Two Minnesota journalists have launched a new media outlet focused on Somali American stories, aiming to combat misinformation and fill coverage gaps in the state.
The Somali Brief, which launched this week, is an independent media platform producing original reporting distributed on social platforms, through an email newsletter, and in live community conversations, according to its founders.
The outlet is founded by Mukhtar Ibrahim, who founded Sahan Journal in 2019 and built it into a nationally recognized nonprofit newsroom covering Minnesota's immigrant communities. Ibrahim, an award-winning journalist who previously reported for the Minnesota Star Tribune and Minnesota Public Radio News, stepped down from Sahan Journal two years ago.
Joining as lead reporter is Ubah Ali, who announced her departure from WCCO-TV last week after three years as a reporter at the CBS-owned Twin Cities station. Ali was the first Somali-American to become an on-air reporter in the Minneapolis television market when she joined WCCO in 2023. She previously worked as a multimedia journalist in Rochester, Minnesota, and Milwaukee.
"Millions of people hear lies about Somalis every day. Too few hear the full story from us," the outlet said in its launch announcement. "We're building a media platform for Somali American stories, reported by journalists living in the community."
In a launch essay, Ibrahim wrote that watching what he described as an intense, coordinated misinformation campaign targeting Somalis over the past year made the need for a different kind of media outlet "impossible to ignore."
The launch comes amid heightened national attention on Minnesota's Somali community, which is the largest Somali population in the United States. Minnesota Public Radio News covered the launch on its Instagram account, where the announcement drew more than 1,600 likes.
The Somali Brief is publishing at thesomalibrief.com and on Instagram, TikTok, Threads, Facebook, and X.
— National Correspondent Network. Reporting based on The Somali Brief, Minnesota Public Radio News, and previously published reporting on Ubah Ali's career.
