Afghan Social Media Awards
RFE/RL Radio Free Afghanistan reporter Malali Bashir has won in the Twitter Power User category in the first ever Afghan Social Media Awards.
RFE/RL Radio Free Afghanistan reporter Malali Bashir has won in the Twitter Power User category in the first ever Afghan Social Media Awards, presented at the 2015 Afghan Social Media Summit in October, which celebrates innovative social media use in Afghanistan. Afghan social media users nominated Bashir, along with eight other candidates, for the award. After a round of public voting online, Bashir was among the four finalists who advanced to the final round, where a panel of judges evaluated them based on their creativity, best practices in social media use, and impact in Afghanistan. Bashir keeps her 20,000 Twitter followers informed on the Taliban’s takeover of Kunduz, corruption in the Afghan government, and other pressing issues in Afghanistan. However, Bashir’s engagement with these issues goes beyond tweeting and retweeting. Bashir, who is from Zabul, Aghanistan, has covered a range of topics related to Afghanistan, often with a women’s rights perspective. Since she joined RFE/RL in April 2014, Bashir has interviewed activist Malala Yousafzai and Afghan First Lady Rula Ghani about their advocacy for women and girls.