Hayder Hamzoz

Hayder Hamzoz

Middle East & North Africa, Iraq, 2012

Hayder Hamzoz, Iraq, is a leading blogger who has made use of digital media and social networks to broaden the information available to citizens in his country. He is leading the new Iraqi Network for Social Media for the country’s bloggers and social media activists, and a first Mobile Radio for Social Media called Hamzoz SM (Hamzoz Social Media). Founder of Iraqistreets.com blog site, he uses his mobile phone, Facebook and Twitter to record demonstrations and other events in Iraq. While documenting regular Friday protests in Tahrir Square in Baghdad, he has suffered physical attacks and other threats that supporters viewed as a possible reprisal for his cyberactivism. He was a 2011 World Press Freedom Fellow as well.