Exposing the lie
By Charlotte Stace
Patricia Evangelista hosts a conversation with Sally Hayden, a renowned Irish journalist recognised for her in-depth reporting across Africa, the Middle East and Europe, to explore how governments and institutions can mask acts of violence using the language of humanitarianism.
Hayden, recipient of the Orwell Prize, uncovered a major humanitarian crisis along what is often called the world’s most perilous migration route. Her acclaimed book My Fourth Time, We Drowned (2022) originated from a message sent by an Eritrean migrant trapped in a Libyan detention centre. The message sparked a years-long investigation, exposing the suffering of hundreds of detainees and calling out the complicity of international organisations that profess to defend them.
In their discussion, Evangelista and Hayden will delve into the manipulation of humanitarian discourse, the complexities of reporting human suffering, and the moral responsibility journalists carry when the people they cover have no other voice.