Dubai The 11th edition of the Arab Media Forum (AMF) begins Tuesday. Held under the patronage of His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, the two-day event is expected to draw more than 2,500 media professionals, including opinion leaders and politicians from around the Arab region and the world.
It is organised by the Dubai Press Club under the umbrella theme ‘Arab Media: Exposure and Transition'. The aim of the forum is to explore solutions to challenges facing the regional media landscape. Several key issues will be addressed ranging from decline of creativity in Arab media houses to the role of religious discourses aired on Arab media channels and the increasing use of violent language on media platforms. These topics will be presented through workshops and sessions.
Several notable personalities will headline the forum including Arab professor and space scientist Dr Farouk Al Baz and mediators including Ahmad Al Zahed from Noor Dubai Radio; Sa'ad Al Ajmi, Kuwaiti former minister of information; and Ola Al Fares from MBC.
The event will release the fourth edition of the Arab Media Outlook report and conclude with the Arab Journalism Awards, the region's foremost acknowledgement of excellence in media.
The AMO investigates the significant changes taking place in the media landscape across Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Morocco, Sudan, Syria, Libya, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, the UAE, Oman, Palestine, Qatar and Yemen.
The report is a key resource of data on media trends in the Arab world for media professionals, public policy experts, governments, students and advertising companies.
Major shifts
Maryam Bin Fahd, Executive Director, Dubai Press Club, said, "The 11th AMF monitors major shifts in the structure and work culture of institutions in the Arab region and the world. The media industry in the region is influenced by all layers of the society. The forum's sessions will summarise and examine the factors driving this shift to offer substantial evidence and help decision-makers and thought leaders chart future trends for coping with the rapid changes."
Dubai Press Club has received confirmation from 350 international participants, including 70 speakers from leading editors, columnists, and reporters from newspapers, television stations, radio stations, as well as academics and researchers from agencies, educational and research institutions.
Information
What: Arab Media Forum (AMF); When: May 8-9;
Where: Grand Hyatt, Dubai
For more information, log on to www.arabmediaforum.ae
Highlights
Day one:
Speech by Dr Farouk Al Baz titled, ‘The Role of the Media in Fulfilling the Requirements of Renaissance in the Arab World'.
Workshop: Arab Youth Create Own Media Platform.
Session: Arab Media and the Shock of Change.
Day two:
Arab Journalism Award Ceremony.
Session: The YouTube Channels… Individual Platforms that Compete with the Satellite Stations.
Session: Television Production: Where is the Innovation?
