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We are ´óÏó´«Ã½ News Arabic’s award winning investigative journalism team, producing fearless and engrossing films and other content for TV and digital platforms.

We shine a light into dark places and expose issues in the Arab world that no one else is able or willing to, aiming to represent ordinary people and speak truth to power. We have received widespread critical acclaim for the innovation and creativity of our films. Visit our programme website to watch some recent content highlights.

The core of our work is investigative: for example, exposing the exploitation of women and girls by parts of the Iraqi clerical elite in Undercover with the Clerics: Iraq’s Secret Sex Trade, which won two Emmys and a Gracie in 2020, or The Schools that Chain Boys, which revealed the abuse of boys in Islamic schools in Sudan and won the RTS Current Affairs International Award and Amnesty Investigation of the Year in 2021.

We’ve been leaders in transparent open source investigative journalism, combating disinformation and seeking the truth, winning the Amnesty News Award in 2021 for Idlib Double-Tap.

We seek out human stories and narratives within our investigations and also commission observational, access-based films if that access is unique. Iraq: a State of Mind tackled the taboo subject of mental health in a country that's been overwhelmed by decades of crisis and war, and Goodbye Aleppo documented the fall of the city. Both films won the Grierson Award for Current Affairs.

What pitches do we want?

We want pitches from Arab or global filmmakers and journalists who have story ideas about the Middle East and North Africa that are relevant for audiences both in that region and around the world. Our journalism makes international impact – and will be seen and heard in multiple languages across all ´óÏó´«Ã½ platforms.

We will only commission projects which have the potential for genuine news-making revelations or that contain unique access. However, this doesn’t mean that they should be limited to politics, human rights and conflict; we commission a broad range of investigative subjects including social issues, sport, culture and health.

Films

We commission for slot lengths of 30 and 60-minutes for TV and at a range of durations for digital and are happy to co-produce with other broadcasters. We also acquire completed films and aim to showcase the best documentaries coming out of the Middle East and North Africa.

Open source journalism

We’re interested in investigative ideas that use innovative journalism techniques to reveal the facts. We’ve been at the forefront of the revolution in journalism techniques, using satellite, video and other open source analysis to establish the truth, whether by proving Russian disinformation over the bombing of a Syrian market in Idlib Double Tap, or in Game of Drones’ uncovering the events surrounding a missile attack on a group of young army cadets in Libya.

Other formats

Our commissioning is diverse and our work goes beyond video. We’ve used interactive tools, 3D imaging, audio, data, text and other tools to tell stories, working with developers and graphics designers in our storytelling team.

A few tips

• We are interested both in fully formed pitches and in simple story ideas which we can work with you to develop further.
• If we’re interested in your idea we can work with you to choose the right approach and style. Format is less important to us than the stories we're telling and the values underlying the journalism. We are interested in projects that surprise, expose wrong-doing, challenge vested interests and that are innovative, bold and brave. If it’s an unusual thought, try us and surprise us.
• Watch our to see the subjects we have already covered and how.
• We have a specific focus on younger audiences and female audiences, and are interested in stories and treatments that will best serve these demographics.
• We are keen to receive ideas from female and younger journalists, including first time film makers and are interested in story tips from members of the public too.
• You don’t need to speak Arabic, though it's usually an advantage. The most important thing is that you have a good idea.
• ´óÏó´«Ã½ Arabic is part of ´óÏó´«Ã½ World Service Languages. Please note that ´óÏó´«Ã½ World Service Languages has different commissioning processes and contractual and rights frameworks to ´óÏó´«Ã½ Television. Please speak with your commissioner for further information, or contact us on the email address provided below.

How to pitch and contacts

Please email pitches to our commissioning email: WSArabicDocsCommissioning@bbc.co.uk.

To save you and us time we advise keeping pitches brief in the first instance, and under two pages.

An Arabic version of this text is available to download via the button below. 

قم بتنزيل هذا النص باللغة العربية بصيغة