1 Billion Followers Summit: UAE creators urged to promote national values online

Dubai: Sheikh Abdulla bin Mohammed bin Butti Al Hamed, Chairman of the National Media Authority, emphasised the role of Emiratis as digital ambassadors, calling on content creators to promote the UAE’s values and achievements. His remarks came during the second day of the 1 Billion Followers Summit 2026 in Dubai. 

Abdullah Al Hamed highlighted that the vision of UAE President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan provides a guiding framework for citizens in the digital space. “Every Emirati acts as an extraordinary ambassador for the country’s values and principles,” he said, stressing that safeguarding the UAE’s reputation is a shared responsibility.

Abdullah Al Hamed emphasised that promoting the UAE as a land of peace, innovation, and nation-building is a shared responsibility. He said the moral compass of Emiratis draws from His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister, and Ruler of Dubai and the legacy of the late UAE founder Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, marked by humility and generosity.

The NMA chairman said the UAE’s media narrative is inspired by the nation’s leadership philosophy, rooted in pride, achievement, and a balanced view. “Our approach prioritises reason and action over emotional reactions,” he said.

He noted that UAE media does not chase political trends, instead adopting “strategic silence”—a deliberate presence that chooses the when and why carefully, reflecting the principle that loud noise fades quickly, but action is immortalised in history.

Abdullah Al Hamed said social media should be seen as arenas for civilised, constructive dialogue, offering the world a window into the UAE’s authentic values and traditions.

“Every word published by Emirati content creators carries the pulse of national values and reflects the dignity and maturity of society,” he said. “Fruitless disputes do not align with Emirati culture.”

He added that the UAE’s strongest response to challenges comes from tangible achievements. “While others choose rhetoric, the UAE chooses impact,” he said, highlighting the country’s infrastructure, space missions, and robust development as messages the world understands.

Abdullah Al Hamed described media as the first line of defence for national values, public awareness, and the country’s image. “Our national narrative documents real achievements, protecting a reality some seek to distort because of its depth of success,” he said.

He added that confronting organised campaigns does not require mirroring them but presenting a truthful alternative. “Our story is real; its protagonists are our people, and its achievements are visible to visitors before citizens,” he said.

Credibility, he said, is the UAE’s primary weapon against misinformation, with reality on the ground serving as the strongest media response. “A solid, aware community transforms threats into opportunities for greater cohesion.”

“Content creators today are the UAE’s guardians of its image,” Al Hamed said. “The key question is not who tells the UAE’s story, but with what spirit it is told. The country wants its story narrated in the language of hope, achievements, and tolerance.”

He outlined pillars of the UAE’s vision: unity, stability, people at the heart of development, sustainable growth, and peace and coexistence. “Our vision is supported by a balanced foreign policy and an open national identity rooted in firm principles,” he said.

Abdullah Al Hamed concluded that the UAE’s national narrative centres on people, quality of life, and future leadership, reflecting global openness, peace, and harmony.

The summit, held from January 9–11 across Emirates Towers, DIFC, and the Museum of the Future in Dubai, is the world’s largest event for content creators.

Organised by the UAE Government Media Office under the theme “Content for Good,” it aims to connect influencers worldwide and explore how media can drive positive societal and economic change.