UAE | Media
'Current issues can't be left behind'
English newspapers could be considered for journalism award in the future.
- By Abbas Al Lawati, Staff Reporter
- Published: 22:58 May 9, 2009
Dubai: Ahead of the eighth edition of the Arab Media Forum which starts tomorrow in Dubai, Gulf News spoke to Mariam Bin Fahd, executive director of the Dubai Press Club (DPC) which holds the annual event, about the theme of the forum, the credibility of the Arab Journalism Award, and the red lines.
Gulf News: What is the theme of the forum this year? The technology theme for last year's conference did not generate much enthusiasm. Do you agree?
Mariam Bin Fahd: Yes. We chose technology to start alerting people that change is coming and will affect print media. It was a bit too technical for some but at the end of the day we've done something pioneering in introducing the topic.
We've tried to introduce new ideas for the regional media. I think the topic was really good last year. This year's theme is change and crises.
Are you disappointed about the lack of enthusiasm? Is there an obsession in the Arab world for controversial topics?
There is an obsession. Last year we tried to focus on the industry instead of current issues but we realised that people want to discuss current issues, too. So you can't just leave it behind and pretend there is nothing to be discussed. So we revised [the plan] and ran a survey and built on that. This year we discuss trends, current issues and industry-based topics.
How are the themes chosen? There must be some red lines. Would you agree?
There must be. There are some issues we don't want to discuss because it is not the right platform for them. We always evaluate how it is going to be perceived and how the media would benefit from it. If we see that the x-marks are higher, we avoid discussing the subject. We have a panel of six people who discuss all the ideas then take it to the second level of senior people, and discuss it with them. A lot of the ideas we implement are taken from our road shows in the region.
How much credibility has the Arab Journalism Award gained so far? Is it seen as a serious award in the region?
The award is eight years old now. It's the only model in the region. Once there's another model in the region, it becomes difficult. You have internal awards in each country but Dubai was a pioneer in the regional aspect of the competition. As for credibility, in this region people will doubt credibility no matter what you do, despite the fact that we have 60 judges and a board of senior people in the region. The general perception is that people trust the award. This year we had the highest number of participants with three thousand applications.
Is there a cash prize?
Yes, $250,000 (Dh918,225) in total; all are $15,000 prizes and the best columnist gets $20,000. The personality of the year gets $50,000.
Could the cash prize be the incentive to participate?
Even if it is, we have judges at the end of the day. If something doesn't deserve to be awarded we'll hold back from awarding it. Last year we had to hold back the sports category. The panel didn't think any of the candidates deserved the award.
How transparent is the process? Are there certain topics that are less likely to win because of sensitivities?
There was an article that was too sensitive in 2006 and it was scored number one by the judges. When it came to the senior panel members, they had to hold it back and the award went to the second candidate. The withheld entry could have led to issues between the UAE and another country, but we've said this before. If it happens again, we won't deny it or hide it.
Where was the article published?
I think it was an Egyptian paper. It was a controversial story, but everyone on the panel agreed that [it shouldn't win], despite the fact that the editor-in-chief of the publication was on the panel. You don't want to encourage negative acts. Those things will be taken into consideration.
Are there any sensitivity guidelines for judges?
We don't give them guidelines on sensitivities. The incident [with the Egyptian article] has only happened once. Anyone can participate and any pre-screening that is done happens internally to eliminate articles that don't fit the criteria of date of publication, and number of authors among others.
Has enthusiasm for the award grown among Arab journalists?
Yes, journalists are even writing articles specifically for the award now. When I went to Egypt, a journalist confidently told me he was sure he was going to win the award [for a particular category]. Now he is the winner [laughs]. I was shocked to see him in the final results. This is good. People do trust the award.
With the growth of locally published English language newspapers in the Arab world, what place do they have in the Arab Journalism Award?
The award is so far only for print media in the Arabic language. But we have reached a phase where we have to introduce something new. We have to start considering technology elements, especially with the growing number of newspapers going online.
There were a lot of discussions about English language papers. But let's wait and see. We have never rushed into introducing new categories and have been very careful on what to add. It won't harm us to look at English language papers. If they are based in the region and serve the region we have to look at them.
Would you agree that there is a gap in the standards of journalism and the publications between the Arabic and English papers in the region?
Yes there are gaps. We can't deny the facts. But if we look at the English category, we have to look at it separately. Whatever we introduce has to be thought out carefully. This year we've introduced the health journalism award. It's a field that no one is really paying attention to but there are some who are trying. Once we introduce a category we try to encourage writing in that field.
Community Reports
-
Warming up to ‘Mobilise the Earth' theme
Dubai school dedicates a whole week to celebrating Earth Day with can-collection drives, sapling plantation and painting competition among others
-
Drivers using mobiles put others' lives at risk
Speeding is dangerous for the driver and other motorists
-
Supporting the needy with food supplies
Group of families engaged in serving isolated labour community hopes to motivate more people to help underprivileged and hungry
-
Leukaemia boy granted wish to meet footballer
Emirati meets hero Al Qahtani, Al Ain team
