The Nieman Fellows in the Class of 2026 have awarded the Louis M. Lyons Award for Conscience and Integrity in Journalism to two Palestinian journalists in Gaza: Anas Baba, a reporter for National Public Radio (NPR), and Shrouq Aila, an independent producer and photographer. Their reporting has ensured that the realities of life amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza are not obscured by military censorship and political interference.
The fellows at the Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard University selected the two journalists in recognition of their outstanding work, unwavering commitment to journalism and exceptional courage reporting from an ongoing conflict. In a statement the fellows said: “Working amid sustained Israeli military assault, mass forced displacement, a catastrophic famine and the consequent collapse of civilian infrastructure, Anas Baba and Shrouq Aila have continued to produce rigorous on-the-ground journalism that documents the human consequences of war with accuracy, independence and care.”
At least 209 Palestinian journalists and media workers in Gaza have been killed by the Israeli military since October 7, 2023, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ). Also, two Israeli journalists were killed in Israel by Hamas, and one Palestinian journalist was killed by an armed group in Gaza.
“Gaza is the deadliest place in the world to be a journalist,” said Jodie Ginsberg, the CEO of CPJ. “For more than two years, Palestinian journalists in Gaza have reported amid unimaginable and unprecedented conditions, including the threat of direct targeting by Israeli forces, starvation and displacement.”
Despite the life-threatening risk of reporting and the forced displacement of journalists outside of Gaza or their imprisonment, Baba remains one of a few Palestinian journalists in the enclave who are employed full-time by a U.S.-based news organization. Baba’s immediate family fled Gaza during the war, he was displaced repeatedly and he has reported from the funerals of colleagues and friends. His award-winning work includes an investigation into an Israeli strike on an apartment building that killed 132 members of the Abu Naser family and a unique firsthand account from makeshift food aid distribution sites that became scenes of mayhem and death. In 2025, Baba was part of an NPR team that won the Alfred I. duPont-Columbia Award for coverage of the war in Gaza.
“Anas has made Gaza intimate for millions of American listeners who can rely on his trustworthy reporting,” said Daniel Estrin, NPR’s international correspondent in Jerusalem, who helped lead the NPR team that received the duPont award.
Shrouq Aila is a multiformat journalist who has reported for a variety of international media organizations, including Noosphere, Evident Media and ABC News, and whose work has focused on human resilience amid devastation. She has pressed on with her journalistic work despite profound personal loss and constant danger. After her husband, Roshdi Sarraj, was killed in an Israeli military attack in October 2023, Aila was left to raise their 3-year-old daughter, Dania, alone. Aila also temporarily took over Ain Media, an independent local production company co-founded by her husband. Most recently, she received a 2025 Emmy Award for work on the Scripps News documentary “In Real Life: A Hidden War.”
“Shrouq’s measured, authentic and principled reporting in the face of unimaginable conditions is an inspiration,” said Sebastian Walker, an investigative and broadcast journalist who collaborated with Aila on the documentary. “There is a level of modesty and integrity to her work that makes Shrouq such a worthy recipient of this award.”
Baba and Aila embody the principles of conscience and integrity in journalism through their continued reporting from Gaza even as their own lives, families and futures remain under constant threat. At a time when the Israeli and Egyptian governments have maintained a ban on international press access to the territory — except for limited military embeds — their work has provided essential verification, context and depth for global audiences.
The overwhelming death toll of media workers in Gaza is part of an intensifying trend of attacks on journalists worldwide. The International Federation of Journalists reported that 128 journalists and media workers were killed in 2025, with the majority of those deaths occurring in conflict-affected regions. The Nieman Class of 2026, a group of 22 journalists from nine countries, acknowledges the dangers facing their colleagues globally, including censorship, online harassment, torture and imprisonment. As attacks on press freedom escalate, so do risks of reporting from war zones, and the 2026 Nieman Fellows stress the urgent need for stronger protections for journalists worldwide.
The Nieman Class of 1964 established the Louis M. Lyons Award in honor of the Nieman Foundation curator who retired that year after leading the institution for a quarter of a century. Lyons was a forceful advocate for freedom of the press. The award honors displays of conscience and integrity by individuals, groups or institutions in communications.
The Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard educates leaders in journalism, promotes innovation and elevates the standards of the profession. More than 1,700 journalists from 100 countries have been awarded Nieman Fellowships since 1938. The foundation also publishes Nieman Reports, a website and print magazine covering thought leadership in journalism; Nieman Journalism Lab, a website reporting on the future of news, innovation and best practices in the digital media age; and Nieman Storyboard, a website showcasing exceptional narrative journalism and nonfiction storytelling.
Related reading In Nieman Reports:
“Starved, Displaced, Killed: Gaza’s Journalists Persist Despite Dire Conditions”
The Israel-Hamas war has seen a record number of journalists killed
