ProPublica announced this week that Cengiz Yar will join its staff as a visuals editor.

Yar joins ProPublica from Rest of World, where he served as deputy editor, overseeing site production and managing a team of editors responsible for visuals, copy editing and fact-checking. He joined the publication at its launch in early 2020, building its visual program for photography and illustration and more recently spearheading its video efforts. Yar art directed large-scale editorial projects, including a visual explainer of Mukesh Ambani’s empire, a visual analysis of generative AI’s biases, and photography features examining the world’s last internet cafés and tech markets. In his expansive role, he also managed data visualizations, freelancer risk and safety, and publishing workflows.

Yar previously served as managing editor at Explore Parts Unknown and Roads & Kingdoms, where he oversaw visuals and won a National Magazine Award. As a photojournalist, he has covered a range of issues both in the U.S. and internationally, with years of focus on displacement and conflict in Iraq and Syria. He was the inaugural recipient of the James Foley Award for Conflict Reporting, a Pulitzer Prize finalist for his coverage of the battle for Mosul, Iraq, and a Dart Center Ochberg Fellow in Journalism and Trauma.

As an advocate for freelance journalists, Yar served as a board member of the Frontline Freelance Register for three years. He remains active in the photo community, participating in portfolio reviews, speaking at workshops and mentoring early-career photographers.

“We are grateful and thrilled to have Cengiz joining the visuals team,” said Lisa Larson-Walker, art director at ProPublica. “His wealth of experience both in the newsroom and in the field, as well as his dedication to the community and craft of photojournalism, will be an invaluable contribution to the investigative work here.”

“I’m honored and excited to join ProPublica and their outstanding visuals team,” Yar said.