'Are you being helivaced?': Crisis, calm and duty of responsible journalism

My phone was pinging with message after message. Family and friends from the UK were sending through their concerns as the international media kicked into overdrive. One message stood out: ‘Are you getting helivaced?’

 At that moment in time, I was lying next to my two sons as they fell asleep, tucked up snugly in bed beside me after a long day of uncertainty and changes following the US strikes on Iran just seven days ago. I put my phone down for the first time in hours and looked at their peaceful, little faces.

I had a moment of self-doubt. What am I doing just lying here? Should we be being helivacced? Should I be driving to the border? Am I not calculating the risks correctly? Am I doing the right thing as a parent? 

Like many of you, I didn’t sleep well those first few nights. Long hours covering the crisis and pressures of parenting had sapped my energy, but my brain was in overdrive. There was a lot to process and many questions circulating. 

A couple of my favourite phrases in life sprung to mind ‘pressure is a privilege’ and ‘resilience is a superpower’. We have all lived through tough times. I remember similar nights at the start of the Covid outbreak. Maybe this situation is particularly unique but all those lessons from prior challenges still hold true. Embrace the pressure as we feel it because we are lucky to have things that matter to us and remember that a lot of things are out of our control - they will happen no matter what we do. All we can do is control how we act and how we respond.

The reality was that staying at home, sheltering in place while things unravelled, was - and still is - the best option. Things can develop quickly and we should all be prepared at times like these, but having a safe, secure and ‘normal’ base for the family is my first priority.

 The protection provided by the UAE’s defences has made it easier. As I have written previously, I am eternally grateful to the leadership for their foresight and planning and to the skilled men and women working around the clock to keep us safe.

What it also reaffirmed is the impact that irresponsible and hyperbolic journalism has. In times of adversity, the media has a responsibility to ensure everyone is getting the right information safely and quickly. It also has a responsibility to not make situations worse.

 I worked in the UK media for 20 years and I understand how it works. What I saw since Saturday is a fight for attention in a swamped and highly competitive market; a constant battle for more and more ‘eyeballs’ on stories. Journalists’ writing stories about a place many have never been to, that they don’t understand and without any emotional connection to the people and places that make the UAE special.

We have sadly seen war being used as entertainment, with misleading, inflamed and downright dangerous headlines and images. I won’t repeat any here but I’m sure many of you will have seen the coverage from countries such as the UK and India and wondered if they were reporting on the same situation.

At Gulf News, we are focused on ensuring everything we report is factual, verified and accurate. We are human and we may sometimes get things wrong as so much information comes at us so quickly, but we will always correct and address anything that appears misleading. We are also living the same experiences as everyone else in this country. We have the same concerns, we feel the same emotions, and we have the same drive to get through this situation. We are proud of where we live and work.

I checked my phone again, the message still lingering: ‘Are you getting helivaced?’

‘No’, I typed. ‘We’re all okay and safe. Do you think Middlesbrough will win on Monday?’.

Maybe just living as normal as possible, hoping for the best while planning for the worst and not overthinking is the best thing we can do in such uncertain times.