By Zahid Jadwat
Today, none of the Muslim media houses have issues [with women on air]. Women are not only on-air, but women are also doing really important shows. – Na’eem Jeenah
Muslim media has come quite far ahead since “humble beginnings”, says Na’eem Jeenah. He was speaking on the #TributeToMuslimBroadcastersSA segment as one of the Muslim broadcasters to be featured this Ramadan.
Jeenah is currently the Executive Director of the Afro-Middle East Centre, a research institute dedicated to studying the Middle East and North Africa and relations between that region and the rest of Africa.
“The use of technology has taken Muslim media to new heights. One of the best things for me in a content perspective is the way they approach media has changed over time,” said Jeenah.
Together with his wife, Shamima Shaikh, Jeenah founded the Johannesburg-based Muslim community radio station called The Voice, which exposed radical and progressive Muslim voices to the Muslim community and became a flagship for women’s rights and anti-imperialist rhetoric. It also gave a voice to refugee communities and social movements.
“Today, none of the Muslim media houses have issues [with women on air]. Women are not only on-air, but women are also doing really important shows,” said Jeenah. His wife Shamima Shaikh passed on just four months after the station went on air. Jeenah said that his late wife’s approach to life has shaped his own, and her death changed his life.
Listen to the full interview here:
