Mehdi Hasan

Mehdi Hasan (, 27 June 1937 – 23 February 2022), SI was a Pakistani left-wing journalist, media historian, and academic. He was one of Pakistan's most prominent communication experts, with a specialization in political analysis. Hasan did Master in Journalism and PhD in mass communication from the University of the Punjab on Role of Press in Formation of Public Opinion 1857–1947. He won a Fulbright Scholar at the University of Colorado Boulder, where he conducted research on "Coverage of Third World Countries in the American Mass Media".

Career Hasan joined the faculty of mass communication at the University of the Punjab in 1967.

Hasan was a frequent commentator and panellist on television and radio stations, where he brought his academic research into social context. He wrote extensively on the subject of Pakistan's history, journalism, mass communication and political parties, but his book The Political history of Pakistan is a widely used reference by journalists. Hasan wrote many papers, and participated in multiple seminars. In 2015, addressing a public event at University of Gujrat, Pakistan, Hasan emphasized the urgent need to promote honest and impartial reporting and said that bad journalism is distorting the history of Pakistan. He said all citizens of Pakistan have equal rights under the law regardless of their religions. His passion for photography took him to the frontline of the Lahore war zone in 1965, although he was not a professional photographer. He was survived by his wife, Rukhsana Hasan, and two sons.

Awards and recognition In 2012, he received the Sitara-i-Imtiaz Award from the President of Pakistan for his services in the field of literature and journalism.