Lotfullah Najafizada

Lotfullah Najafizada is an Afghan journalist with extensive experience in international media and press freedom. Najafizada began his career as a page designer at a local newspaper in Mazar-e-Sharif before moving into writing and reporting. He later joined the online department at Kabul-based media group MOBY, where he was selected to lead the launch of a 24-hour news station. That station became TOLOnews, and Najafizada served as its director for more than a decade, overseeing Afghanistan's largest news network.

During his tenure at TOLOnews, Najafizada interviewed global leaders, including former British Prime Minister David Cameron, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, Afghan Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, and former U.S. National Security Advisor Gen. H.R. McMaster. He also hosted Afghanistan's only televised presidential debate. Najafizada's leadership was tested when the Taliban briefly captured the city of Kunduz, and TOLOnews journalists reported on human rights abuses, placing the network at risk. Seven of his colleagues were killed in a subsequent attack. Najafizada continued to lead his team, maintaining a commitment to objective and critical journalism.

After the fall of Kabul, Najafizada founded Amu TV, an international news channel for Afghanistan based in Washington, DC. Amu TV broadcasts via satellite and digital platforms to Afghan audiences domestically and abroad. At Amu, Najafizada and his team work to revitalize free press in Afghanistan by connecting Afghan journalists in exile with those inside the country and providing unbiased reporting. Najafizada is also the only Afghan journalist to have attended two rounds of civil society talks with the Taliban, in Doha and Oslo.

Najafizada's work in journalism has been recognized internationally. Reporters Without Borders awarded him the Medal of Press Freedom Hero for his advocacy of free press in Afghanistan. TIME Magazine profiled him as a Next Generation Global Leader, and Forbes Magazine included him among the 30 Under 30 Asia influencers in media. He received the joint UK-Canada Press Freedom Award at the United Nations General Assembly in New York on behalf of Afghan journalists. Najafizada was also named a winner of the Best Journalist Award by One Young World. He has been a fellow at institutions including the Institute of Politics at the University of Chicago, Asia Society, Atlantic Council, and World Press Institute, contributing to discussions on press freedom, Afghan politics, and the future of independent media.