In April 2013, a group of former activists in the field of journalism launched an alternative media agency titled Shahba Press, in an attempt to convey the truth about the Syrian conflict, independent of all Arab and Western political agendas. The group united their efforts to start a news broadcast that aims to expose the violations committed by regime forces against the Syrian people, as well as exposing the malpractices of the opposition.
Three months after the launch of Shahba Press, activists sought to further expand their project by opening 6 offices between Idlib, Hama, the countryside of Lattakia, and most recently one in Hamuriyah in Eastern Ghouta. This expansion came due to the agency's wide publicity, as well as the strong relationships it was able to forge with Arab and international media agencies.
On choosing the topics and news, one of the Agency's activists explains, “our goal is to support the uprising with our work, and to try and deliver the true voice of the Syrian people, which is why we broadcast any news as long as it doesn't harm the Syrian uprising.” In general, Shahba Press centers its work on the Syrian issue, focusing on the daily Syrian events and exposing all wrongdoings.
The agency relies first and foremost on ground activists and journalists for information, since all their news come from their local offices. The group have acquired their journalistic experience through working as volunteer reporters in the uprising, “we're all volunteers, the editorial, publishing and translation teams, and we're all university students,” as one activist explained.
Shahba Press has no stable funding, because it rejects the dictates of political money, which led to constant financial hardships. Since journalists have been constantly targeted by the warring parties, numerous reporters have been kidnapped or killed while covering the battles that took place in Syria. Shahba Press addresses the issue, “the number of reporters who were killed or detained while doing their job is shameful and sad. It's the duty of all revolutionary parties to secure our protection.”
