No more wire copy: Bangladeshi journalist heads to Oscars

For decades, the Academy Awards have arrived in Bangladesh through wire copies, delayed clips and secondhand accounts.

From Dhaka newsrooms, the world’s most glamorous night in cinema has usually been covered from afar, filtered through international agencies and foreign media. That pattern is about to change.

When the 98th Academy Awards take place on March 16 at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, Bangladesh will have its own journalist on the ground. Al Kachir, a journalist with private television channel Star News, has received official accreditation from the Academy to directly cover the Oscars.

In an email confirmation, the Academy’s accreditation department said his application had been approved, granting him access to the Oscars interview room. The credential allows him to work from the press room level at the Loews Hollywood Hotel and participate in post-award Q&A sessions with Oscar winners, access typically reserved for a select group of international journalists.

“Usually, we report on the Oscars depending on wire services,” Al Kachir said. “Being there in person feels unreal. Knowing that no Bangladeshi journalist has directly covered the Oscars before makes it even more meaningful.”

He believes the moment marks a quiet but important shift for Bangladeshi entertainment journalism. “This is not just about me. It’s about telling global cinema stories from our own perspective,” he said, calling the opportunity a matter of pride.

Al Kachir brings experience from several major international festivals, including the 75th Cannes Film Festival in 2022, the Tokyo International Film Festival, and events in Shanghai, Saudi Arabia and Nepal. A member of the Dhaka Journalists Union and organising secretary of the Television Entertainment Journalists Association of Bangladesh, he now steps onto cinema’s biggest stage.