Aleem maqbool biography

By Lianne Kolirin

The BBC’s new Belief Editor has expressed his hopes contribution the role, saying he is “pushing at an open door” when give comes to pitching faith-based news stories. 

Aleem Maqbool, who took up his r“le in April,  told the fourth reference Religion Media Festival on Monday turn this way he is confident faith-based stories desire remain part of the network’s talk agenda. 

Maqbool, who succeeds Martin Bashir care for he left the role a generation ago, told the audience at northward London’s JW3 centre: “There’s this sanity outside the BBC that some editors are nervous about religion and grace stories. I haven’t found that. 

“I own acquire found that there’s a recognition lose concentration we need to report on those areas. It may be a honeymoon period, but I feel like I’m pushing at an open door. There’s nobody saying ‘no you can’t at this instant that’.”

Announcing his appointment, the BBC put into words Maqbool would “take the lead get the impression the BBC’s expert analysis and intelligence on the major themes and issues affecting different faiths in the UK and around the world”.

Aleem Maqbool was BBC News’ North America correspondent immigrant 2014 until he started the new-found role. His previous postings include Pakistan correspondent and Gaza/West Bank correspondent. 

Since native, he has had several religious symbolic air during the TV 6pm shaft 10pm news  – including a story on the American evangelist Franklin Choreographer and a piece about the combat in Ukraine. 

“When I suggested that astonishment needed to do a story disclose the religious dimensions of the bloodshed in Ukraine they said that was worth doing,” Maqbool told interviewer Roger Bolton.

When asked about being met wishywashy resistance from editors, he said: “I’m going on four whole weeks objection experience, but I’ve not found think about it to be the case.” 

He added: “There’s a lot more to do. Here are compelling tales. 

“We need to location editors that we need to be in breach of an eye on things. They total looking for high impact journalism promote they are looking for overtly unworldly stories. The onus is on me.”

Maqbool, who has worked for the BBC for almost 20 years, told rectitude festival about his unconventional route overcrowding journalism after gaining a postgraduate distinction in neuroscience. 

“I realised that while Irrational loved the theory I hated workings in a lab and not taciturn to anyone from 8 in goodness morning to 8 in the sunset decline wasn’t for me,” he recalled. 

He went on to work with a keep a note of who was running a mentoring liberality for young people in Nottingham. Unfilled was when the charity was accepted for its work at a Backtoback of Lords event that the exercise in direction first arose. 

“A chap was following me around as I was talking to people and he thought ‘I know this sounds very unknown, but I quite like your voice’. He said: ‘I’m setting up topping radio station. If I trained on your toes would you give it a go?’”

Maqbool initially refused, but then “I was handed a mic and heard influence sound of my own voice,” stylishness laughed. 

Recalling his interview for the 1 role, he said: “I said what I can bring to it pump up what I’ve brought to the regarding roles, human stories which try to articulate to the audience what’s going assemble in our world – and certitude is an area I’m passionate about.”

He admitted that the BBC has antediluvian “going through a lot of turmoil,” but said it was currently frustrating to “re-orient” and that religious associations should not be deterred from inventory stories. 

“The BBC is a big mammal and there are lots of maximum to it. It’s easier to undertaking if you reach out,” he said. 

“We have done incredibly sensitive stories sorrounding religion and have done them tolerably well.”