Danish Karokhel is the founding Director of Pajhwok Afghan News and was born in Kabul in 1976. For almost 12 years, he has been responsible for the agency’s vision and direction; daily production of high-quality news stories, photos, and multimedia in three languages for customers in Afghan and international media, wire services, diplomats, researchers, and government ministries; the creation of a sustainable revenue stream; and the professional development of Pajhwok journalists. Danish’s successful leadership of Pajhwok has been the result of his depth of skills and experience. His career as a journalist began in 1997 when he reported for a series of newspapers published in Pakistan. With a deep understanding of the importance of independent media to Afghanistan’s recovery, he returned to his country after the fall of the Taliban to report on the war for local and international media organizations. Danish’s nuanced understanding of Afghan politics and culture, dedication to producing news following the highest journalistic standards and ability to lead, train, and communicate with journalists in ways that were immediately relevant to their work led him to establish Pajhwok, a national news agency committed to promoting human rights, holding government officials and elites accountable to the Afghan people, and fostering greater participation in national life.
He has authored four Books titled Professional Journalism, Access to Information, Human Trafficking in Pashto, and a remarkably informative book on the state of journalism in Afghanistan titled Guide for Journalists in Dari.
In addition to leading Pajhwok, Danish is a member of several regional leadership conferences and a regular public speaker on behalf of the Afghan media, development of journalistic capacity, and national recovery and he is a human rights and peace activist. He is the winner of the 2008 International Press Freedom Award of the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and he is the winner of the 2012 Press Freedom Whiting Award from the South Asian Free Media Association (SAFMA).On May 3, 2014, Danish Karokhel, have been included in the first-ever list of 100 information heroes by Reporters without Borders -- also known as RSF.