Ismaila Yinusa, Head of the Entertainment Desk at Legit.ng, has been selected for the 2026 INMA Africa Elevate Scholarship, one of the most competitive development programmes for emerging media talent on the continent. He is one of 41 media professionals chosen from a pool of 114 applicants across Africa.
Programme Details and Selection
The International News Media Association (INMA) announced the 41 recipients on 28 May 2026. The awardees represent broadcasters, publishers, digital-first media startups, audience engagement teams, newsroom innovators, and emerging media leaders. The virtual INMA programme trains a new generation of African media leaders in audience growth, digital platforms, AI, revenue models, and newsroom transformation, set against strong editorial values.
Yinusa's Rise at Legit.ng
For Yinusa, the recognition caps a fast rise at Legit.ng. A seasoned writer and editor with close to ten years in the media industry, he leads the brand's entertainment coverage, where he sets content strategy, drives editorial innovation, and mentors younger journalists across the newsroom. Since taking charge of the desk in October 2025, he has published 90 articles, among them exclusive interviews with Nollywood sound designer Tolu Obanro and film editor Temitope Folarin, alongside widely read coverage of the AMVCA 2026 awards.
Previous Recognition
His work carried recognition long before this scholarship. He received the Rapid Impact Leadership Award at Legit in 2025, and was named Editor of the Year three years running during his earlier tenure at Gistreel, where he also earned repeated awards for digital strategy and management.
Legit.ng's Growing Influence
The selection also speaks to Legit.ng's growing weight in African journalism. Named the top news website in Nigeria for 2024/25, Legit.ng sits within a pan-African media group that operates Briefly News in South Africa, TUKO in Kenya, and YEN in Ghana, reaching millions of readers each month. Briefly News secured a place on the same 2026 cohort through human interest journalist Masasi Rutendo, meaning two of the group's newsrooms feature among this year's recipients.
Scholarship Impact
The scholarship is built for the demands now facing media organisations. Recipients receive virtual training through INMA covering audience growth, digital platforms, product thinking, AI, revenue models, newsroom transformation, and editorial values. The programme is delivered through livestream learning modules, global industry insights, and peer engagement sessions coordinated by INMA, giving participants direct exposure to how leading media companies operate worldwide. INMA chief executive Earl J. Wilkinson framed the cohort as a generation thinking well beyond the traditional boundaries of the newsroom, and preparing for a very different media future. INMA launched the Elevate Africa Scholarship Programme in 2025 to strengthen emerging talent and support the long-term sustainability of the continent's news industry.
Significance for Legit.ng
Yinusa's selection lands as more than a personal milestone. It signals how far Legit.ng has grown as a newsroom that develops editorial leaders, not just publishes high volumes of content. Placing one of its desk heads inside a continental cohort of this calibre tells the wider industry that the brand's editorial strength runs deep enough to stand alongside broadcasters and publishers from every corner of Africa. The value also flows back into the newsroom itself. Over the course of the programme, Yinusa gains direct exposure to how leading media companies handle audience growth, product thinking, and the commercial pressures reshaping journalism. That knowledge does not stay with one person. As a desk head who already mentors younger journalists, he is positioned to carry those lessons into the entertainment team and, in time, into how Legit.ng approaches storytelling and audience engagement more broadly.
