The annual Broadcast Journalism Training Council (BJTC)awards highlight outstanding TV, radio, online, podcast, and social media work that is produced on BU's journalism training courses, which are accredited by the BJTC. This year, three of BU's Multimedia Journalism students were nominated for their work.
Seeking to bring awareness to the relationship between women and girls who wear a hijab, MA Multimedia Journalism students Ayshath Libana and Simran Mehan created a photo essay advocating for essential freedom women should have in their society.
Ayshath and Simran, both international students, identified their passion for women’s rights in their home country of India and decided to focus their efforts on raising awareness that wearing a hijab is a personal choice, despite societal stereotypes suggesting otherwise.
Ayshath said, “The relationship that women and girls have with wearing the hijab is controversial and differs in many places. Yet, the women we talked to, myself included, expressed a sense of enlightenment of our choice to carry the hijab as our identity. Having encountered several queries that question my freedom and enquire if I am being oppressed left me in utter awe as wearing a hijab is my choice.”
She continued, “Being shortlisted has been intriguing and delightful, on stage I felt like I was there to represent my Muslim sisters, who are proud of their identities.”
Simran expressed that their goal was to “challenge existing societal stereotypes, changing the narrative to showcase the empowerment and choice of women who wear the hijab – every woman does it for themselves to express their faith and they should be able to do so without constraints.”
She continues, “We did experience some hesitation from subjects to be photographed, building trust with the women we spoke to took time. We cultivated a relationship with them through conversation and interviews to achieve our goal of capturing the essence of our interviewees in a simple yet effective manner.”
My Choice. was nominated for the BJTC award “Best Online News Site” which meant a lot to both Simran and Ayshath they commented, “It validated the tireless commitment invested in storytelling, marking an extraordinary milestone in both of our journalistic journeys.”
Paul Bacon was also nominated for his radio piece "There Goes The Neighbourhood.", a story focused on neglect, aspiration, and belonging. At the heart of his story, Paul focuses on people in Boscombe, near Bournemouth. There Goes The Neighbourhood is a documentary analysing what gentrification is, and exploring its impact on places and people.
