Syria Direct facts for kids

Syria Direct is a news group that started in 2013. It's based in Berlin, Germany. Their main job is to share news about what's happening in Syria, especially about its war and government. They also teach young people how to become journalists. Syria Direct first got money from an American group and from the US government and different embassies in Amman, Jordan.

Getting News Online

Syria Direct shares its news in both English and Arabic. Their articles are for people who want to learn more about Syria. Syria Direct has a small team of reporters from Syria and other countries. These reporters talk to people in Syria every day, including activists and regular citizens.

Syrian journalists write the stories in both Arabic and English. This means their website is bilingual, so all articles are translated. Before they are published, the stories are carefully checked for facts and edited. Syria Direct also has a big presence on social media. For example, their Facebook page has over 144,000 followers, and many people follow their Twitter account too.

Training Future Journalists

Syria Direct also has a special program to train new journalists from Syria. This training program has received money from the US Embassy in Amman, a German organization called Konrad Adenauer Stiftung, and the Canadian Embassy in Amman.

Every six months, Syria Direct trains twelve new Syrian journalists. The stories written by these trainees have been published in famous news places like USA Today, CNN.com, and Radio Free Europe. Their work has also appeared in international newspapers such as Le Monde and The Toronto Globe and Mail.

By September 2016, Syria Direct had trained 70 journalists. Some of these trained journalists even went on to start their own news groups. By April 2018, the number of trained journalists grew to 150. This was possible because of help from the US State Department.