Profile
Souheila Al-Jadda is a Peabody award-winning producer and journalist. Her opinion pieces have been published in newspapers in the United States and abroad, including USA Today, The Christian Science Monitor, The Dallas Morning News and The Daily Star in Lebanon among others. Souheila is also a member of the Board of Contributors for USA Today, and has appeared as a guest analyst on CNN, MSNBC, CBS News and Link TV to discuss Islam, American Muslims, women and issues affecting the Middle East.
Souheila was born and raised in Ohio. More than thirty years ago, her parents immigrated to the United States from Syria, where she visits nearly every year to reconnect with relatives and friends. Her trips to the Middle East are often the source of inspiration for her articles. One of her recent articles in the USA Today calls for increased dialogue between to the U.S. and Syria as a first step in establishing stability in the region. In addition to writing about international affairs, she also addresses Arab and Islamic culture. In an article entitled, “Laughter Amid the Tears,” Souheila shows how Arab media in the Middle East use comedy as a way of coping with strife and relaying political messages that some governments don’t want to hear.
Souheila is an associate producer of a Peabody award-winning daily news program, Mosaic: World News from the Middle East, on Link TV. In her capacity at Link TV, she also produces one-hour Mosaic Specials and the Who Speaks for Islam? series. She was featured in Ramadan Prime Time, an original Link TV production, which developed from an article she wrote about Arab media tackling the issue of terrorism. Ramadan Prime Time explores the unique television programs that people across the Muslim world watch during the holy month of Ramadan, when Muslims fast from sunrise until sunset.
Prior to producing at Link TV, from 1998-2002, Souheila worked for four years on Capitol Hill as a legislative aid for United States Representative Dennis J. Kucinich, the current democratic presidential candidate. She worked on issues dealing with foreign policy, human and civil rights, veterans affairs, health care and other issues. She also organized a series of congressional “Sit-Ins,” or briefings on Iraq.
Souheila is president and founding partner of SANO Group, a consulting firm that specializes in providing policy analysis and expertise in international relations, communications and media production.
In 2005, she was a Social Sciences Resource Council fellow at the Institute for Journalists on Covering Islam and Muslims in America. Souheila attended The George Washington University in Washington, DC, where she obtained her B.A., in Political Science and Journalism. She received a Master's degree in Middle East Studies and Economics from the Johns Hopkins University. In addition, she has studied the Arabic language at the Arabic Teaching Institute for Non-Arab Speakers in Damascus, Syria and at Alexandria University in Alexandria, Egypt.