Meet Yumna Iftikhar, the Indy’s Summer Reporter

When we learned The Independent was approved for federal funding through the Canada Summer Jobs program to hire a young journalist this year, we were thrilled to see what the 2023 pool of applicants looked like. I say this as a 20-year journalist who gets excited when I see the work young journalists today are doing. Though we had several strong applicants, one stood out above the rest.

Yumna Iftikhar grew up in St. John’s and has a deep love for the city and our province. She also has a keen sense of curiosity about the world around her, and an awareness that journalism is not just about storytelling, but also about highlighting injustices as part of our collective effort to make life better for everyone. This is evident in her first piece for the Indy, “Hundreds Turn Out to Support 2SLGBTQIA+ Rights and Inclusive Education“.

These are just some of the reasons we are excited to get to know her better and to follow her work.

Yumna is working on her Master’s Degree in journalism at Carleton University and recently wrapped an internship at CBC’s parliamentary bureau in Ottawa. She is happy to be home in St. John’s for the summer with her family and friends.

I recently asked her about her pathway to journalism, her interests outside of work, and the stories she thinks deserve more coverage.

Why did you decide to become a journalist?

Journalism is a combination of everything I love: listening to people’s experiences, reading, writing, photography, videography, having a grasp on what’s happening around the world and how it affects me and my loved ones. I have always been very bookish and as a journalist I get to enjoy every moment of what I do.

What do you enjoy doing outside of work, and why?

I love theatre. Theatre is a big part of Newfoundland and Labrador culture and we have such an amazing arts community. I have worked backstage for as long as I can remember. I did take a little break during the pandemic but now I am itching to get back into theatre.

Is there a story or book or something else you’ve engaged with recently that’s changed your perception of an issue? Can you tell us about it?

‘Covering Islam’ by Edward Said is one of my favourite reads. As a Muslim girl in the West, my relationship with news has always been complicated but through this book I learned how important it is for a journalist to have an in-depth understanding of the topic they are covering and their sources.   

What are the most pressing issues in Newfoundland and Labrador that you feel need more or better coverage from the news media here?

I think some of the more pressing issues include climate change, its effects on the province and whether we are reaching our climate goals; the province’s overwhelmed healthcare system, especially with our aging population; and inflation and higher costs of living. All of the issues are covered well but I think we need to continue covering them from various perspectives.

Is there anyone who might be reading this that you’d like to hear from for a story? Who should reach out to you?

While I would love to hear from anyone in the province, I believe seniors are some of the best storytellers and I especially want to hear what they have to say. Also, I want to cover more stories about our minorities and marginalized communities and would love to hear from them as well.

Yumna Iftikhar is a Pakistani-Canadian journalist, hailing from St. John’s, Newfoundland. She is a second year Master of Journalism student at Carleton University. Yumna is interested in covering disability stories, local politics and international affairs. When not chasing stories, she writes film scripts for fun. You can reach her at yumna.iftikhar@theindependent.ca and find her on Twitter @yumnaifti.