📷 One-man Newsroom Collage

Sharif Khiam Ahmed, Dhaka

Working alone this past year has taught me an important lesson: reporting is complicated, but editing my own work is even harder. When I launched One-man Newsroom in February 2025, I decided to publish more frequently.

However, I’ve learned that taking my time allows for deeper verification and care. Many wonderful stories await publication, highlighting my commitment to thoroughness rather than rushing to meet deadlines.

Over the past year, I have gained clarity about the type of journalism I want to pursue, which I call post-institutional journalism. In this model, independent reporters take full editorial responsibility for their work. These journalists navigate legal risks and maintain ethical accountability independently, rather than operating under the protective umbrella of larger outlets.

In just two months, One-man Newsroom will celebrate its first anniversary. Rather than feeling like a significant milestone, this anniversary represents a testament to survival.

At this stage, I have chosen to delay pursuing funding. My focus has been on building a strong foundation, developing an archive, refining a workflow, and establishing a reliable delivery system that allows the work to thrive on its own.

For readers who may not be aware, One-man Newsroom is an independent project based in Bangladesh, spearheaded by a journalist with over 20 years of experience in an increasingly authoritarian media environment. This initiative aims to address the significant challenges confronting independent journalism in South Asia, including political pressure, legal harassment, and financial difficulties.

Rather than attempting to replicate a failing institutional model, this project tests a different approach, a solo-led newsroom capable of producing long-form investigations, multimedia reporting, and documentary work, with collaboration and mentorship embedded where possible.

It is not personality-driven journalism. It serves as a survival model for accountability reporting when institutions withdraw, and your feedback is vital to its continued relevance and impact.

As the year begins, I’m sharing a small selection of last year’s text and video work. If you work in journalism, human rights, or documentary storytelling, I welcome your editorial feedback and critical questions. Your insights will help shape how this Newsroom evolves in its second year.