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Saudi Arabia: A Kingdom in Peril?
The new leader of Saudi Arabia, King Salman, pledged continuity after his accession to the throne following the death of his half-brother, King Abdullah. But with a growing youth population, faint calls for reforms, an unstable oil market and the Islamic State (IS) on its doorstep, will he be able to deliver his pledge? With a panel of experts we will be looking at the situation within Saudi Arabia and the changes we might see under the new king, as well as discussing its influence and actions in the region and relations with the West.
Tim Hetherington: Inspired & Inspiring
The Tim Hetherington Trust invites you to celebrate the lives of Tim Hetherington and Chris Hondros with a review of new work by friends, colleagues and others who are continuing the mission to share important stories powerfully told.
America’s Secret Drone Wars: What is the Cost?
Days after the September 11 attacks, a CIA Predator in Afghanistan executed the world’s first lethal drone strike. The CIA claims that its armed drones are ‘the most precise weapon ever invented’, but what is the true cost? In a new book, Sudden Justice, investigative journalist Chris Woods explores the secretive history of the United States’ use of armed drones. He will be joining us with a panel of experts to explore that history and the key role they play on today’s battlefields and in covert targeted killings.
Insight with Christina Lamb: Farewell Kabul
For over two decades, Christina Lamb has reported from Afghanistan, with unparalleled access to all key decision makers. She has developed an extensive understanding of the country, the people and the conflict. She will be joining us in conversation with BBC Radio 4 Today programme presenter, Sarah Montague, to give her personal account of the longest war fought by the United States in its history, and by Britain since the Hundred Years War.
Gun Baby Gun: A Bloody Journey into the World of the Gun
There are 12 billion bullets produced every year – almost two bullets for every person on the planet. Guns kill as many as 500,000 people every year. Tearing lives apart, they impact not only the dead, the wounded, the suicidal and the mourning, but have far-reaching effects on society and communities. In a hard-hitting exploration, award-winning investigative journalist Iain Overton journeyed to over 25 countries, from South Africa to Iceland, Honduras to Cambodia, to try and understand the true impact of gun crime. He will be joining us in conversation with writer and author of The Shadow World: Inside the Global Arms Trade, Andrew Feinstein, to discuss what he has learnt about the impact of gun crime, the relationships we have with guns and the place they occupy in every day life.
Al Jazeera and Egypt: An Insider’s Perspective
In his first trip to London after 400 days in jail, Al Jazeera journalist Peter Greste will discuss his relief at being released as well as calling for the unconditional dismissal of the case against colleagues Baher Mohamed and Mohamed Fahmy. Peter will also talk about how he managed to get through the ordeal and the wider press freedom campaign.
Brazil’s Water Crisis: A Case of Rain or Rainforests?
Sao Paulo, one of the largest cities in the world, may run out of water in the next few months leaving 20 million people high and dry. Who is to blame? Incompetent politicians, unpredictable weather patterns or the wholesale destruction of Amazonia’s rainforests? Join us for the second in a series of events held in partnership with The Scientific Exploration Society, as we bring together explorers, scientists and journalists to examine the water shortage in Brazil and debate the wider questions about global water security.
The Life of Eve Arnold with Janine di Giovanni and Susan Meiselas
Born to a poor immigrant family in Philadelphia in 1912, Eve Arnold became a photographer by chance. In the first volume of a major new series of illustrated biographies of Magnum photographers, journalist Janine di Giovanni traces the life and achievements of Eve Arnold. She will be joining us in conversation with documentary photographer, Susan Meiselas, to share the story and show the work of one of the most accomplished photojournalists of the twentieth century.
Insight with Srdja Popovic: Blueprint for Revolution
In 2000, Srdja Popovic was one of the leaders of the Serbian nonviolent resistance group Otpor! that helped topple Slobodan Milošević. Then in 2003 he decided to use his experience to help pro-democracy activists around the world, teaching them how to bring down a dictator. He will be joining us in conversation with Steve Crawshaw, director of the office of the secretary general at Amnesty International and co-author of Small Acts of Resistance, to share his story and the ingenious ways in which non-violent resistance has achieved its means around the world, from Occupy Wall Street to Tahrir Square, and from Nelson Mandela to Harvey Milk.
First Wednesday Screening: India’s Daughter + Panel Discussion
In 2012, the brutal gang rape on a Delhi bus of a 23-year-old medical student, who later died from her injuries, made international headlines and ignited protests. India’s Daughter is an impassioned plea for change, paying tribute to a remarkable and inspiring young woman. The film explores the compelling human stories behind the incident and the political ramifications in India.
Following the screening we will be joined by director Leslee Udwin and others to discuss the international reactions to the film, the aftermath of the Indian broadcast ban, and the greater issue of gender based violence.
The New Censorship: Inside the Global Battle for Media Freedom
From Egypt to Mexico, Russia to Syria, journalists are increasingly coming under attack. They are murdered, imprisoned and intimidated for doing their job. As executive director of the Committee to Protect Journalists, Joel Simon is on the front line of the global battle for media freedom. He will be joining us to offer an insight into the problems we face and to examine what needs to be done to ensure future generations are not deprived of a free press.
Embedding with Aid Agencies: Editorial Integrity and Security Risks
Shrinking editorial budgets have resulted in journalists increasingly turning to aid agencies to cover stories. In conflict and disaster zones, aid agencies often have the local knowledge and access to affected communities. Journalists need these stories, while aid agencies are equally in need of the media coverage. Although it appears to be an ideal partnership, this kind of embedded journalism raises significant editorial and security questions.
Libya’s Slide Into Civil War
Four years ago, Libya dominated the headlines as the country struggled to overthrow Muammar Gaddafi. Now, despite the fact that a country of vital importance in the region is sliding into civil war, it has all but disappeared from the news.
In a new book, The Libyan Revolution and its Aftermath, leading journalists, academics and specialists trace the journey from the outbreak of protests in Benghazi in February 2011 to the subsequent conflict. Some of its contributors and other experts will be joining us to offer an insight into what led to the current crisis and how Libya might be able to rebuild itself.
In the Picture with Lynsey Addario: It’s What I Do
From Afghanistan to Iraq, Darfur to Libya, Lynsey Addario has spent the past decade and a half capturing life on the frontline. In her new book, It’s What I Do, she details the journey. She will be joining us in conversation with editor-in-charge of Reuters Wider Image, Alexia Singh, to share her story of how a relentless pursuit of truth, in virtually every major theatre of war in the twenty-first century, has shaped her life.
Memory in Motion
Founded by a group of award-winning photographers committed to covering the stories affecting the world around them and in partnership with Libre, a group of web-passionate developers, Me-Mo is a documentary photography magazine that strives to push the limits of visual storytelling. Following the release of issue #1, out on digital newsstands from 19 January, Me-Mo co-founders Manu Brabo and Fabio Bucciarelli and Libre president Matteo Dispenza, will be joining us at the Frontline Club to present the project and the inspiration behind it, and to talk about how technology is influencing new medias. Brabo and Bucciarelli will also present their work, featured in issue #1, from the Libyan revolution.
Ukraine: One Year On
It is a year since protests erupted in Ukraine. The events that followed saw the fall of Viktor Yanukovych, the annexation of Crimea and violent clashes breaking out across the east of the country. As the stand off with Russia continues, we will be taking a view of the situation in Ukraine one year on. Will 2015 see an end to the most dangerous conflict to grip Europe since the wars in the former Yugoslavia?
Terror in France
France is in mourning after three days of violence that saw 17 of its citizens killed. Violent events began on Wednesday 7 January with the brutal attack on the offices of satirical French magazine Charlie Hebdo and ended two days later with sieges on two hostage sites.
As the country begins to come to terms with what has happened, we will be joined by a panel to take a view of events and to discuss the repercussions for society and security in France. We will also be tackling the arguments around the use of freedom of expression.
A Divided Country, A President’s Legacy
After a devastating defeat in the midterm elections, which saw the Democrats lose control of the Senate, what can we expect from President Barack Obama as he enters his final two years in office? With events in Ferguson, Missouri highlighting the deep racial divides that still exist in the US, we will be asking what the legacy will be of the country’s first African-American president.
Kidnap, Ransom and Blackouts
The scale of journalist and aid-worker kidnappings in Syria has raised questions about government policies on paying ransoms and the use of media blackouts. We will be bringing together a panel to debate the current policies towards ransom and blackouts. We will be asking if they need to be reformed, and if so, what they should look like in the future.
This event is off the record, please refrain from filming and reporting the discussion.
The Fate of Foreign Fighters Returning from Syria and Iraq
Foreign fighters are travelling to Syria and Iraq on an ‘unprecedented scale’ according to a recent United Nations report. In the UK a new Counter-Terrorism and Security Bill proposing new counter-terror powers, including temporary exclusion orders and the powers to seize passports of terror suspects, has been met by concern that it threatens civil liberties. We will be joined by a panel of experts to debate this new bill and the measures it sets out.
Insight with Gerard Russell: Journeys Into the Disappearing Religions of the Middle East
The Middle East has long been home to many varied and distinctive faiths that have learned to survive the perils of attacks and assimilation, but today with the region in turmoil they face greater threats than ever before. In conversation with The Guardian‘s Middle East editor, Ian Black, former diplomat and author of Heirs to Forgotten Kingdoms, Gerard Russell, will be taking us on a journey across the past and present of the Middle East, into the religious communities that have survived for centuries and talking about what needs to be done to ensure their future.
Afghanistan: The Lessons of War
In late October, Camp Bastion – Britain’s biggest overseas base since World War Two – was handed over to Afghan control, marking the end of 13 years of British combat operations in Afghanistan. We will be joined by those who served in Afghanistan and the journalists who covered the country, to take a comprehensive view of the conflict from its inception after 9/11 to the withdrawal. Looking at the decisions that were made and the consequences of those actions, we will be examining the lessons that should be learned by British and Coalition forces.
First Wednesday: Africa’s Islamic State?
Last month, when the world’s attention was focused on the attacks in France, reports emerged that as many as 2,000 people had been killed in the northeast Nigerian town of Baga. This attack comes as part of an increased surge in violence linked to Boko Haram.
As Nigeria gears up for a presidential election on 14 February, we will be exploring what is being done to combat Boko Haram and why these efforts seem to be failing.
In Conversation with Alaa Al Aswany: Democracy is the Answer
In nearly four years, Egypt has seen a revolution, the fall of a dictator, its first democratically elected president ousted by the military and the rise of a new leader. All this has been captured in the weekly columns of novelist Alaa Al Aswany for the newspaper Al-Masry Al-Youm. In a new book Democracy is the Answer: Egypt’s Years of Revolution, Al Aswany brings together his newspaper columns to give a picture of Egypt’s recent history. He will be joining us in conversation with BBC Middle East editor, Jeremy Bowen, to reflect on events of the past four years, the divisions that they have created and the hope for the future.
Documenting Disasters: Ten years on from the Indian Ocean tsunami
On Boxing Day 2004, a deadly tsunami originating in the Indian Ocean struck Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India and Thailand. The results were devastating: almost 250,000 people died and scenes of the tsunami striking and the aftermath dominated the news. It became one of the most well-documented natural disasters in history. For a two-part evening, in partnership with Christian Aid and featuring work by Tim Hetherington, we will be reflecting on the developments we have seen since the Indian Ocean tsunami and how communication around natural disasters has evolved.
In the Picture with John G Morris: Quelque part en France
In 1944, John G. Morris was a young picture editor working in London for Life magazine, overseeing the photographic reportage of World War II. Normally confined to the picture desk, in June of that year he went to France to coordinate the coverage of the D-Day landings, bringing back 14 rolls of black-and-white film, which have remained in his personal archive until now.
Morris, now 97, will be joining us in conversation with Robert Pledge, the co-founder of the international independent picture agency Contact Press Images, to present his images and discuss his world of photographic reportage.
How to Freelance Safely – Part Two
Following our event in New York with the Overseas Press Club of America (OPC), they will be coming to London to continue the discussion.
We will be bringing together a panel of freelance journalists and editors to examine what more needs to be done to make sure freelancers are supported by the news industry and have the resources available to prepare themselves for the risks of front-line reporting.
Exploration at the Frontline
Members of the Frontline Club, the Scientific Exploration Society and all those with a wish to add value and purpose to their travels are invited to a special evening to introduce a new collaboration and to meet some of the foremost pioneering explorers of our time.
With both journalists and explorers operating in high-risk environments with the shared objectives of investigating issues and reporting findings, these two communities, represented by The Scientific Exploration Society and the Frontline Club, are launching an exciting new initiative to begin working more closely together.
Thailand: A Kingdom in Crisis
In May 2014, Thailand underwent its 12th successful military coup since the establishment of a constitutional monarchy in 1932. This time, there has been no promise of a quick return to civilian rule; a spokesperson for the National Council of Peace and Order has stated that in Thailand’s current situation, normal democratic principles cannot be applied. We will be joined by a panel of experts to examine the root causes of Thailand’s ongoing political crisis and what actions, if any, can be taken to resolve it.
Insight with Michael Žantovský: Havel and the Velvet Revolution
This event is organised by the Czech Centre London.
Twenty-five years ago in December 1989, Václav Havel was elected as President of Czechoslovakia, marking the end of the Velvet Revolution and with it, the culmination of 41 years of communist rule. By his side throughout was Michael Žantovský, Havel’s press secretary, speech-writer, translator and close friend. The pair met as dissidents under communist rule and remained close until Havel’s death in 2011. Žantovský will be joining us in conversation with Edward Lucas, senior editor at The Economist, to bear witness to Havel’s extraordinary life as documented in his new book Havel: A Life, and to share his own experiences of living through the Velvet Revolution and the formation of the Czech Republic.