Zubeida Mustafa is a freelance journalist who writes a fortnightly column for Dawn, the paper with which she worked as an assistant editor from 1975 to 2008. Dawn is Pakistan’s most widely circulated and influential English language newspaper that was founded in 1947.
Ms Mustafa writes on a variety of subjects but her interest has mainly been in the social sector which she has covered extensively. She has investigated in-depth issues such as education, health care, women’s empowerment, children’s rights and the lives of ordinary people.
While working with Dawn, Ms Mustafa wrote editorials and also launched a number of sections which were very well received. She was in-charge of the One World Supplement which Dawn published in the early 1980s in partnership with 15 leading newspapers from all over the world. These included Le Monde (Paris), Asahi Shimbun (Tokyo), La Stampa (Rome), The Indian Express (New Delhi), Jornal du Brasil (Rio de Janeiro), etc.
She launched and edited Dawn’s “Health Page”, “Book Page”, “Education Page”, “CareerWise”, “Encounter”, “Karachi Notebook” and most notably “Books & Authors”, the first book magazine brought out by any newspaper in Pakistan.
Before she entered the world of journalism, Ms Mustafa worked at the Pakistan Institute of International Affairs (PIIA), Karachi as a Research Officer. Her research papers were published in Pakistan Horizon, the quarterly journal of the PIIA.
Ms Mustafa’s articles have been published in foreign newspapers and websites.
She has compiled and edited a number of books:
- The Tyranny of Language in Education: The Problem and its Solution (Revised and Expanded Edition) (OUP, Karachi) 2015
- The SIUT Story: Making the ‘Impossible’ Possible (Paramount Publishing, Karachi) 2013
- Tyranny of Language in Education: The Problem and its Solution (Ushba Books, Karachi) 2011
- Transfer of Power (PIIA, Karachi)
- The Kashmir Question (PIIA, Karachi)
- The South Asian Century (Dawn and OUP)
- For Life, Peace and Justice by Maisoon Hussein (Piler, Karachi)
- The Press in Chains (revised edition) by Zamir Niazi (OUP)
In May 2012 The International Women’s Media Foundation nominated her for its Lifetime Achievement Award 2012.
She has also received Lifetime Achievement Awards from UKS (2013) and Ladies Fund (2015)
She is the winner of “Global Media Award for Excellence” in 1986 and 2004 presented by the Population Institute, Washington, USA.
She also received an award from the Pakistan Publishers and Booksellers Association in December 2005 in recognition of her contribution to Books & Authors.
Zubeida Mustafa did her Masters in International Relations from the University of Karachi. She has also studied at the London School of Economics and Political Science.
You can learn more about Zubeida Mustafa’s professional life and views by clicking on the links below. She was widely interviewed in the US which she visited in October 2012 to receive her award given by the International Women’s Media Foundation. Here are the links of her interviews and pictures in the international media:
Introducing the Zubeida Mustafa Award for Journalistic Excellence
International Women’s Media Foundation
International Women’s Media Foundation: Bio of Zubeida Mustafa, Pakistan 2012 Lifetime Achievement Award
NorthJersey.com: A Lonely Road for a Female Editor in Pakistan
Zimbio: Zubeida Mustafa
Zimbio: Welcome to our wikizine about Zubeida Mustafa
CBC Radio: Trail Blazer Journalist Zubeida Mustafa
Patheos: A Woman’s Quiet Revolution: An Interview with Journalist Zubeida Mustafa
An interview I gave to LAFZ while in North America
Dawn unveils Zubeida Mustafa Award for journalists
Ageless Beauty: Zubeida Mustafa
A conversation with Zubeida Mustafa
The Journalistic Thinking of a New Truthdig Contributor
Zubeida Mustafa’s Exclusive Interview with WMC
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
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You can contact her through the Contact Us page.