Lara Setrakian (born February 4, 1982 in
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
) is an
Armenian American journalist, digital strategist and entrepreneur. She is the CEO and Executive Editor of
News Deeply, a digital media company that builds single-topic platforms that provide journalistic reporting, expert analysis, dialogues and opportunities for knowledge exchange on the issues they cover. Prior to founding News Deeply, she worked for five years as a Middle East correspondent for
ABC News
ABC News is the news division of the American broadcast network ABC. Its flagship program is the daily evening newscast ''ABC World News Tonight, ABC World News Tonight with David Muir''; other programs include Breakfast television, morning ...
,
Bloomberg Television
Bloomberg Television (on-air as Bloomberg) is an American-based pay television network focusing on business and capital market programming, owned by Bloomberg L.P. It is distributed globally, reaching over 310 million homes worldwide. It is head ...
, the
International Herald Tribune
The ''International Herald Tribune'' (''IHT'') was a daily English-language newspaper published in Paris, France for international English-speaking readers. It had the aim of becoming "the world's first global newspaper" and could fairly be said ...
,
Business Insider
''Insider'', previously named ''Business Insider'' (''BI''), is an American financial and business news website founded in 2007. Since 2015, a majority stake in ''Business Insider''s parent company Insider Inc. has been owned by the German publ ...
and
Monocle magazine
''Monocle'' is a global affairs and lifestyle magazine, 24-hour radio station, website, retailer and media brand, produced by Winkreative Ltd. It was founded by Tyler Brûlé, a Canadian entrepreneur, ''Financial Times'' columnist, and founder o ...
, covering several major news events in the region like Iran’s election protests and the Arab Spring of 2011. As a Middle East correspondent Setrakian covered uprisings, conflicts, politics and economics around the region. She was instrumental in Bloomberg Television’s live on-the-ground coverage of the
2011 Egyptian Revolution
The 2011 Egyptian revolution, also known as the 25 January revolution ( ar, ثورة ٢٥ يناير; ), began on 25 January 2011 and spread across Egypt. The date was set by various youth groups to coincide with the annual Egyptian "Police ho ...
. Following the toppling of
Tunisia
)
, image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg
, map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa
, image_map2 =
, capital = Tunis
, largest_city = capital
, ...
's president
Ben Ali during what became known as the
Arab Spring
The Arab Spring ( ar, الربيع العربي) was a series of Nonviolent resistance, anti-government protests, Rebellion, uprisings and Insurgency, armed rebellions that spread across much of the Arab world in the early 2010s. It began in T ...
, Setrakian arrived in
Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...
before the January 25th protest and was reporting live from
Tahrir Square
Tahrir Square ( ar, ميدان التحرير ', , English language, English: Liberation Square), also known as "Martyr Square", is a major public town square in downtown Cairo, Egypt. The square has been the location and focus for political dem ...
when
Egyptian President
The president of Egypt is the executive head of state of Egypt and the de facto appointer of the official head of government under the Egyptian Constitution of 2014. Under the various iterations of the Constitution of Egypt following the Egy ...
Hosni Mubarak
Muhammad Hosni El Sayed Mubarak, (; 4 May 1928 – 25 February 2020) was an Egyptian politician and military officer who served as the fourth president of Egypt from 1981 to 2011.
Before he entered politics, Mubarak was a career officer in t ...
stepped down. While reporting on the rise of
piracy off the horn of Africa, Lara was the first American to interview the new president of war-torn
Somalia
Somalia, , Osmanya script: 𐒈𐒝𐒑𐒛𐒐𐒘𐒕𐒖; ar, الصومال, aṣ-Ṣūmāl officially the Federal Republic of SomaliaThe ''Federal Republic of Somalia'' is the country's name per Article 1 of thProvisional Constituti ...
, Sheikh
Sharif Sheikh Ahmed
Sharif Sheikh Ahmed ( so, Shariif Sheekh Axmed, ar, شريف شيخ أحمد; born 25 July 1964) is a Somali politician who served as President of Somalia from 2009 to 2012. He is the founder and leader of Himilo Qaran political party and ...
.
A graduate of
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...
, Setrakian is a
Young Global Leader
Forum of Young Global Leaders, or Young Global Leaders (YGL), was created by Klaus Schwab, founder of the World Economic Forum. The YGL, a non-profit organization managed from Geneva, Switzerland, is under the supervision of the Swiss government ...
of the
World Economic Forum
The World Economic Forum (WEF) is an international non-governmental and lobbying organisation based in Cologny, canton of Geneva, Switzerland. It was founded on 24 January 1971 by German engineer and economist Klaus Schwab. The foundation, ...
and a Term Member of the
Council on Foreign Relations
The Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) is an American think tank
A think tank, or policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, mi ...
. She was named one of
Fast Company
''Fast Company'' is a monthly American business magazine published in print and online that focuses on technology, business, and design. It publishes six print issues per year.
History
''Fast Company'' was launched in November 1995 by Alan Web ...
’s 100 Most Creative People in Business and one of Marie Claire Magazine’s Women on Top.
Her work at News Deeply was awarded the
National Press Foundation
The National Press Foundation is a nonprofit journalism training organization. It educates journalists on complex issues and trains them in reporting tools and techniques. It recognizes and encourages excellence in journalism through its awards.
...
’s Excellence in Online Journalism Award for 2013.
In 2017 Setrakian delivered a
TED talk
TED Conferences, LLC (Technology, Entertainment, Design) is an American-Canadian non-profit media organization that posts international talks online for free distribution under the slogan "ideas worth spreading". TED was founded by Richard Sau ...
on three ways to fix the news industry. She gave an earlier talk for
TEDxYerevan discussing her career as a Middle East foreign correspondent and five key lessons she learned along the way. She has been a frequent speaker on the future of news as a public service, through delivery models that are designed for the digital age.
In the wake of
sexual misconduct allegations against men in the media industry, Setrakian came forward as one of several women who accused
Mark Halperin
Mark Evan Halperin (born January 11, 1965)Mark Halperin. ''Contemporary Authors Online''. Detroit: Gale, 2010. Gale Biography In Context. is an American journalist, currently a host and commentator for Newsmax TV. Halperin previously worked as ...
of sexual harassment while they were working at ABC News, arguing that this kind of behavior is part of a bigger problem in the news industry that needs to be fixed.
Early life and education
Hailing from
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...
and
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
, Setrakian attended the
Elisabeth Morrow School
The Elisabeth Morrow School is a private, co-educational, day school in the United States in Englewood, New Jersey, educating children from nursery through eighth grade.
As of the 2022-2023 school year, the school had an enrollment of about 400 ...
and
Horace Mann School
, motto_translation = Great is the truth and it prevails
, address = 231 West 246th Street
, city = The Bronx
, state = New York
, zipcode = 10471
, countr ...
in
Riverdale, New York
Riverdale is a residential neighborhood in the northwestern portion of the New York City borough of the Bronx. Riverdale, which had a population of 47,850 as of the 2000 United States Census, contains the city's northernmost point, at the College ...
. She graduated magna cum laude from
Harvard College
Harvard College is the undergraduate college of Harvard University, an Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636, Harvard College is the original school of Harvard University, the oldest institution of higher lea ...
with a degree in Government. After Harvard, Setrakian worked as a business analyst with
McKinsey & Company. Setrakian speaks Arabic, Armenian, English, French and Spanish, and has studied Persian and Portuguese.
Career
News Deeply
In 2012, Setrakian founded Syria Deeply, a platform covering the
war in Syria, addressing a gap in in-depth media coverage of conflict zones and serving an underserved niche audience that was “thirsty to understand more.” Receiving positive responses and great interest in single-issue sites, Setrakian launched a second platform, Ebola Deeply (archived), addressing the
West African Ebola virus epidemic
The 2013–2016 epidemic of Ebola virus disease, centered in Western Africa, was the most widespread outbreak of the disease in history. It caused major loss of life and socioeconomic disruption in the region, mainly in Guinea, Liberia and S ...
. Since then more platforms covering geopolitical, health and environmental issues have been added to the News Deeply network, which has been called a “new model of impact journalism”. As a fellow of Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism in 2014, Setrakian authored a landmark paper on vertical, or single-subject news sites a rising trend in digital publishing.
In her TED talk in January 2017, Setrakian made the case that some of the ideas she founded News Deeply on were relevant for the crisis-ridden news industry, describing journalism as “adult education” and advocating for embracing complexity “in order to make sense of a complex world.” In an opinion piece for the
Washington Post
''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...
Setrakian spoke out on allegations of sexual harassment against political journalist Mark Halperin. She wrote about the systematic implications of such behavior and repercussions for the news industry, calling Halperin part of a bigger problem that needs to be fixed. She was one of several women who had been harassed by him working at ABC News and were mentioned in a report by CNN. In a subsequent interview with Judy Woodruff for
PBS NewsHour
''PBS NewsHour'' is an American evening television news program broadcast on over 350 PBS
The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virg ...
she said, “I think there’s a generational shift. I think there’s a mindset shift” around workplace norms and sexual assault. In September 2018, News Deeply laid off staff members and cut some of its publications including Oceans Deeply, Malnutrition Deeply, and Peacebuilding Deeply. In an email comment to
Fast Company
''Fast Company'' is a monthly American business magazine published in print and online that focuses on technology, business, and design. It publishes six print issues per year.
History
''Fast Company'' was launched in November 1995 by Alan Web ...
, Lara confirmed the changes and added that the company’s model “allows us to pop up and fold down thematic platforms. It’s always sad for us to see any of them go dark. Letting go of colleagues when that happens is the hardest part of my job as a CEO.” In December 2018 she joined with a group of women journalists to create Press Forward, an initiative to change the culture of newsrooms at the local and national level, so that they are safe and fair for all reporters.
ABC News
Setrakian has covered the
Middle East
The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...
extensively, filing from across the
Arab world
The Arab world ( ar, اَلْعَالَمُ الْعَرَبِيُّ '), formally the Arab homeland ( '), also known as the Arab nation ( '), the Arabsphere, or the Arab states, refers to a vast group of countries, mainly located in Western A ...
and
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
. Setrakian covered
Iranian presidential election, 2009
Presidential elections were held in Iran on 12 June 2009, with incumbent Mahmoud Ahmadinejad running against three challengers. The next morning the Islamic Republic News Agency, Iran's news agency, announced that with two-thirds of the votes co ...
digitally, cited by several key aggregation blogs during the aftermath. She covered
Lebanon
Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus li ...
’s violent unrest in May 2008 and reported from Saudi Arabia during the oil price crisis that summer. She filed a report on a $3 billion collection of modern masterpieces in the basement of the
Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art
Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art, ( Persian: موزه هنرهای معاصر تهران), also known as TMoCA, is among the largest art museums in Tehran and Iran. It has collections of more than 3,000 items that include 19th and 20th centur ...
, and was the only network reporter with the
US Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...
’s counter-piracy
Combined Task Force 151
Combined Task Force 151 (CTF-151) is a multinational naval task force, set up in 2009 as a response to piracy attacks in the Gulf of Aden and off the eastern coast of Somalia. Its mission is to disrupt piracy and armed robbery at sea and to enga ...
when it caught its first band of suspected pirates in the Gulf of Aden. While on that assignment, Setrakian was the first American to interview the new president of war-torn
Somalia
Somalia, , Osmanya script: 𐒈𐒝𐒑𐒛𐒐𐒘𐒕𐒖; ar, الصومال, aṣ-Ṣūmāl officially the Federal Republic of SomaliaThe ''Federal Republic of Somalia'' is the country's name per Article 1 of thProvisional Constituti ...
, Sheikh
Sharif Sheikh Ahmed
Sharif Sheikh Ahmed ( so, Shariif Sheekh Axmed, ar, شريف شيخ أحمد; born 25 July 1964) is a Somali politician who served as President of Somalia from 2009 to 2012. He is the founder and leader of Himilo Qaran political party and ...
.
Before moving to the Middle East, Setrakian was a reporter for ABC News in New York where her reporting appeared on ABC News shows “
Good Morning America
''Good Morning America'' (often abbreviated as ''GMA'') is an American morning television program that is broadcast on ABC. It debuted on November 3, 1975, and first expanded to weekends with the debut of a Sunday edition on January 3, 1993. Th ...
,” “World News”,"
This Week" and “
Nightline.” She covered high-profile trials and cases in the U.S., such as Duke Lacrosse Sex Scandal as well as exclusively interviewing the five Chinese men released from
Guantanamo Bay detention camp in 2006.
ABC New's Mid East Memo
Billed by ABC News as "weekly analysis and top stories in the world's hottest region, from ABC’s Lara Setrakian," the blog covers background information on the Middle East region. Lara's use of multiple platforms: television, web, Twitter, and blogs was highlighted by Rachel Boehm.
Bloomberg Television
Beginning as a contributor to Bloomberg Television while working with ABC News, Lara officially joined Bloomberg in early 2011. She headlined Middle East coverage for Bloomberg during the
Arab Spring
The Arab Spring ( ar, الربيع العربي) was a series of Nonviolent resistance, anti-government protests, Rebellion, uprisings and Insurgency, armed rebellions that spread across much of the Arab world in the early 2010s. It began in T ...
, and covered its aftermath including the latest ramifications in
Libya
Libya (; ar, ليبيا, Lībiyā), officially the State of Libya ( ar, دولة ليبيا, Dawlat Lībiyā), is a country in the Maghreb region in North Africa. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya bo ...
,
Lebanon
Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus li ...
,
Tunisia
)
, image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg
, map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa
, image_map2 =
, capital = Tunis
, largest_city = capital
, ...
,
Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...
,
Syria
Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...
and
Bahrain
Bahrain ( ; ; ar, البحرين, al-Bahrayn, locally ), officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, ' is an island country in Western Asia. It is situated on the Persian Gulf, and comprises a small archipelago made up of 50 natural islands and an ...
. Notable coverage and interviews included Lebanese Prime Minister
Najib Mikati
Najib Azmi Mikati ( ar, نجيب عزمي ميقاتي; born 24 November 1955) is a Lebanese politician and businessman, and three-time Prime Minister of Lebanon whose current term began in September 2021. He also serves as the acting President ...
, and Yemeni President
Ali Abdullah Saleh
Ali Abdullah Saleh al-Ahmar (, ''ʿAlī ʿAbdullāh Ṣāliḥ al-Aḥmar;'' 21 March 1947There is a dispute as to Saleh's date of birth, some saying that it was on 21 March 1942. See: However, by Saleh's own confession, he was born in 1947 al ...
.
Monocle
Contributing to Monocle Magazine and Monocle TV from the Middle East, she covers human interest stories for their global audience.
Foreign Policy
Lara was a contributor to
Foreign Policy
A State (polity), state's foreign policy or external policy (as opposed to internal or domestic policy) is its objectives and activities in relation to its interactions with other states, unions, and other political entities, whether bilaterall ...
's blog: Mideast Channel with articles on Lebanon, the impact of media on the
Arab Spring
The Arab Spring ( ar, الربيع العربي) was a series of Nonviolent resistance, anti-government protests, Rebellion, uprisings and Insurgency, armed rebellions that spread across much of the Arab world in the early 2010s. It began in T ...
and the economics of the
Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
The Abu Dhabi Grand Prix ( ar, سباق جائزة أبوظبي الكبرى) is a Formula One motor racing event. It was announced in early 2007 at the Abu Dhabi F1 Festival in the United Arab Emirates. The first race took place on 1 November ...
.
She was interviewed regarding the impact of
Al Jazeera
Al Jazeera ( ar, الجزيرة, translit-std=DIN, translit=al-jazīrah, , "The Island") is a state-owned Arabic-language international radio and TV broadcaster of Qatar. It is based in Doha and operated by the media conglomerate Al Jazeera ...
on the
Arab Spring
The Arab Spring ( ar, الربيع العربي) was a series of Nonviolent resistance, anti-government protests, Rebellion, uprisings and Insurgency, armed rebellions that spread across much of the Arab world in the early 2010s. It began in T ...
by
Foreign Policy
A State (polity), state's foreign policy or external policy (as opposed to internal or domestic policy) is its objectives and activities in relation to its interactions with other states, unions, and other political entities, whether bilaterall ...
's
Parag Khanna
Parag Khanna (born 27 July 1977 in Kanpur) is an Indian American specialist in geopolitics and globalization. He is the managing partner of FutureMap, and former managing partner of Hybrid Reality as well as Co-Founder & CEO of Factotum.
Early lif ...
.
Business Insider
She also contributed to
Business Insider
''Insider'', previously named ''Business Insider'' (''BI''), is an American financial and business news website founded in 2007. Since 2015, a majority stake in ''Business Insider''s parent company Insider Inc. has been owned by the German publ ...
on Middle East business activities, political economy and global oil markets.
Awards and affiliations
In 2007, she received a fellowship from the Peter Jennings Project for Journalists and the Constitution part of the
National Constitution Center
The National Constitution Center is a non-profit institution devoted to the Constitution of the United States. On Independence Mall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the center is an interactive museum and a national town hall for constitutional dia ...
. Lara was named one of the top 9 most influential
Young Professionals in Foreign Policy
Young Professionals in Foreign Policy (YPFP) is a United States Nonprofit organization, nonprofit, Nonpartisanism, nonpartisan organization that works to train the next generation of foreign policy leadership. The group was founded by Joshua Marcu ...
under 33 by
The Diplomatic Courier
''The Diplomatic Courier'' is an English-language global news and international affairs analysis magazine based in Washington, D.C. It publishes six print issues per year. Its focus is on developments in diplomacy, conflict resolution, internat ...
and made
Foreign Policy
A State (polity), state's foreign policy or external policy (as opposed to internal or domestic policy) is its objectives and activities in relation to its interactions with other states, unions, and other political entities, whether bilaterall ...
's FP Twitterati 100 'A Who's who of the foreign-policy Twitterverse in 2011'.
She is a member of the
International Institute for Strategic Studies
The International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) is a British research institute or think tank in the area of international affairs. Since 1997, its headquarters have been Arundel House in London, England.
The 2017 Global Go To Think ...
and the
International Academy of Television Arts & Sciences
The International Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (IATAS) is an American nonprofit membership organization, based in New York City, composed of leading media and entertainment executives across all sectors of the television industry, from o ...
.
References
External links
Lara Setrakian's Twitter Feed
{{DEFAULTSORT:Setrakian, Lara
American television reporters and correspondents
Harvard College alumni
McKinsey & Company people
American people of Armenian descent
Living people
Bloomberg L.P. people
Horace Mann School alumni
1982 births
American expatriates in the United Arab Emirates
American women television journalists
Journalists from New York City
American women chief executives
21st-century American women