Palestinian Journalist Bisan Owda Wins Emmy For Gaza War Documentary (instagram image @wizard_bisan1)
Bisan Owda, a Palestinian journalist, has won an Emmy in the Outstanding Hard News Feature Story category for her documentary, It’s Bisan From Gaza – and I’m Still Alive. Since Israel launched its war on Gaza, Owda has been at the forefront, documenting her daily life in the war-torn besieged enclave.
Her documentary follows her journey from being forced to leave their homes, and flee from tent to tent, the hunger, the scarcity, the infections, and all things horrible the war has caused.
Also Read: Emmy Defends Palestinian Journalist Bisan’s Nomination
View this post on Instagram
Under the journalist’s Instagram post sharing the news of Emmy, a user wrote that all of it feels “dystopian that she’s winning something as if they are a great show or movie. It’s real life on the line every single day.”
Her documentary also captures small moments of happiness where they made pizza first time in months, and moments like celebrating birthday, when they managed to find a cake in the Strip that has been starving for nearly one year.
View this post on Instagram
Owda’s took her followers along with her. The gut-wrenching sob and soulful smiles on her face reflected on her followers as well.
The young journalist, activist, and filmmaker, who is in her 20s, with the limited resources available, documented the plightful journey of her family as they fled the bombardment. Reporting through tears and horror, Owda drew her indomitable spirit to keep the world informed.
View this post on Instagram
She also received a Peabody Award and an Edward R Murrow Award, two prominent prizes in journalism. Her documentary competed against two other broadcasts from Gaza, by CNN and the Guardian, as well as a report from Ukraine by The New York Times and one from Haiti by PBS.
View this post on Instagram
After Owda was nominated for the award, Creative Community for Peace, a pro-Israel non-profit organization, issued a letter demanding to rescind the documentary. More than 150 signatories signed the open letter about the Emmy nomination, including music and film executives and performers like Selma Blair and Debra Messing.
The letter stated that Owda was affiliated with the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), which she has denied. The PFLP is a left-wing Palestinian political movement and is designated a “terrorist organization” by several Western countries including the United States. It said that the nomination was deeply troubling “given the creator’s history of promoting dangerous falsehoods, spreading antisemitism and condoning violence.”
Also Read: “So It’s Not About The 7th Of October”: Motaz Azaiza On UN Double Standard Against Palestine
Al Jazeera‘s AJ+ also won an Emmy Award. “This award is a testament to young Palestinian journalists and their professionalism. Bisan’s reporting has humanised the Palestinian story after decades of mainstream media’s systematic dehumanisation of Palestinians. Winning this Emmy is a win for humanity. We feel extremely proud of this bright moment amidst ongoing genocide, and Bisan will continue reporting,” said Dima Khatib, Managing Director of AJ+ Channels, as quoted by Al Jazeera.
