Call for Pitches: Journalism and Activism in an Age of Transnational Repression

MERIP is seeking pitches for its Summer/Fall issue exploring the experiences and work of journalists and activists in the Middle East and North Africa in the face of transnational repression. We welcome submissions from a range of perspectives and forms, including analytical articles, dispatches, review essays, poetry, translations, interviews or visual materials. 

MERIP’s mandate is to provide critical, alternative and accessible reporting and analysis. We are searching for work that digs beneath the surface of the issue to reveal new angles and challenge existing narratives. Pieces might explore the evolving ways that states in the region target journalists and activists within and across borders; the many regional and international networks of repression—including state and non-state actors, who exchange expertise and technologies of repression; how individuals and organizations navigate censorship, intimidation, surveillance, imprisonment and violence; the role of tech companies in facilitating transnational repression; intellectual production and creativity in the face of these dynamics; historical accounts of these themes; individual stories; narratives of resistance; and many more directions that we haven’t thought of.

To pitch an idea, please send a brief description (1 paragraph) and short biography to cfp@merip.org.

Deadline for pitches: February 26, 2023.

Note: the deadline for submissions will be in early May. Typically, pieces are between 1,000-3,000 words. You can read more about MERIP style here.

We look forward to reading your ideas!