Jehad Zafar

independent content creator at The Wide Side

Compiled from 2 recorded interviews. Every statement below is drawn from the passage cited beside it.

Jehad Zafar is an independent content creator at The Wide Side. His coverage focuses on Middle East events and news. He studied computational physics at Punjab University.

Early life and background

Zafar has said that an interest in following the news was with him from the start. He has said that his interest in politics and current affairs began around 2010-11, when he was 18, and that it grew during the war on terror in Pakistan. He covered political activity independently on his own blogs. He started following people on Twitter in 2014. [2]

Education

Zafar studied at Punjab University. He has said that he did not study journalism at university. He has said that his field had no special scope in Pakistan, while much more work in it was happening in Germany. He came to feel that physics was not his field, and he has said he had no interest in an academic teaching career. [2]

Career

After his physics studies, Zafar did internships in Islamabad. He worked as a technology writer at a magazine in Lahore, where he wrote tech reviews of mobile phones. He worked at the magazine for one year. He has said the work gave him training in how to write about any subject. [2]

Zafar later worked at a digital agency on projects for brands. He has said that his team was building channels for Express, Geo and Duniya. He has said that the team trained the teams that ran those channels and obtained YouTube certifications. According to him, the channels his team ran earned substantial revenue from overseas viewers, and the team spent about one and a half to two years working on YouTube at a media company. [2]

Zafar has said that his team began a style of thumbnail design in 2015 and made a major push on thumbnails in Pakistan. He has said that the team designed thumbnails and related visuals for YouTube channels. He has said that the thumbnail patterns the team set years ago are still in use to a large extent. [2]

Zafar has said that his team of about 20 people worked in two shifts for around 15 to 20 network channels and 50 to 60 independent channels. He has said that members of that team now offer their services in Lahore. He has said that only a few people from the team became creators, namely himself and his partner. [2]

Zafar has said that his expertise was mainly in news, and that after handing some work to others he began to focus fully on news. He has said that people asked him why he did not make his own content, which led him to start one. He started making videos while still employed and has said this was part of why he left the job. He left his job in 2017, and a video of his went viral about a week later. [2]

Independent content work

Zafar has said that he has moved toward quick videos and daily uploads. He has said that audiences now want more content from him, and that he has moved into a hyperactive mode because events are so frequent. He has said that making one piece of content can take him about 10 hours, and that he also wants to increase how often he publishes. [1]

Zafar has said that he no longer makes political remarks and now stays on current affairs. He has said that a couple of news channels and some independent creators are also being managed. He has said that he wants to expand into other categories, such as tech. [2]

Views

Zafar has said that research is exhausting but that he will not compromise on it. He has said that he will not compromise on verified, relevant information in his content. He has said that he tries to find connected patterns in events. [1]

On global affairs, Zafar has said that Covid marked a break in the course of events and that people got a chance to think critically after that break. He has said that some groups appear to want chaos in the world so that order can be regained. He has said that Russia and China appear to share one philosophy, and that the process of building an alternative world order has already started. He has also said that he has already seen the war on terror period. [1]

Zafar has said that Europe knows China is the next superpower and that Europe has been largely pushed out of Africa. He has said that in 2019 China overtook the US in trade with the European Union. He has said that Brazil's new president openly says the country should move away from the dollar, and that dollar assets were frozen and some parties were removed from the SWIFT payment system. He has said that the African Union still exists but is a puppet, and that Iran survived 30 years of sanctions. [1]

On Afghanistan, Zafar has said that the events there are a once-in-a-lifetime moment. He said in an earlier video that the event is on the scale of the Partition-era realignments. He has said that Pakistan has no reason to celebrate the Taliban. He has said that experts regard the 1996 to 2001 period of Taliban rule as the most peaceful. [2]

Zafar has said that earlier Afghan governments were largely Soviet-backed and that the Soviet Union was friendly with India. He has said that earlier governments in Afghanistan were anti-Pakistan. He has said that Iran clashed with the Taliban in 1996 but has tried to widen engagement with them in recent years. [2]

Zafar has said that Afghanistan lies at an important point in China's BRI project and that China is working through investment rather than a military presence there. He has said that China has made clear it will not join a great game, and that a stable Afghanistan would give security to the whole region. He has said that Pakistan's prime minister started the Trans-Afghan Railway project during a visit to Uzbekistan, and that the railway would give Central Asian states access to deep water for their trade. [2]

Zafar has said that the US is not affected by whether terrorism occurs in the region. He has said that a regional bloc is forming in which regional players will be concerned with security, and that Western countries have halted aid since the Taliban takeover. He has said that major terror groups emerged in Afghanistan because of the US misadventure over the past 20 years, and that the US has a history of leaving a mess wherever it goes. [2]

Timeline

2010
Interest in politics and current affairs began, around 2010-11, at age 18, by his own account.[2]
2014
Started following people on Twitter.[2]
2015
His team began a style of thumbnail design.[2]
2017
Left his job.[2]

Appearances

DateTitleWhere
2023-11-24 Israel is no longer untouchable — and the world order knows it Thought Behind Things
2021-08-27 Afghanistan is a once-in-a-generation realignment, not a news cycle Thought Behind Things

Frequently asked questions

Who is Jehad Zafar?

Jehad Zafar is an independent content creator at The Wide Side. His coverage focuses on Middle East events and news. He studied computational physics at Punjab University.[1][2]

What does Jehad Zafar do?

Jehad Zafar is an independent content creator at The Wide Side, with coverage focused on Middle East events and news. He has said that he has moved toward quick videos and daily uploads. He has said that making one piece of content can take him about 10 hours.[1]

Where did Jehad Zafar study?

Jehad Zafar studied computational physics at Punjab University. He has said that he did not study journalism at university. He has said that he came to feel physics was not his field.[2]

What did Jehad Zafar do before becoming a content creator?

Jehad Zafar did internships in Islamabad after his physics studies. He worked as a technology writer at a magazine in Lahore for one year, writing tech reviews of mobile phones. He later worked at a digital agency on projects for brands.[2]

When did Jehad Zafar leave his job?

Jehad Zafar left his job in 2017. He started making videos while still employed, and he has said this was part of why he left. A video of his went viral about a week after he left.[2]

What does Jehad Zafar say about Afghanistan?

Jehad Zafar has said that the events in Afghanistan are a once-in-a-lifetime moment. He has said that China is working through investment rather than a military presence there. He has also said that a stable Afghanistan would give security to the whole region.[2]

References

  1. Israel is no longer untouchable — and the world order knows it . Thought Behind Things , 2023-11-24.
  2. Afghanistan is a once-in-a-generation realignment, not a news cycle . Thought Behind Things , 2021-08-27.
Show the source passages (78 statements)
  1. Jehad Zafar is an independent content creator at The Wide Side. Jehad Zafar is an Independent Content Creator at The Wide Side.
  2. Jehad Zafar has said that his coverage now focuses on Middle East events and news, alongside a podcast. coverage ko zyada karein jo kuch ho raha hai Middle East mein aur news se related hamara aur thoda sa podcast wagera
  3. Jehad Zafar has said he has moved toward quick videos and daily uploads. thoda quick quick videos ki taraf jaya jaye aur daily upload ki taraf
  4. Jehad Zafar has said that audiences now want more content from him. yeh demand ab logon ki yeh banti ja rahi hai ke thoda sa na zyada unko content mile
  5. Jehad Zafar has said he has moved into a hyperactive mode because events are so frequent. thoda woh hyperactive mode ki taraf hum aaye hue hain ke ji bas karna hai kyunke events bohat zyada hain
  6. Jehad Zafar has said that making one piece of content can take him about 10 hours. meri ab zindagi mein agar 10 ghante lagte hain matlab ek ek content piece tayyar karne mein
  7. Jehad Zafar has said that research is exhausting but he will not compromise on it. Woh research ho rahi hai toh itni zyada woh thakawat bhi aa rahi hai ke woh usko bhi hum main compromise nahi karna chahta.
  8. Jehad Zafar has said he will not compromise on verified, relevant information in his content. relevant aur koi verified verified cheez dein, usko compromise nahi karna
  9. Jehad Zafar has said he also wants to increase how often he publishes. Aur sath sath uski frequency ko bhi zyada karna hai
  10. Jehad Zafar has said Covid marked a break in the course of events. Woh Covid mein ek break aaya.
  11. Jehad Zafar has said that people got a chance to think critically after that break. Aur us break ke baad logon ko na ek critical thinking ka mauqa bhi mila
  12. Jehad Zafar has said that some groups appear to want chaos in the world so that order can be regained. aur woh duniya mein ek chaos chahte hain taake wapis order ko regain kiya jaye, aisa lagta hai
  13. Jehad Zafar has said that he tries to find connected patterns in events. pattern hum dhoondne ki koshish kar rahe hain ke kya pattern hai, connected pattern
  14. Jehad Zafar has said Russia and China appear to share one philosophy. Yeh nazar aata hai ke woh ek hi philosophy hai
  15. Jehad Zafar has said the process of building an alternative world order has already started. Woh already doosri duniya banne ki cheez, woh shuru ho chuka hai uska process
  16. Jehad Zafar has said Europe knows China is the next superpower. Europe ko pata hai ke China is the next superpower
  17. Jehad Zafar has said Europe has been largely pushed out of Africa. Europe ko Africa se toh kaafi hadd tak nikaal diya hai
  18. Jehad Zafar has said that in 2019 China overtook the US in trade with the European Union. 2019 mein China peeche chhod chuka hai America ko, EU ke saath trade mein
  19. Jehad Zafar has said Brazil's new president openly says the country should move away from the dollar. Brazil ke jo president hain naye, woh bada khul, badh-chadh ke kehte hain ji humein dollar se hatna hai
  20. Jehad Zafar has said that dollar assets were frozen and that some parties were removed from the SWIFT payment system. unhone baithe-bithaye unke assets freeze kar diye jo dollars mein the, unko Swift payment system se nikaal diya hai
  21. Jehad Zafar has said the African Union still exists but is a puppet. Ek African Union abhi bhi hai but woh puppet hai.
  22. Jehad Zafar has said Iran survived 30 years of sanctions. Iran ne survive kiya 30 saal sanction
  23. Jehad Zafar has said that he has already seen the war on terror period. humne woh war on terror wala time dekh liya hai
  24. Jehad Zafar studied at Punjab University. University thi Punjab University.
  25. Jehad Zafar studied computational physics at Punjab University. Lekin wahan se maine kiya tha computational physics.
  26. He has said he did not study journalism at university. Nahi nahi journalism toh nahi padhi thi.
  27. He has said his field had no special scope in Pakistan and much more work in Germany. Pakistan mein koi iska khaas scope nahi hai. Germany mein is mein bahut zyada kaam ho raha hai.
  28. He has said he came to feel that physics was not his field. Toh us waqt aahista aahista jab padhe toh phir mujhe ehsaas hua ke shayad yeh meri yeh hai thi hi nahi field.
  29. He did internships in Islamabad after his physics studies. Aur uske baad aake Islamabad mein kuch internships bhi ki thi maine.
  30. He has said an interest in following the news was with him from the start. Mera woh shuru se hi wohi tha har khabar par nazar wali cheez.
  31. He has said his interest in politics and current affairs began around 2010-11, when he was 18. Toh woh basically interest woh 2010-11 mein woh paida ho gaya tha jab hum 18 saal ke the.
  32. He has said his political interest grew during the war on terror in Pakistan. Yeh jo basically jo zyada tar yeh yeh saari generate hui thi cheez jab Pakistan mein war on terror wali cheez saari chal rahi thi.
  33. He has said he covered political activity independently on his own blogs. Usko bhi thoda bahut maine cover karna shuru kiya independently mere kuch blogs the.
  34. He has said he started following people on Twitter in 2014. Aur us waqt woh Twitter pe shuru hue aur logon ko follow karna shuru kiya. Woh phir dharna bhi unhi dinon mein aaya. [Muzamil] Right. Yeh kaun sa saal hai yeh? [Jihad] Yeh hai 2014.
  35. He has said he had no interest in an academic teaching career. Toh woh meri mujhe woh shauq hi nahi tha padhane ka. Zyada tar woh teaching waghera ka jo scene tha.
  36. He worked as a technology writer at a magazine in Lahore. Meri thi ek ek magazine tha Lahore mein More Magazine. Wahan pe as a technology writer.
  37. At the magazine he wrote tech reviews of mobile phones. Wahan pe main tech reviews karta tha mobile phones ke.
  38. He has said the magazine work gave him training in how to write about any subject. Toh wahan se kaafi thodi bahut training hui thi ke kis tarah likha jata hai kisi bhi subject pe.
  39. He worked at the magazine for one year. magazine mein I think aapne ek saal kaam kiya mera khayal hai. [Jihad] Haan bilkul ek saal.
  40. He later worked at a digital agency on projects for brands. Uske baad thi Walnut Media thi ek digital agency thi. Toh wahan pe kuch brands the unke saath kaam kiya.
  41. He has said his team was building channels for Express, Geo and Duniya. Aur hum log us waqt yeh Express, Geo, Duniya waghera inke channels hum bana rahe the.
  42. He has said his team trained the teams that ran those channels and took YouTube certifications. Unki jo teams aati thi woh hum unko train karte the. YouTube ki certifications li.
  43. He has said the channels his team ran earned substantial revenue from overseas viewers. Hum VPN karke haan international audience aur inko bahar se bade viewership aati thi aur us time achcha khaasa yeh generate kar rahe the revenue.
  44. He has said his team began a style of thumbnail design in 2015. Yeh jo Haqeeqat TV ke thumbnails the is tarah ki harkatein humne hi shuru ki thi yeh 2015 mein.
  45. He has said his team made a major push on thumbnails in Pakistan. Toh humne us time badi game up ki thi Pakistan mein thumbnails ki.
  46. He has said his team of about 20 people worked in two shifts for around 15 to 20 network channels and 50 to 60 independent channels. Us time hamare paas the koi 15-20 networks ke channel plus jo independent creators the toh woh kaafi 50-60 the channels. Uske saath humne koi 20 logon ki team thi jo do shifton mein aati thi.
  47. He has said members of that team now offer their services in Lahore. Woh woh jo team us waqt bani thi woh aaj kal Lahore mein apni services de rahi hai different jagahon par.
  48. He has said only a few people from that team became creators, namely himself and his partner. Aur un mein se bahut kam the jo creator bane the. Woh ek do hi the main hoon aur jo dusra banda keh sakte hain woh bhi mera partner hi hai.
  49. He has said his team spent about one and a half to two years working on YouTube at a media company. Dot Dot Republic Media hai. Toh yeh jab woh shift hui thi Walnut Dot Republic Media mein toh wahan pe humne koi dedh saal do saal lagaye the woh jab full game uthai thi humne YouTube ki.
  50. He has said his team designed thumbnails and related visuals for YouTube channels. Woh thumbnails waghera aur yeh woh sabko humne design karke diye the
  51. He has said the thumbnail patterns his team set years ago are still in use. Aur us waqt jo humne kuch pattern set kiye the woh aaj tak woh wohi chal rahe hain kaafi had tak.
  52. He has said his expertise was mainly in news. Meri zyada expertise thi news mein.
  53. He has said that after handing some work to others, he began to focus fully on news. Woh humne unko de diye. Toh main totally focus karna shuru ho gaya news pe.
  54. He has said people asked him why he did not make his own content, which led him to start one. phir mujhe mujhe bhi logon ne kehna shuru kar diya ke yaar tum apna kyun nahi content banate.
  55. He has said he started making videos while still employed, and this was part of why he left the job. Shuru kar diya tha aur yehi wajah bani thi job chhodne ki bhi.
  56. He left his job in 2017. Aur kitne kis saal mein aapne chhodhi job? [Jihad] 2017.
  57. A video of his went viral about a week after he left the job. jaise hi job chhodhi uske ek hafte baad ek viral hui meri video ek hafte baad.
  58. He has said he no longer makes political remarks and now stays on current affairs. jo siyasi baatein main us waqt thoda sa political baatein bhi karta tha. Ab nahi main karta. Ab toh main pure woh topic pe rehta hoon.
  59. He has said that a couple of news channels and some independent creators are also being managed. Ek do news channels aur kuch independent creators hain unko bhi manage kar rahe hain.
  60. He has said he wants to expand into other categories, such as tech. yehi soch hai ke different categories hain jaise tech ki category hai us mein bahut kuch ho sakta hai achcha content banaya.
  61. He has said the events in Afghanistan are a once-in-a-lifetime moment. Kafi bada once in a lifetime moment hai yeh Afghanistan mein jo kuch hua hai.
  62. He said in an earlier video that the Afghanistan event is on the scale of the Partition-era realignments. Matlab main kal hi ek video mein keh raha tha ke yeh is level ka event hai jis tarah partition jo hui thi na tab jo alignments bani thi.
  63. He has said Pakistan has no reason to celebrate the Taliban. Taliban hamare koi phuppi ke bete toh nahi hain jin ko hum celebrate karenge.
  64. He has said experts regard the 1996 to 2001 period of Taliban rule as the most peaceful. experts yehi kehte hain ke 96 se 2001 wala jo time tha woh sabse peaceful tha jab Taliban ki hukumat thi.
  65. He has said earlier Afghan governments were largely Soviet-backed and that the Soviet Union was friendly with India. Kyunki wajah yeh thi ke woh Soviet backed governments thi zyada aur Soviet Union ki dosti thi India se.
  66. He has said earlier governments in Afghanistan were anti-Pakistan. Jitne pichle aap eras nikal ke dekh lein jitni bhi governments woh anti-Pakistan rahi hain.
  67. He has said Iran clashed with the Taliban in 1996 but has tried to widen engagement with them in recent years. Iran ka pehle toh historically baat karein toh unka toh tussle thi ek Taliban se 96 mein toh. Lekin abhi pichle paanch che saalon mein kya hua hai ke Iran ne yeh koshish ki hai ke Taliban se thodi si baat engagement badhe.
  68. He has said Afghanistan lies at an important point in China's BRI project. China ka jo BRI ka project hai us mein Afghanistan bada badi important jagah par lay karta hai.
  69. He has said China is working through investment rather than a military presence in Afghanistan. China yeh role nahi dekhta ke hum koi militarily wahan par aayenge. China is waqt yehi soch raha hai ke main investments ke through aaun.
  70. He has said China has made clear it will not join a great game. China ne yeh toh ek cheez clear kar di hai ke hum kisi great game ka hissa nahi banenge.
  71. He has said a stable Afghanistan would give security to the whole region. Sabse badi cheez toh yeh hai ke stable Afghanistan is poore region ko security deta hai.
  72. He has said Pakistan's prime minister started the Trans-Afghan Railway project during a visit to Uzbekistan. Abhi Pakistan yeh jab Uzbekistan gaye the Prime Minister toh inhone ek ek Trans Afghan Railway project hai usko inhone shuru kiya hai
  73. He has said the railway would give Central Asian states access to deep water for their trade. Aur woh essentially yeh hoga ke ji aapko jo Central Asian states hain unko deep water ka access mil jayega woh sari trade to and from.
  74. He has said the US is not affected by whether terrorism occurs in the region. Toh America ko koi farq nahi padta yahan pe terrorism ho ya na ho.
  75. He has said a regional bloc is forming in which regional players will be concerned with security. Yeh bilkul ek regional block ban raha hai aur is mein region regional players ko hi fikr hogi
  76. He has said Western countries have halted aid since the Taliban takeover. Ab toh woh Western jo mumalik hain woh toh unki aid aur woh woh band kar rahe hain woh ke ji Taliban aa gaye hain.
  77. He has said major terror groups emerged in Afghanistan because of the US misadventure over the past 20 years. Afghanistan mein jo hua hai pichle 20 saalon mein jo America ka jo misadventure tha uski wajah se kya hua hai? Ke bade bade terror groups ne yahan pe woh janam liya hai.
  78. He has said the US has a history of leaving a mess wherever it goes. US ki history hai ke woh jahan bhi jata hai woh sara mess create karke us tarah haath jhaadta hai aur woh phir kehta hai main ja raha hoon.