Stephanie Busari, a Nigerian senior journalist, has been promoted to CNN Senior Editor for Africa. Announcing the good news to her fans, Busari said she was delighted to have been promoted to the position adding that it has been 6 years living in Lagos, pioneering CNN’s first multiplatform bureau, editing, and creating impactful content that has changed lives.
“It was so important for me to cover the End Sars protests and work on the crucial investigation into the Lekki tollgate shooting, which found that the Nigerian army opened fire on unarmed protesters, killing an undetermined number. I later received two Emmy award nominations and was discussed in the UK parliament,” she wrote.
Photos: Stephanie Busari (Instagram)
Having worked for 20 years in global newsrooms, she is looking forward to doing much more and changing the African narrative.
She began her career as a news reporter in the early 2000s, swiftly building her reputation as an intrepid storyteller. Living in Belfast during the Northern Ireland Troubles, she interviewed a crucifixion victim and paramilitaries.
In 2002, Stephanie was one of the first British journalists to cover the futile postcode warfare central to knife crime in Britain. Since then, her interview guests have ranged from Hollywood celebrities to global dignitaries such as US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken.
After a short stint at BBC News, Stephanie joined CNN International in 2008. The media organisation rewarded her excellence in journalism, resulting in a swift career progression to Multiplatform Bureau Lead & Supervising Editor for Africa.
Photo: Stephanie Busari (Instagram)
Stephanie is recognized for her commitment to justice and speaking up for the voiceless. In April 2016, she exclusively obtained the ‘proof of life’ video, which showed that the kidnapped Nigerian Chibok schoolgirls were still alive.
The evidence kick-started crucial negotiations, releasing over 100 schoolgirls from the terrorist group Boko Haram. She earned a Gracie Award in 2017 for her fearless contribution to retrieving the Chibok girls, alongside a Peabody Award in 2015 as a field producer for CNN’s coverage of the Chibok schoolgirls.
The United Nations celebrates Stephanie as one of the 100 Most Influential People of African Descent (2017) and is recognized as one of the 25 most powerful female journalists in Africa (2020 and 2021).
