engine Pla...
22/07/2026
All-in-one mic & DSP interface overhauled
Cloudvocal have just refreshed the design of their all-in-one mic, audio interface and DSP processor, introducing ...
22/07/2026
The final boss of the lost dual-op-amp circuit
Electro-Harmonix have just introduced the Deluxe Big Muff Pi 2, which they say offers their latest take on t...
22/07/2026
eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({ content_source:......
22/07/2026
A poisoned spy, a secret war, and a small English city contaminated by a deadly chemical weapon. Available on Sky Documentaries from 4 AugustWednesday 22 July 2...
22/07/2026
Audio at Parity: Comscore Launches Transcript-Level Targeting and Measurement wi...
22/07/2026
Arvato Systems and Lobster Enter into a Partnership and Combine the Integration Platform and Managed Services
Flexible integration solutions for cloud, hybrid...
22/07/2026
RT REPORTS NET SURPLUS OF 22.5 MILLION IN 2025...
22/07/2026
In the Opinion of the Censor airs Monday 27 July at 9.35pm on RT One and RT Player
In the Opinion of the Censor looks at how films for theatrical release wer...
21/07/2026
New research involving a cross-section of Mongolias independent media landscape finds enthusiasm for AI as a tool to improve efficiency, sustainability and resi...
21/07/2026
High-end analogue channel strip boasts plug-in recall
Originally revealed as a prototype back at NAMM 2024, the Channex Studio channel strip represented a b...
21/07/2026
Relies on same DSP as plug-in range
Musik Hack's line-up has been influenced heavily by founder Stan Greene's work as a mixing engineer, and their M...
21/07/2026
Official collaboration with boutique builder Dirty Boy Pedals
Warm Audio have just announced the launch of a new guitar pedal range created in collaboration...
21/07/2026
Rohde & Schwarz showcases broad range of EMC test solutions at EMC SIPI 2026 in ...
21/07/2026
X-Rite Pantone and NIFT Partner to Build Color Management Skills for India's...
21/07/2026
Harmonics cOS Virtualized Broadband Platform and Pearl Remote OLTs Enable Flexible PON Migration, While SeaStar Optical Node Powers Cost-Effective Multi-Gigabit...
21/07/2026
160 hours of Irish storytelling for 2026
KIN and The Walsh Sisters return
RT has today unveiled its most ambitious drama slate ever, with a record-breakin...
20/07/2026
Product range now readily available in the UK
Graph Tech Guitar Labs have just announced the launch of a new UK Online Store that makes it quicker and easie...
20/07/2026
Popular headset gains active noise cancellation
The Maxwell headet was Audeze's first foray into the gaming world, and thanks to its Dolby Atmos compati...
20/07/2026
Monday 20 July 2026
Sky brings free global roaming to millions of loyal custome...
20/07/2026
Red Seat Ventures Announces Introduction of Premium Creator and Podcast Communit...
20/07/2026
FIFA World Cup Final sets new RT Player record as the most-streamed single event in the platform's history
Over 1 million viewers watched live on RT 2 as ...
19/07/2026
Channel strip plug-in gets upgraded
Acustica Audio's vintage-inspired channel strip plug-in has just been treated to an update that expands its tonal ra...
18/07/2026
Captures nine sought-after Fender amps
IK Multimedia's latest TONEX expansion captures a selection of nine rare Brown Panel' Fender amps that were ...
18/07/2026
Latest batch ships alongside firmware update
Since being unveiled at Superbooth 2025, Frap Tools' debut polysynth has been met with widespread praise, a...
17/07/2026
Full engine access with reduced soundset
Sonuscore have steadily been introducing a selection of reduced-cost and free versions of their flagship products r...
17/07/2026
Two new special-edition models revealed
Over the past week, Arturia have launched special-edition versions of both their premium MIDI controller and stage p...
17/07/2026
Original founder now back at the helm
In a message posted on his personal social media accounts, Dirk Ulrich has announced that both Plugin Alliance and Bra...
17/07/2026
From intimate acoustic settings to large-scale festival stages, her focus has remained constant: preserving the true natural voice of the violin in every perfor...
17/07/2026
New and returning series, live festival broadcasts, powerful documentaries and major sporting moments headline RT Radio 1's summer schedule
RT Radio 1 is...
17/07/2026
Up For The Match - Live From Croke Park this Saturday at 8pm on RT One and RT ...
17/07/2026
RT Commercial has today announced DiscoverIreland.ie, as sponsor of The Traitor...
16/07/2026
Media organisations with tested plans for new products, services or revenue models can now apply for grants of up to 30,000 through the Business Innovation Syn...
16/07/2026
A new benchmark in bass enhancement
Described as a new benchmark in bass enhancement , Baby Audio's latest release has been designed to augment the lo...
16/07/2026
Popular library rebuilt in new Orbita Engine
Other Worlds Evolved is the latest of Zero G's sample libraries to be treated to a ground-up rebuild using ...
16/07/2026
Created in collaboration with A. G. Cook
The newest addition to Native Instruments' software collection introduces a new synth created by A. G. Cook, a ...
16/07/2026
Rohde & Schwarz supplies conformance test systems to Marquistech for India's...
16/07/2026
Modern broadcast facilities are no longer confined to a single control room. Production teams are spread across multiple workstations, machine rooms, studios, c...
16/07/2026
Whether you're operating a single control room or managing metering across an entire broadcast facility, having the right information in the right place is ...
16/07/2026
San Jose, CA - July 16, 2026 - Harmonic (NASDAQ: HLIT) today announced a $25,000...
16/07/2026
Modern broadcast facilities are no longer confined to a single control room. Production teams are spread across multiple workstations, machine rooms, studios, c...
16/07/2026
Fox Corporation Executives to Discuss Fourth Quarter and Full Fiscal Year 2026 F...
16/07/2026
More interfaces now compatible with Focusrite Control 2 Your Focusrite interface might now be compatible with a public beta support of Focusrite Control 2. If...
16/07/2026
Together the semi-finals had a combined reach of 1.98 million unique individuals...
15/07/2026
Launched alongside new FreqSoft installer
Designed to bridge the gap between hardware and software, Freqport's FreqInOut FO1 unit provides a simple way ...
We caught up with Yara El Murr, winner of the Young Journalist Award 2023, to find out how her life has changed since scooping the main prize for her investigation: Intercepted At Sea', a three-part series examining the human cost of border enforcement in Lebanon.
