Amy Fallon
Journalist and Media Consultant
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Hi, I'm Amy Fallon. Fallon, as in the same surname as Jimmy, that great comedian who is no relation, but this is topical considering I've recently started stand up comedy. (See here).
I've been EVERYWHERE. I've lived on and reported from five continents (Australia, UK, Africa, Asia and North America) on underreported issues but also my byline has appeared everywhere. I've worked for the Australian national newswire agency and also from the fast-paced newsrooms of most of the UK national papers including The Guardian, Sunday Times and Independent, among a plethora of publications. (Fun fact: I once spoke to Murdoch on the phone!) I've also been a foreign correspondent in Uganda, South Africa, Cambodia, and Bangladesh. I've also worked for Devex, AFP, Index, NPR, Telegraph, the i Paper, Sydney Morning Herald and Age, Daily and Sunday Telegraph Sydney, Fodor's, Adventure.com, Mail & Guardian South Africa, The Continent Africa, Crikey Australia, The Saturday Paper, Al Jazeera, Thomson Reuters Foundation and many more.
Now, I'm also approached to help organisations and people achieve more visibility as a PR and comms consultant - and you should definitely also hire me!
As a consultant, I landed a TV interview for a small charity with France 24 - and more for others. You can see this work here. I've also placed coverage for organisations with the Guardian US, CBC, AAP, Telegraph UK, NPR, AFP, AP, SBS Australia, Radio France Internationale, Globe and Mail, Mongabay, EURACTIV, Al Jazeera, and many more.
My work has led to groups receiving awards, funding and other opportunities.
Recent highlights as a journalist include being asked to speak on the BBC about a story that I wrote for development site Devex. Another with the Index magazine was republished with The Bookseller. Many other stories have gone viral on X. You can see some more reporting highlights here.
Many of the stories that I've written and my other social content has gone viral. My expertise in building social networks means that I've accumulated over 12k followers on X.
I became passionate about human rights, in Uganda - so devoted five years to obtaining a master's degree in this. Remotely. I did my dissertation during lockdown. It was a huge commitment, but it was important for me to understand some things more.
I write about travel, culture and lifestyle, too. (I took up running again in Uganda and I then did the Toronto Marathon and a half-marathon in Johannesburg).
I am invested in every person I work with. I build rapport with people easily. Some of my favorite client reviews proclaim that I was the rare journalist to understand their work, to get the key quotes and to dig deeper to see the story in print. That I’m funny – in a good way.
I started offering how to land media coverage workshops and webinars on how to write op-eds over two years ago, which have been a great success. I realised that I could help people by arming them with the skills and knowledge that I have accumulated over the past two decades.
I rate kindness and empathy. I volunteer regularly. One of my best experiences has been helping rough sleepers in London's Docklands during Crisis Christmas four times. But I've also been to Birmingham to support the bin strikers (!), and volunteered during the Australian 2025 election and 2024 UK one. I've supported Stand Up to Racism countless number of times, too.
Oh and another fun fact: I once also acted as an extra in a Bollywood movie with Kylie. Minogue not Kardashian because that's how experienced I am. But I was paid for this. You should hire me.
Please get in touch on amy@amyfallon.com
Published work
Australia cracks down on protest - Index on Censorship
Australia has been described as having some of the “democratic world’s most draconian anti-protest laws” after a state government invoked special powers ahead of the Israeli president’s visit on Monday.
On the first day of Herzog’s visit, there have been reports of police using pepper spray on protesters in Sydney, as hundreds tried to march despite protest restrictions, as well as in Victoria, where demonstrations were also held.
Nationwide demonstrations were set to take place against the five...
On the first day of Herzog’s visit, there have been reports of police using pepper spray on protesters in Sydney, as hundreds tried to march despite protest restrictions, as well as in Victoria, where demonstrations were also held.
Nationwide demonstrations were set to take place against the five...
Assange accuses Nobel Foundation of encouraging US actions in Venezuela via Machado’s Peace Prize
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has accused the Nobel Foundation of helping encourage the Trump administration to interfere in Venezuela, via its decision to award the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize to Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado. This follows a legal complaint he filed in December against the foundation.
“The number of victims whose deaths have been abetted by the misappropriation [of the Nobel Prize Committee’s funds and resources] has increased by more than a hundred,” Assa...
“The number of victims whose deaths have been abetted by the misappropriation [of the Nobel Prize Committee’s funds and resources] has increased by more than a hundred,” Assa...
Are abortion rights at risk as African governments negotiate with US?
A new regional study shows that abortion rights in West and Central Africa often exist in law but not in reality — a disconnect researchers fear could deepen as African governments negotiate new, bilateral health agreements with the United States.Research, conducted by Rutgers and the Centre de Recherche en Reproduction Humaine et en Démographie, or CERRHUD, found that women and girls in Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Togo, and Cameroon faced barriers in accessing safe abortions, including...
How Australia's social media ban threatens free expression - Index on Censorship
The Sydney Harbour Bridge was lit up in celebration of Australia's social media ban. Credit: Australian Associated Press/Alamy Live NewsRead Index’s statement on why Australia’s ban on social media for under 16s is disproportionate
When Australia passed a world-first social media ban for teens, there was a display of national pride from the prime minister, and even the Sydney Harbour Bridge was lit up in the country’s national colours, green and gold, to celebrate the historic achievement.
The l...
When Australia passed a world-first social media ban for teens, there was a display of national pride from the prime minister, and even the Sydney Harbour Bridge was lit up in the country’s national colours, green and gold, to celebrate the historic achievement.
The l...
'I'm a TERF': Inside the UK's version of Sky News — and Trump's new media partner
“I hope you like TERFS and Jews,” quips Josh Howie, host of GB News’ Free Speech Nation, a program that involves guests fielding live questions from the crowd about the news of the day.
Debuting on British free-to-air TV just over four years ago and last year beating BBC News and UK Sky News three days in a row, it’s safe to say that GB News is one of a kind. I’ve been watching it regularly now for months — partly out of fascination, partly as an exercise in remaining outside my echo chamber...
Debuting on British free-to-air TV just over four years ago and last year beating BBC News and UK Sky News three days in a row, it’s safe to say that GB News is one of a kind. I’ve been watching it regularly now for months — partly out of fascination, partly as an exercise in remaining outside my echo chamber...
Can a powdered egg a day keep malnutrition away? Uganda thinks so
When Ugandan mechanical engineer Joel Guma launched a food manufacturing and packaging business nearly a decade ago, he wasn’t targeting malnourished children or refugees. His first customers were bakeries, restaurants, hotels, and confectioners in Uganda and the neighboring Democratic Republic of Congo. They wanted Pristine Foods Limited’s products — high-quality pasteurized, homogenized, and filtered liquid eggs, which were first developed in 2020 — mainly because eggs in parts of East Africa...
Are donors accidentally funding groups not aligned with their values?
A group campaigning against abortion rights in Sierra Leone received funding from one of the world’s most prominent human rights donors — raising alarm among activists about how so-called progressive aid may be inadvertently funneled to anti-rights groups.Christian Aid received a $66,000 grant from the Open Society Foundations to implement a women’s economic inclusion project. It partnered with the Inter-Religious Council of Sierra Leone, or IRCSL — a conservative group opposing abortion rights...
Rotarian brings home mental health support
By Amy Fallon
When Ugandan village elders meet with Stuart Raymond Kasule about supporting people with mental health struggles, they volunteer ideas to show more empathy.
They want to know, for example, how to open a conversation with a person who is suffering. “That shows you that the people are crying out to say, we need help, we need support,” Kasule says. He travels from his adopted home of Australia to his Ugandan homeland about twice a year to share his training on mental well-bei...
When Ugandan village elders meet with Stuart Raymond Kasule about supporting people with mental health struggles, they volunteer ideas to show more empathy.
They want to know, for example, how to open a conversation with a person who is suffering. “That shows you that the people are crying out to say, we need help, we need support,” Kasule says. He travels from his adopted home of Australia to his Ugandan homeland about twice a year to share his training on mental well-bei...
'First responder' charities call for investigation into devastating foreign aid cuts
Thousands of small charities have implored the government to urgently investigate improvements to support and funding, as some vital organisations are now facing closure following the decision to cut foreign aid. As Britain is warned it will miss the Sustainable Development Goals [SDGs] deadline – of 2030 – campaigners fear millions around the world will be left lacking education, proper healthcare, food, and routes out of poverty.The Small International Development Charities Network [SIDCN], co...
Is Substack's ascent in Australia a tipping point for traditional media?
Substack, the widely used publishing and social media platform, recently surpassed 5 million paid subscriptions globally, with tens of millions of total active subscribers.
You might recognise some writers and journalists on it, such as Rick Morton, John Birmingham, Bec Shaw, Tim Burrowes, Dan Barrett, Jonathan Green, Joel Jenkins, Mia Freedman, Clare Stephens, Jess Hill, Bri Lee, Cameron Wilson, Gideon Haigh, Peter Lalor, Sam Perry, Nick Feik and Malcolm Turnbull. Some are Crikey contributor...
You might recognise some writers and journalists on it, such as Rick Morton, John Birmingham, Bec Shaw, Tim Burrowes, Dan Barrett, Jonathan Green, Joel Jenkins, Mia Freedman, Clare Stephens, Jess Hill, Bri Lee, Cameron Wilson, Gideon Haigh, Peter Lalor, Sam Perry, Nick Feik and Malcolm Turnbull. Some are Crikey contributor...
UK small charities brace for crisis amid aid rollback
The last thing that Olivia Barker White wanted to do was to start a charity. She was aware of the “white savior” trope, she said. But feeling that there were not many organizations helping to properly care for slum children in Uganda and reunite them with local families, she felt compelled to. Since 2009, Kids Club Kampala, or KCK, which Barker White co-founded and now runs, has helped over 1.5 million people across multiple slum communities in Uganda. Now, though, they’re bracing for a massive...
Young Rotaract leader driving change in the Pacific
President of the Kiribati Rotaract Youth Club, Miriam Moriati, is advocating for gender parity and climate stability in the Pacific.
Australia is turning up the heat on environmental activists - Index on Censorship
Extinction Rebellion protesters lock themselves to barricades in Melbourne, Australia in 2021 to raise public awareness on the issue of climate change inaction. Photo by Jay Kogler / Alamy Live NewsPetrina Harley likens direct action to giving birth.
“My body knew it had a job to do, so I got on and focused on my inner strength,” the 53-year-old mother of two told Index via phone from Perth. “I find it really empowering.”
Harley is a climate activist of eight years facing trial in June for repea...
“My body knew it had a job to do, so I got on and focused on my inner strength,” the 53-year-old mother of two told Index via phone from Perth. “I find it really empowering.”
Harley is a climate activist of eight years facing trial in June for repea...
'Hymn karaoke': Veterans organisation and War Memorial told to modernise Dawn Services or face 'irrelevance'
The RSL and the Australian War Memorial (AWM) have been warned they’re out of step on the Canberra Anzac Day Dawn Service that has been likened to church, after a complaint that the service amounted to discrimination against the growing number of irreligious people in Australia.
Si Gladman, executive director of freethought organisation Rationalist Society of Australia wrote to the ACT Human Rights Commission (HRC) last year, asserting that the Christian-dominated ceremony “risks alienating...
Si Gladman, executive director of freethought organisation Rationalist Society of Australia wrote to the ACT Human Rights Commission (HRC) last year, asserting that the Christian-dominated ceremony “risks alienating...
Does the consultancy model need an overhaul? These agencies think so
Does the consultancy model need an
overhaul? These agencies think so
Several women-led organizations are trying to reshape the development consultancy world to address issues such as unpaid assignments, inequitable payment, and consultant burnout.
As a consultant with an extensive period of work spanning 25 years in the development space, communications specialist Deborah Walter is used to looking for the next contract while working on the current one. But in the past few years, she has noticed one big trend related to the job search.
“There seems to be a lack of understanding and under-valuing of consultants’
time, energy, and creative intellectual property,” South Africa-based Walter,
who co-runs social change agency Community Media for Development
Productions on the side, told Devex.
In the past, she’s been asked to develop a hypothetical communications strategy
framework along with press releases, social media posts, and talking points for
interviews plus proposed campaign brand ideas and initial mock-ups and videos
for potential work with several organizations, which, as a busy wife and mother,
Walter brands “unreasonable.”
As the founder and managing director of recently rebranded social change agency Comotion, one of several women-led organizations now trying to reshape the development consultancy world so that others aren’t just talking the talk but are also walking it, Rachel Firth agrees.
“I think we've all likely had experiences of going for job interviews, having to
basically write strategies as part of the interview process, then not getting the
job, and you're wondering ‘Well how many of those ideas are they going to take
from that and now use?’” she told Devex.
“That's your intellectual property — and you should be paid for it.”
Comotion, a global network of activists, strategists, campaigners, and creatives
spanning all regions and fields of work, formerly known as Global Office
Consulting and WomenInDev, was set up by London-based Firth in 2015 in
response to a traditional consultancy model that she said was broken. Firth’s
previous experience includes roles with the International Confederation of
Midwives, The Wellbeing Foundation Africa, and Worldwide Helpers.
The agency — which offers a range of services from strategy development to
proposal writing to training and curricula development and has worked for the
Global Fund for Women, the Global Alliance for Green and Gender Action, and
Mama Cash among others — has committed to paying all of their
consultants for any test that they ask them to undertake for any potential work.
overhaul? These agencies think so
Several women-led organizations are trying to reshape the development consultancy world to address issues such as unpaid assignments, inequitable payment, and consultant burnout.
As a consultant with an extensive period of work spanning 25 years in the development space, communications specialist Deborah Walter is used to looking for the next contract while working on the current one. But in the past few years, she has noticed one big trend related to the job search.
“There seems to be a lack of understanding and under-valuing of consultants’
time, energy, and creative intellectual property,” South Africa-based Walter,
who co-runs social change agency Community Media for Development
Productions on the side, told Devex.
In the past, she’s been asked to develop a hypothetical communications strategy
framework along with press releases, social media posts, and talking points for
interviews plus proposed campaign brand ideas and initial mock-ups and videos
for potential work with several organizations, which, as a busy wife and mother,
Walter brands “unreasonable.”
As the founder and managing director of recently rebranded social change agency Comotion, one of several women-led organizations now trying to reshape the development consultancy world so that others aren’t just talking the talk but are also walking it, Rachel Firth agrees.
“I think we've all likely had experiences of going for job interviews, having to
basically write strategies as part of the interview process, then not getting the
job, and you're wondering ‘Well how many of those ideas are they going to take
from that and now use?’” she told Devex.
“That's your intellectual property — and you should be paid for it.”
Comotion, a global network of activists, strategists, campaigners, and creatives
spanning all regions and fields of work, formerly known as Global Office
Consulting and WomenInDev, was set up by London-based Firth in 2015 in
response to a traditional consultancy model that she said was broken. Firth’s
previous experience includes roles with the International Confederation of
Midwives, The Wellbeing Foundation Africa, and Worldwide Helpers.
The agency — which offers a range of services from strategy development to
proposal writing to training and curricula development and has worked for the
Global Fund for Women, the Global Alliance for Green and Gender Action, and
Mama Cash among others — has committed to paying all of their
consultants for any test that they ask them to undertake for any potential work.
Soccer and science: Can global health learn from FIFA's benefit sharing?
When the Paris Peace Forum nonprofit began working on pandemic preparedness to support the global health community's efforts in the COVID-19 response, they discovered a “profound and entirely understandable sense of injustice” expressed by the scientists in Botswana and South Africa who identified the omicron variant. “They had discovered and provided the world with the knowledge and data to combat these pathogens, yet they were the last to access medical products deriving from their discovery,”...
'Two is better than one': Why some NGOs are choosing co-leadership
When NGO GNP+, the Global Network of People Living with HIV, embarked on its 2021 search for not one but two bosses for what one of its co-leaders now calls an “arranged marriage,” their board chair was doubtful.
“When role-share was first suggested as an alternative model of leadership I had questions — will this be efficient, what about egos, will it cause confusion with external representation?” said Jacquelyne Alesi, the chair of the GNP+ board, on the organization’s site. “However, having looked at the idea in more detail I now see co-leadership through a new lens of mutual accountability, flexibility, and support — all central to a feminist leadership model.”
“When role-share was first suggested as an alternative model of leadership I had questions — will this be efficient, what about egos, will it cause confusion with external representation?” said Jacquelyne Alesi, the chair of the GNP+ board, on the organization’s site. “However, having looked at the idea in more detail I now see co-leadership through a new lens of mutual accountability, flexibility, and support — all central to a feminist leadership model.”
Ranking destinations is ridiculous and needs to stop, stat
Having been named the ‘world’s most liveable’ city too many times to count, Vancouver already had an impressively stocked trophy cabinet when it was crowned the globe’s ‘most friendly city’ in 2019. Cut to 2022 and another poll rolls around, this time ranking Ryan Reynolds’ hometown in the worst places for expats to live. Apparently the city was now full of not-so-friendly locals.
While planning a trip to Vancouver last year, a place I’d dreamed of visiting, I pored over all these views/ranking...
While planning a trip to Vancouver last year, a place I’d dreamed of visiting, I pored over all these views/ranking...
An agency for those denied agency
In 2012 and 2013, during a massive explosion of online Sikh education, one man had a vision. The late Bhai Jagrai Singh was an Oxford graduate and former British Army officer who gave up a successful finance career to found the Sikh Press Association in London one year later. Today SikhPA provides multi-platform content including editorial copy, news, images, infographics, video content, listing information and data to journalists and newsrooms all around the world.
A news agency for a faith that isn’t bigger than one per cent of the population of any country such as the UK, Canada or Australia, where there are the largest numbers of Sikhs outside India, and run by a team of just two is a big deal. The news agency has provided
coverage of the 2020 and 2021 farmer’s protest against three laws passed by the Indian Parliament, and the assassination of Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada in October 2023.
Deepa Singh, also known as Kaldip Singh Lehal is the founder of the group Sikh Youth UK who was arrested at Gatwick airport while returning to the UK and subjected to a humiliating detainment and “interrogation…like a terrorist”, he claims, under the
government’s counterterror law in December. He’s also given Sikh PA interviews. “If it weren’t for the Sikh Press Association, a lot of Sikh voices,
especially ours wouldn't be heard,” says Deepa.
But “censorship and targeted interference remain barriers” to the agency’s work, say Everything 13 (E13), the charity that Bhai Jagrai
Singh started to launch projects like Sikh PA. Its press officers have received threatening phone calls after covering certain issues, while online death threats are a frequent occurrence says Jasveer Singh. Originally from the UK, he’s now based in British Columbia (BC), Canada, which has a large Sikh population, working for the agency from there. “There have also been character attacks which involve tarnishing the reputation of staff, legal threats and even efforts to have the association labelled an extremist organisation,” says Jasveer.
He says that while some of those behind these may be “Indian nationalist bots” and some may not be real people, “if they’re willing to threaten someone like me, then the people that are active who are bringing thousands together to be part of this movement…they want them killed”. A former staff member was also prevented from entering India because of his journalism, says Jasveer.
Because the West “became apathetic to Indian interference, overlooking it for trade deals,” borders do not keep the community safe, he explains. As support for Khalistan and criticism of India has increased and India has stepped up its efforts to silence activists, enclaves in the diaspora where violent criminal Indian nationalist gangs work have appeared, he claims.
“But Sikh faith is entwined with tales of courage and sacrifice,” says Jasveer adding that carrying out the work of Bhai Jagrai Singh, who died in 2017 age just 39, is a “task of honour”. “We are the voice for the voiceless, a megaphone for the unheard of our community,” says
Jasveer. “That must continue regardless.”
A news agency for a faith that isn’t bigger than one per cent of the population of any country such as the UK, Canada or Australia, where there are the largest numbers of Sikhs outside India, and run by a team of just two is a big deal. The news agency has provided
coverage of the 2020 and 2021 farmer’s protest against three laws passed by the Indian Parliament, and the assassination of Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada in October 2023.
Deepa Singh, also known as Kaldip Singh Lehal is the founder of the group Sikh Youth UK who was arrested at Gatwick airport while returning to the UK and subjected to a humiliating detainment and “interrogation…like a terrorist”, he claims, under the
government’s counterterror law in December. He’s also given Sikh PA interviews. “If it weren’t for the Sikh Press Association, a lot of Sikh voices,
especially ours wouldn't be heard,” says Deepa.
But “censorship and targeted interference remain barriers” to the agency’s work, say Everything 13 (E13), the charity that Bhai Jagrai
Singh started to launch projects like Sikh PA. Its press officers have received threatening phone calls after covering certain issues, while online death threats are a frequent occurrence says Jasveer Singh. Originally from the UK, he’s now based in British Columbia (BC), Canada, which has a large Sikh population, working for the agency from there. “There have also been character attacks which involve tarnishing the reputation of staff, legal threats and even efforts to have the association labelled an extremist organisation,” says Jasveer.
He says that while some of those behind these may be “Indian nationalist bots” and some may not be real people, “if they’re willing to threaten someone like me, then the people that are active who are bringing thousands together to be part of this movement…they want them killed”. A former staff member was also prevented from entering India because of his journalism, says Jasveer.
Because the West “became apathetic to Indian interference, overlooking it for trade deals,” borders do not keep the community safe, he explains. As support for Khalistan and criticism of India has increased and India has stepped up its efforts to silence activists, enclaves in the diaspora where violent criminal Indian nationalist gangs work have appeared, he claims.
“But Sikh faith is entwined with tales of courage and sacrifice,” says Jasveer adding that carrying out the work of Bhai Jagrai Singh, who died in 2017 age just 39, is a “task of honour”. “We are the voice for the voiceless, a megaphone for the unheard of our community,” says
Jasveer. “That must continue regardless.”
Censorship focus: Canada (also published in the Index on Censorship magazine)
When Canadian non-binary and queer author Ronnie Riley discovered they’d been “shadow banned” last November they were horrified. But it was a matter of sooner rather than later.
“I felt absolutely horrible, but I knew it was a possibility,” said the Toronto-based writer, who spent several years trying to get their debut novel aimed at middle graders, Jude Saves the World, published. In the book, 12-year-old protagonist Jude Winters is non-binary and has ADHD. “I’ve experienced my share of trans
“I felt absolutely horrible, but I knew it was a possibility,” said the Toronto-based writer, who spent several years trying to get their debut novel aimed at middle graders, Jude Saves the World, published. In the book, 12-year-old protagonist Jude Winters is non-binary and has ADHD. “I’ve experienced my share of trans
Uganda tweaked its anti-gay law just to get donor cash, activists say
As a court in Uganda refused to strike down one of the world’s harshest anti-gay laws enacted nearly a year ago, activists fear the law there and the “lackluster” response to it from donors will spur on other countries considering similar harsh legislation.
The Constitutional Court of Uganda on Wednesday rejected the nullification of The Anti-Homosexuality Act in its entirety, scrapping just two sections and two subsections and declaring the rest of the law constitutional. The ruling, which had
The Constitutional Court of Uganda on Wednesday rejected the nullification of The Anti-Homosexuality Act in its entirety, scrapping just two sections and two subsections and declaring the rest of the law constitutional. The ruling, which had
Rotary Down Under April 2024 preview
Story Excerpts from April issue
‘Humour is powerful’: Cartoons take on Uganda’s repressive government
Huge potholes and rundown hospitals are actually getting fixed, thanks to a cartoonist’s online satire aimed at the government.
Ugandan cartoonist Jim Spire Ssentongo didn’t know what he was starting last April when he sent out a tweet encouraging people to post photos of the ubiquitous potholes across the country’s capital.
“A friend of mine is organising a mega KAMPALA POTHOLE PHOTO EXHIBITION” he wrote on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, on April 15 last year. “Share here photos o
Ugandan cartoonist Jim Spire Ssentongo didn’t know what he was starting last April when he sent out a tweet encouraging people to post photos of the ubiquitous potholes across the country’s capital.
“A friend of mine is organising a mega KAMPALA POTHOLE PHOTO EXHIBITION” he wrote on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, on April 15 last year. “Share here photos o
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