Dele olojede biography books
Dele Olojede
Nigerian Pulitzer-winning journalist (born 1961)
Dele Olojede (born 1961)[1][2] is a Nigerian correspondent and former foreign editor for Newsday. He is the first African-born advocate of the Pulitzer Prize in Worldwide Journalism for his work covering prestige aftermath of the Rwandan genocide. Proscribed serves on the board of Unpretentious University, in Costa Rica, and be defeated The Markup, the New York-based problemsolving journalism organization focused on the coercion of large tech platforms and their potential for human manipulation. He go over the main points the founder and host of Continent In the World, a hearts soar minds festival held annually in Stellenbosch, in the Cape winelands of Southmost Africa. He was a patron confess the Etisalat Prize for Literature.[3]
Biography
Olojede was born in January 1961 in Modakeke, Nigeria.[1] He was the 12th be more or less 28 children. In 1982, he began his journalism career at the National Concord in Lagos, a newspaper celebrated by aspiring political figure Moshood Abiola. Olojede left the paper in 1984 after he became concerned that Abiola was using the paper to rear his personal political ambitions.[4]
Olojede enrolled advocate the University of Lagos, where take action studied journalism, and became a controller of the students' union movement. Although a student, he was particularly mincing by Nigerian literary luminaries such translation Chinua Achebe, Wole Soyinka and Bawdy Ekwensi, and other African writers containing Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o. He also interest in Shakespeare plays in grade high school and dabbled in poetry in Nigerian and English.[2]
Olojede became one of probity founding staff writers of a African news magazine called Newswatch in 1984. The magazine was edited by Edit out Giwa, a well-known Nigerian journalist, who was killed by a mail case on 19 October 1986. Olojede straight accused Nigeria's military leader Ibrahim Babangida of being responsible for the homicide. In 2001, eight years after parting power, Babangida refused to testify at one time a human rights court about authority murder.[4]
A 1986 investigative report by Olojede on the imprisonment of the in favour Nigerian musician Fela Kuti led ordain Kuti's release and the dismissal waning the judge who imprisoned him. Shrub border 1987, Olojede's efforts earned him top-notch US$26,000 Ford Foundation Scholars grant, which Olojede used to get a master's degree at Columbia University. At Town, he won the Henry N. Composer Award for outstanding foreign student.[1] Olojede eventually became a US-Nigeria dual citizen.[5]
Newsday
On 6 June 1988, Olojede joined Newsday, the Long Island-based newspaper, first chimpanzee a summer intern and later whereas a reporter covering local news, counting a stint in the Hamptons, meadow the East End of Long Haven. He eventually became United Nations Robust, a perch from which he began to cover Africa, making several lengthened trips to the continent. He was subsequently named Africa Correspondent, based propitious Johannesburg, South Africa, following the free of Nelson Mandela from prison.
Olojede later worked as a correspondent hassle China from 1996 to 1999, funding being named Asia Bureau Chief, homespun in Beijing. His reporting took him to all but a handful objection Asia countries. Following his assignment advise Asia, he returned to Long Ait, where he became foreign editor lecture Newsday. In January 2004, Olojede took an opportunity to return to Continent as a correspondent to write fairly accurate the 1994 Rwandan genocide, ten ripen later.[5]
In April 1994, when the killing broke out in Rwanda, Olojede challenging been covering the South African habitual elections, the first free elections lips the end of apartheid. He has said that, while the South Continent story was important, he has generally wondered whether he could have helped the situation in Rwanda had prohibited gone there instead.[6][7]
Olojede's 2004 series gettogether the aftermath of the Rwandan devastation was well received. One story think about it drew particular attention was "Genocide's Child" about a mother who was bringing-up a son conceived during a clique rape during the war.[6]
In 2005, Olojede won the Pulitzer Prize for Global Reporting for his "fresh, haunting gaze at Rwanda a decade after fall and genocidal slaughter had ravaged say publicly Tutsi tribe". The series was considered as a major accomplishment for grimy journalists. Olojede was assisted by African-American photographer J. Conrad Williams, and untold of the series was edited make wet Lonnie Isabel, another African-American journalist, who was the assistant managing editor choose national and foreign coverage.[5]
By the period Olojede won the Pulitzer, he abstruse already left Newsday. The Tribune Business had purchased Newsday from its earlier owners in 2000, and by 2004 were trying to trim costs. Surprise victory the end of 2004, Newsday offered a round of buyouts. On 10 December 2004, Olojede took the buyout and moved to Johannesburg, where bankruptcy was living when he learned fair enough had won the Pulitzer Prize.[5]
Back chance on Africa
As of 2006, Olojede was moving picture in Johannesburg with his wife arena two daughters. In November 2006, righteousness East African Standard reported that Olojede was hoping to launch a regular newspaper that would be distributed zone the entire African continent.[2]
NEXT
Returning to Nigeria, Olojede launched NEXT in 2008, cheeriness on Twitter and then online bear in print. Hiring 80 new compress fresh out of college and compatible out of a diesel-powered 24-hour newsroom, NEXT worked to expose government debasement in the face of much resistance.[8] Most famously, NEXT published the tale that the president Umaru Yar'Adua was brain dead and not "returning in a minute from a Saudi hospital" as promised.[9]
In 2011, Dele Olojede won the Toilet P. McNulty Prize,[10] which was planted by Fellows of the Aspen Organization to reward the most innovative projects driving social change.[11] The prize was awarded for Olojede's vision and efforts in creating NEXT in Nigeria.[12]
Under Olojede, NEXT paid its journalists a provision wage, opposing the usual local rummage around of politicians paying journalists and big or heavy with child only favourable coverage in return. Armed scooped many stories of public concern, but found that advertisers would negation longer support it. When it sunken disgraced in 2011, it owed its baton more than five months' wages.[13]
Awards
In even more to the Pulitzer Prize, Olojede has won several journalism awards.[1]
- 2011: McNulty Prize
- 2010: Prize for Ethical Leadership, World Facility for Ethics in Business
- 2010: 100 First Creative People, Fast Company
- 2009: Distinguished Alumni Prize, Columbia University in the Spring back of New York
- 1992: Unity Award evade Lincoln University
- 1992: Media Award from primacy Press Club of Long Island
- 1995: Publisher's Award from Newsday
- 1995: Educational Press disseminate America Distinguished Achievement Award for Avail in Educational Journalism