Sabin Agha is a Pakistan-based documentary filmmaker, multimedia journalist and a blogger. She has been teaching women journalists at Tribal News Network (TNN) in Peshawar about how to blog and challenge societal norms. Thomson Media has been working with TNN to help empower women and give them a voice in local media.
Browsing through my Facebook page, I stumbled across a think piece about intelligent women which had been written by a man. Well, to be precise, it was more of a cautionary tale than a think piece. For him, intelligent women are shrewd and undesirable, hence they should not be loved.
As I read it, I thanked my lucky stars for my intelligence, which would help keep misogynists like him at bay. Sadly, though, that luck has not been replicated in my working life. I can't say I've felt lucky as a female' journalist. I write female' in inverted comas because have you ever heard people talk of a male' journalist? What about a female' girlfriend, female' mother or a female' sister? The battle cries of the female journalist are unique and countless. I even have my own exclusive battle cry as a part of my social media bio, which is: dodged bullets - dodging misogyny is a work in progress.
My male colleagues enjoy intimate meetings with their sources over a cup of coffee, irrespective of the time of day or night. However, when I want to meet sources many wrongly believe I am asking them on a date. In South Asia almost all sources are male, and as a female journalist I generally meet three types. I'm not saying that all sources are like this, but I'd like to share my own particular experiences.
Type one: the harmless type (somewhat), who is happy to share information whilst keeping his fingers crossed that it will lead to a potential coffee date with me.
Type two: the stalker type, who after sharing information will stalk me both physically and virtually via social media. I'll also receive drunken texts at the weekend asking me to meet up for a cup of coffee.
Type three: the detective type who has a distinct strategy. They want to find out before the meeting if I am coming alone or with a small army of people. Based on my response, they then devise a plan which involves, yes you've guessed it, a cup of coffee.
I don't like coffee anymore!
In this context, coffee' represents to me a mindset that objectifies women, irrespective of their professional standing. Sadly, in my experience, it's a mindset that's prevalent from the top down.
Let's take one recent, widely-reported example about comments made by the former premier Imran Khan when he was asked during a press conference about a prominent female journalist being harassed during rallies by his PTI party workers. According to a number of news outlets, including The Friday Times, Khan said she was bound to be harassed' if she invaded male-dominated places'. He went on to say he would issue strict directions against harassing journalists to his party workers in this regard and we will wait to see what that produces.
Female journalists don't just face physical threats. Social media is a new battleground, where your enemies are trolls armed with multiple fake accounts. The aim of the virtual attacks is ultimately the same: to stifle the message and remove these women from online spaces. According to the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), Women journalists in Pakistan are facing increasing levels of online harassment, including trolling, cyber-bullying, intimidation and doxing'. Asma Shirazi a well-known journalist, and at the time of writing the only female journalists covering parliamentary affairs in Pakistan, told the IFJ she faces a constant barrage of online attacks. ...they bring you to a point where it seems like a personal war. The space to do good and free journalism shrinks; journalists find it hard to work as they face more and more obstacles that limit their work.
When Tribal News Network (TNN) asked me to mentor a fellowship on blogging for women journalists, I felt really excited. As a battle-hardened journalist, I was keen to encourage, inspire and train these young women who come from a traditionally conservative setup, with unique techniques to challenge the status quo. I wanted them to attack misogyny head-on through the power of their blogs.
For me, learning is a lifelong and two-way process. Our journey to learn from each other began with a heart-to-heart discussion which translated into eight inspiring personal stories. This happened on our first day together. I then set them a series of challenges to change how they view themselves and their role as journalists. The challenges were as follows:
Society compels you to stop thinking: I want you to think critically.
Society stifles your questions: I listen to your questions and offer answers.
Society says it has a monopoly over your rights: You have a monopoly over your own rights which you are born with. Rights are usurped or accepted.
Society fills you with hate and scorn for women: I urge you to think differently.
Society tells you to shut up: I urge you to raise your voice as loud as you can.
Raising up voices can shake the very foundations of injustice. That's precisely what Nobel Peace Prize winner Malala Yusufzai did with her blogs for her BBC Diary from the Swat Valley, about life under the Pakistani Taliban's tenure. As she said in her acceptance speech: The terrorists tried to stop us and attacked me and my friends...but neither their ideas nor their bullets could win. We survived. And since that day, our voices have grown louder and louder. I tell my story, not because it is unique, but because it is not. It is the story of many girls.
Related content
Valley Voices - Enhancing womens political participation
Learn about a
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...
23/07/2026
Staines-upon-Thames, UK, 23rd, JULY, 2026 - Yospace, the trusted leader in Dynamic Ad Insertion (DAI), stitched 11.57 billion one-to-one addressable advertisem...
23/07/2026
Quickly creates reverse reverb effects
Low End Candy have recently released a new plug-in that offers a quick and simple way to create reverse reverb effect...
23/07/2026
New engines, resonators, effects & more
Expressive E's versatile soft synth has just been treated to an update that greatly expands its sonic range. Noi...
23/07/2026
SGL Carbon has further expanded its photovoltaic capacity at its Ort im Innkreis site in Austria. With the commissioning of new PV carports, the sites solar sys...
23/07/2026
Rohde & Schwarz presents new software for three-phase power analysis on MXO seri...
23/07/2026
In our latest blog, Laura Rognoni explores how the launch of Play Snooker reflects a wider shift in sports economics - from monetising peak broadcast audiences ...
23/07/2026
Download Now!
To receive a short case study showcasing Vivid Broadcast's audio setup, please enter the following details:
--
First Name* First Name ...
23/07/2026
X-Rite Pantone and Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) Partner to Advance Digi...
23/07/2026
Thursday 23 July 2026
New Samsung Galaxy Foldable range available now to pre-order on Sky Mobile
Sky Mobile, the award-winning network voted this year by Expe...
23/07/2026
Thursday 23 July 2026
Jason Statham leads Sky Original action thriller MUTINY in explosive new trailerTurn on cookies to view this content. Go to Privacy optio...
23/07/2026
Wuppertal July 23, 2026
Riedel Implements RefCam and Easy5G for the First Time...
23/07/2026
RT Commercial has today announced Centra as the official food partner once again of The Traitors Ireland, coming to RT One and RT Player later this year.
Ce...
23/07/2026
RT Commercial today announced Honda as sponsor of Today with David McCullagh RT Radio 1, weekdays 9am 11am.
Broadcasting directly after Morning Ireland in ...
23/07/2026
RT News is pleased to announce Barry Gallagher has been assigned as the new journalist covering news from Cork, Kerry and the wider Southern region
Working al...
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 ...
Sabin Agha is a Pakistan-based documentary filmmaker, multimedia journalist and a blogger. She has been teaching women journalists at Tribal News Network (TNN) in Peshawar about how to blog and challenge societal norms. Thomson Media has been working with TNN to help empower women and give them a voice in local media. 
