Zeba’s work and writings have been featured in numerous media outlets including Newsweek, NPR, Reuters, Voice of America, Washington Post, The Guardian and The Stanford Social Innovation Review. Her work was also highlighted at the 2009 Personal Democracy Forum Conference in New York.
Ravenna Koenig (OpEd Project Intern): You are a social media consultant for nonprofit organizations, correct? What exactly does your work entail? How did you get started at that job?
Zeba Khan: Initially, I used social media like most of my friends – to connect, plan social events, stay in touch, etc. After I graduated from grad school, my interest in social media changed out of necessity. I had a friend who was starting up a nonprofit to help Iraqi refugees. He had a small staff and very limited funding but he also had a large number of people who wanted to give of their time. I realized pretty quickly that he had no way to harness these volunteers effectively given funding and staffing constraints. The easiest and most efficient solution was to build a social network so that these volunteers could identify themselves to one another and mobilize. The network grew rapidly, spawning chapters across the country, eventually becoming a very critical arm of the nonprofit. That was my introduction to how social media could be used to help an organization achieve its goals and improve its operations. Since then, I’ve consulted for numerous nonprofits and higher education institutions. Each client has different objectives and focus but essentially my role is to help them think strategically about new media and what aspects of it make sense to implement given their specific goals.
RK: When you were an undergraduate did you have a firm idea of what you wanted to do? If not, how did your interest in women and minority issues evolve?
ZK: Not at all. I’ve always been interested in social justice and how inequality affects different populations. Looking back, those interests were continuously reflected in what I studied, what I chose to research and what I write about throughout college. After college, those academic interests became more active and I pursued them through my work –whether that work was focused on youth, low-income residents of my city, or my faith community.
RK: How have your interests in media evolved over the course of your career?
ZK: Beyond being a consumer of news, I wasn’t very interested in media. I enjoyed writing but only for myself. I only began to think about my potential contribution in the field after graduate school. I think my interest came through a combination of realizing that writing was one of the most effective ways to make an impact in tandem with my field work (with various nonprofits). I also think it took time for me to become confident enough to even start trying to write publicly.
RK: You recently were selected as the first runner-up in The Washington Post’s “America’s Next Great Pundit Contest.” Your work was subjected to criticism and praise from both the American Public and professional members of the media. How was that experience? What did you learn from it?
ZK: Being subjected to the feedback of the WaPo editors and readers from across the country was one of the best experiences about the competition. I recognized from the start that not everyone has the chance to have the entire country be their writing coach and I took full advantage of it. Positive feedback encouraged me and substantive negative feedback only helped sharpen my writing. And I learned pretty quickly to let the baseless nasty feedback roll off my back. All in all, I grew a thicker skin and I walked away more confident in my writing.
RK: Was the televised aspect of punditry at all limiting? I noticed Jonathan Caphart’s critique on your not smiling enough. Was that frustrating at all—being told to smile when you wanted your work and the issues it spotlighted to be the focus?
ZK: Talking about the news off the cuff in front of a camera with very limited time is definitely a new experience for me. There is so much more at play than your thoughts or your argument and with barely any time to express yourself, I found it to be a pretty challenging medium. As for Jonathan’s critique of me not smiling enough, it bothered me initially. I thought to myself, how can anyone smile when talking about unemployment, war, healthcare, etc? But ultimately, it is television and you need to engage the viewer. You’re not going to achieve that through scowling, no matter how informative you are. That’s not to say a big cheesy smile is good either but I’ve learned from my experience and from talking with seasoned pundits that slight changes in facial expressions can translate in big ways on camera. There are ways to smile without actually smiling.
RK: Have you had any encountered sexism in your professional life?
ZK: I can’t say that I’ve ever dealt with any sexism in my line of work. I think that might have something to do with the fact that much of what I do is online… a far more democratic space than a traditional work place.
RK: What is the one thing that helped you to get where you are that you didn’t expect?
ZK: Certainly my family and close friends have been supportive of me and I know their support has been immensely important. What I didn’t expect was what a profound effect the OpEd Project seminar with Katie would have on me. One amazing seminar at the right time made me determined and confident enough to submit my first pieces to national print and online papers.