Editor’s Note: To mark the 15th anniversary of The Astana Times, we are launching a special series of columns written by our newsroom. Over the next days, members of our team will reflect on their journeys, the stories that shaped them, and the evolution of The Astana Times. We begin with a column by our Editor-in-Chief Zhanna Shayakhmetova, followed by contributions from colleagues in the order of their years at The Astana Times.
When my piece on the art of illustration first appeared on the front page of The Astana Times, I never imagined I would still be here a decade later. Nor did I anticipate our transformation from a color-print newspaper into a fully digital media platform in 2020. Yet here we are.
Zhanna Shayakhmetova.
This Sunday, The Astana Times marks its 15th anniversary. It is a reminder of how young our media organization is and how much we have already achieved as we look ahead.
We remain committed to fact-based journalism and to chronicling the developments that shape our country and region. At the same time, we provide a platform for voices that analyze events, explain complex issues, and raise concerns about matters of genuine public importance. More than that, we have become a training ground for a generation of journalists who began with basic news reporting and now craft opinion columns, host podcasts, and create compelling video stories.
All of this rests on our main principles. We repeat a simple mantra to every reporter and intern: truth and accuracy lie at the heart of journalism. For non-native news writers, the challenge is even greater: they must make local topics accessible and meaningful to a global audience.
A balanced story with a context is crucial for our newsroom. Complete objectivity may not always be possible, but our reporting must be as impartial as possible to build trust. Trust is the value we protect most fiercely.
We publish more than 2,000 news stories each year, including exclusive interviews, analytical articles, explainers, as well as travel and entertainment guides. Alongside visual storytelling, our explainers and YouTube videos form a key part of our strategy to bring subjects like regional geopolitics, energy transitions, and cultural heritage to wider audiences.
Our YouTube platform offers clear explainers and cinematic coverage from international events, including the Astana International Forum, Digital Bridge, the Congress of World and Traditional Religions, the World Nomad Games and many others.
In the past five years, our reporters have worked on the ground at the United Nations nuclear disarmament conference in New York, the International Monetary Fund meeting in Marrakech, media forums in Delhi and Bonn, as well as the UN climate conferences in Glasgow and Baku. Through these field reports, we deliver first-hand insights into critical issues shaping the world and their broader impact on Kazakhstan and Central Asia.
We started this journey with a mission: to bring Kazakhstan to the world. Today, after 15 years, that mission has deepened into a powerful commitment to tell stories that inform, inspire, and resonate. Every article, every interview, every video is a small but meaningful part of the country’s narrative as it is shared with readers across the globe. As we embrace the future of digital journalism, we are thrilled by the success of our team and the support and loyalty of our audience. We look forward to strengthening that connection, expanding our coverage and continuing to tell the stories that matter.
The author is editor-in-chief of The Astana Times Zhanna Shayakhmetova.
