Mellissa Fung: Survival, Storytelling, and the Courage to Shine Light Where the World Looks Away

In this powerful episode of A Lighthouse in the Dark, Michael Fishman sits down with journalist, author, and filmmaker Mellissa Fung for a deeply human conversation about courage, survival, storytelling, women in peril, and the responsibility of shining light where the world too often looks away. Mellissa shares her journey as a journalist and war correspondent. What it means to find the story, earn trust, enter dangerous places, and carry the weight of telling the truth. She opens up about her own personal story of survival, the experience that shaped Under an Afghan Sky, and how living through captivity changed not only her life, but her understanding of trauma, voice, dignity, and purpose. Together, Michael and Mellissa explore the calling behind her work: using journalism not just to report events, but to protect humanity, amplify women’s voices, and bear witness to people whose stories might otherwise be forgotten. They discuss Between Good and Evil: The Stolen Girls of Boko Haram, her documentary Captive, the Cornell case, protecting women, finding community, and the courage it takes to keep looking for light after walking through darkness. Mellissa also shares how her storytelling has expanded into fiction with The Last Mandarin, co-written with Louise Penny, a thriller about family, power, politics, and personal conviction. Throughout all her work, Mellissa carries the same moral heartbeat that runs through her journalism: power matters, truth matters, women’s lives matter, and silence can never be the answer. Raw, brave, thoughtful, and deeply inspiring, this episode is for anyone who believes stories can save lives, survival can become service, and one voice used with purpose can help illuminate the world. Because sometimes the most powerful act of healing is not only surviving the dark, but returning with a light bright enough to help others find their way out. Mellissa Fung Links: Socials — @MellissaF Pulitzer — https://pulitzercenter.org/people/mellissa-fung Captive — https://www.filmoptioninternational.com/captive Full episodes can be watched as well on YouTube @alighthouseinthedark channel. For more connection and exclusive content please subscribe to the official @alighgthouseinthedark Substack. Additional content is available across social media @alighthouseinthedark