Results matching “middle east two”

The drastic measures employed by the Associated Press to stanch the flow of deserters to its service, along with DPA's recent loss of a 2-million-euro subscriber, demonstrate that news agencies have some serious soul-searching to do in terms of what they offer their customers and at what cost. Writing for followthemedia.com, Philip Stone asserts that wire services need to significantly cut their content and thus their prices in order to retain clients.

Stone, a former managing director at Reuters Europe, Middle East, and Africa media division, uses DPA as an example. Each day the agency sends out 800 stories through its main service and 100 stories from each of its 12 state services, along with 700 news photos. Clearly, there is no way any one newspaper would use all or even a quarter of those articles.

The Qatari Advisory Council has alleged that foreign journalists are being 'brought' into the country to slander its name through negative reports has incited protests of senior journalists. They have also voiced their criticism of the Council's recent debate on 'Irresponsible Journalism'.  This is the latest in a series of incidences which suggest that existing degrees of press freedom in the Middle East are being gradually eroded. 

The Doha Centre for Media Freedom (DCMF) was set up in October 2008 by the Qatar Foundation.  It is headed by the emir's wife, Shaykha Muzah, in partnership with the Paris- based media freedom watchdog Reporters Sans Frontieres (RSF). Robert Menard, former head of the RSF, is now the director-general of the DCMF.

Interested journalists have until 30 June to apply for the 2009 Lorenzo Natali Prize. On World Press Freedom Day the European Commission officially opened applications for the prize, which is awarded in partnership with Reporters Without Borders and the World Association of Newspapers to journalists who have demonstrated a commitment to human rights, democracy and development.

The European Commissioner for Development and Humanitarian Aid, Louis Michel, said: "Democracy cannot exist without freedom of information. Lack of information makes for an unhealthy society. The ideals of development, human rights and democracy cannot be achieved without free and independent media to raise questions and stimulate debate. The European Commission's aim in organising the Lorenzo Natali Prize is to support committed journalists who contribute to the cause of development, democracy and human rights through the quality of their work."

The Natali Prize is an international press award dating back to 1992. In 2008 over 1500 journalists from 151 countries took part. It is open to journalists working in TV, radio, the press and online. The winners will receive their prizes at a special award ceremony in Stockholm in October, in the presence of the European Commissioner for Development and Humanitarian Aid. Prizes worth a total of €60 000 will be awarded to the winners in the different sections: Africa, Europe, Maghreb/Middle East, Asia and Latin America/Caribbean.

Contacts:
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The trusted and often dubbed 'journalist's bible,' has jumped on the Twitter bandwagon. The 2009 edition of The Associated Press Stylebook includes updates with the lingo of the much-hailed and rapidly growing micro-blogging site, Twitter.com, and other entries to remain current with the ever changing written word.

The verb phrases, "to Twitter", and "to Tweet" are now recognized and validated by the prestigious Associated Press as "Twitter" is described as a social networking website where users can emit, "Tweets," or short messages. Another term now defined in the 2009 edition that describes short messages, but is not necessarily exclusive to the Twitter-sphere, is "text" and its cousins, "texting" and "texted."

Beamups, the digital marketplace for news footage goes live today with a UK version of the site.

The invention of two former cameramen, Boaz Eshtai and Yosi Romano, Beamups offers a platform for producers to distribute and sell their previously unused and archived material to would-be buyers.

The website first launched in the Middle East in April and, since then, has already helped to secure deals with the BBC, Al Jazeera, ABC and Rtvi.

The New York Post will soon be carrying news from leading Israeli newspaper the Jerusalem Post. Both publications have revealed that the Post on Sunday will soon contain a 48-page edition of the Jerusalem Post. It will contain news on "politics and diplomacy, with some health and science and business, some arts and features, very strongly centered on Israel and the region," according to David Horovitz, editor in chief of the Jerusalem Post.

Richard Pérez-Peña of the New York Times points out that although "the Post may be best known as a gossipy, celebrity-obsessed tabloid", it has always paid close attention to the Middle East and taken a strongly pro-Israel stance. This move will further enhance that stance, and is described by the Jerusalem Post as a "newspaper breakthrough that brings together the world's two largest Jewish communities".

Some publications have chosen to cut expensive international reporting posts in order to save money recently - the New York Post's decision to collaborate with the Jerusalem Post will allow it to continue with it's in depth coverage of the Middle East.

Source: New York Times

Yesterday, the Middle East Times published its final Internet-based free edition, but not before reminding readers that it will be back, albeit in a paid-for format.

Earlier this week, the online newspaper said it regretted the decision of having to start charging readers for content and, although it did not explicitly list its reasons for the change, it's fair to say the global economic crisis played a substantial role in the decision-process.

In its 2008 report, Amnesty International declared that the Egyptian government's emergency powers and police force are "used systematically to violate human rights". There are just three or four newspapers said to be independent in the country, but these are cautious, and "worryingly silent" on corruption and human rights issues, explains an article in Le Monde. It is for this reason that nearly 200,000 Egyptians have embraced the freedom given by new media and begun their own blogs. Whilst only 10,000 of these are deemed "political", this is a relatively high figure given the possible ramifications.

One of the most well-known Egyptian bloggers is Waël Abbas, who revealed the brutal torture of Imad El-Kebir (as a result El-Kebir's torturers were sentenced to three years in prison, although the victim also received a three month sentence for "resistance to the forces of order"). Speaking to Le Monde, Abbas explains that the Egyptian political blogosphere is "a movement born of frustration, with neither leader nor structure". Despite Abbas explaining that the movement is unorganised, it seems to have been effective, and an exemplary use of the Internet as a means of communication - some of the bloggers command up to 30,000 readers, equalling and sometimes surpassing the circulation of government run newspapers.

The popular American cult website Slate.fr is up for its French-version release. The exact date of release is still not clear; CB News reports that it is scheduled for 10 February, while another source (electionlibre.info) cites the end of February. Jean-Marie Colombani, former chief of Le Monde, is at the head of the project that unites some well-known names of journalism; notably, Eric Leser, Le Monde's New York correspondent, Eric Le Boucher, former editorialist at Le Monde, Johan Hufnagel from 20 Minutes.fr and Jacques Attali.

The Associated Press has announced the creation of an editing desk for the Middle East as part of its effort to streamline and strengthen its news coverage, Editor & Publisher reports.  

The Middle East desk, based in Cairo, Egypt will be the AP's fourth hub outside of the United States.  In the US it also plans to open more centers in Philadelphia, Chicago and Phoenix.

Since Israel's invasion of Gaza, newspapers have been trying to cover the crisis.  Remaining impartial has proved difficult because foreign journalists have been banned from Gaza by Israel.  As images proliferate across newspapers and the Internet, many are sympathizing with the plight of the Palestinians.  The Guardian argues that perhaps, these images may be the best way to tell the story.

This crisis has changed the way the media is reporting, the Guardian calls is "a simple truth", that "Israelis no longer appear as victims."  Why?  Because of the images that have been emerging from Gaza - they are dramatic and shocking, making people empathize more with the residents of Gaza. 

To mark the relaunch of the Editors Weblog, the World Editors Forum is running a special series entitled "Doing More with Less." The series highlights major trends that editors-in-chief are using to steer their newsrooms through the difficult economic climate. The third of the series takes a look at the new online-only international news service launching today, GlobalPost.

Amidst reductions in international reporting at newspapers across the US and Europe, GlobalPost, an American online-only international news service whose number of overseas correspondents is second only to the AP, launches today. The Editors Weblog spoke to President, CEO and co-founder of GlobalPost Philip Balboni and Senior Editor and Regional Editor for Africa Andrew Meldrum about the project, and asked the AP's John Daniszewski for his thoughts on a new news organisation that could potentially rival the Associated Press.

 
Filling the international gap

Balboni was passionate about his motives for founding the organisation: to fill a crucial gap in international reporting accessible to the American people. "I have seen the steady diminishment of foreign reporting in television and radio," he explained, added that this "has just been stunning." And he stressed his belief that "even the great American institutions that remain with a meaningful foreign staff are in jeopardy because of this devastating downturn in the economic underpinning of newspapers." Meldrum echoed his sentiments: "in the US, so much international news is being cut."

Daniszewski, AP Managing Editor for International News, was confident that the AP was providing "a comprehensive international news coverage," and that there was not a lack of information out there for people who were determined to find it out.  He was positive about the creation of a new service, however: "it's really good to have those eyes, ears and notebooks out there, and I am sure they have a lot to contribute."  

Complementing the AP and newspapers

Balboni insisted that GlobalPost intends to be a supplement to a newswire service, rather than a competitor. Balboni explained that the sort of "distinctive story-telling" that GlobalPost offers is very different to that of the AP, Reuters or AFP. "As a wire reporter, you chase the story of the day and there is a tremendous need for that, but it has become a commodity and you can find these stories everywhere."  And indeed, GlobalPost will also aggregate the top news agency stories of the day on its site. Its original reporting, though, will be different: "what we are focussed upon is the context behind the headlines," generally stories that will not be widely reported in English. Daniszewski was insistent that he does not see GlobalPost as a competitor to the AP because in terms of scale the AP is far larger. Rather he considers it a complementary service that will contribute to the "great need for the world to be informed."

"We hope to help newspapers, not hurt them"

Balboni also emphasized his hope to "help newspapers, not hurt them." He explained that GlobalPost is a "partner for newspapers," as part of its business model is to syndicate content to newspapers all over the world.  "We want to give them the opportunity to have high quality original reporting which they can print or publish online," he added.  He added that in the Web 2.0 world, it is less useful to put your content in a "walled garden, you have to let it be free to go where users want to find it."

Old-school correspondents

The 60 to 70 correspondents are essentially stringers, filing one piece a week.  As Meldrum described it, "this is designed to be a string that any correspondent could add to the other work that they are doing."  However, GlobalPost is making a significant commitment to correspondents, offering a guaranteed monthly salary and shares in the company, and hopes that its reporters will "feel that they are invested in our success," explained Balboni.   The correspondent group includes three Pulitzer Prize winners, among a mixture of experienced, accomplished journalists and those who are at an earlier stage in their careers.  

The correspondents will be on the whole country-based, meaning that they know the language and are familiar with the history and current affairs. The idea, Balboni explained, is that readers will have "the opportunity to follow developments from someone you can come to know and trust."  Daniszewski thinks GlobalPost is trying to return to the old model of a foreign correspondent, "that sort of authoritative, contextualized, interpretative voice, who adds different perspectives that people bring to a story with their own personalities." As "traditional newspaper correspondents out there are now acting more and more like a wire service," Daniszewski believes, there is a gap to be filled by people who can produce a more in-depth, time-consuming story.  

The five regional editors are working full time, or "more than full time," as Meldrum put it.  There are regional editors for Africa, Asia, Europe, the Middle East and South America, and a team of half a dozen senior editors based at the HQ in Boston.  Seven beat correspondents will have a truly global scope, reporting on issues such as health, climate change and technology worldwide.  

"Journalists know best"

"The goal is for this not to be a top-down model, but a bottom-up model," Balboni clarified, as correspondents "know best about what the interesting and important stories are." Meldrum remarked that "it's much like a traditional foreign desk," with correspondents pitching stories, editors approving them and then editing once they are sent in. The content management system used means that correspondents are able to follow the story process "right from conception to completion."

Interactive multimedia from abroad

"These days a freelance journalist is always going to be multi-skilled" asserted Meldrum, and "we are all on a learning curve." Correspondents have all been issued with Flip Cams - video cameras the size of a mobile phone - which they are encouraged to use whenever possible, whether to produce narrated pieces or natural sound shots that will supplement their story.     Photos are also expected to feature significantly on the site, taken both by correspondents and by other photographers who will contribute.

Reader comments will be allowed on articles throughout the site.  "We want it to be as interactive as possible," Meldrum commented, explaining that they plan to respond to readers and adapt to how readers want to use the site.

Partnering with the best

According to Balboni, it is "imperative" for a new venture to form relationships with other news providers. And GlobalPost is already doing this, having established a partnership with the Huffington Post whereby some of GlobalPost's content is available on the Huffington Post's new world section. Correspondents are also appearing on 'World Focus', a night news programme on US television channel PBS, for a Q&A session with the TV anchor about whatever story they have covered that day. Balboni said that the organisation is also exploring similar opportunities with radio and in commercial television.  

Entrepreneurship drives online-only journalism

Balboni was enthusiastic about the potential of an online only publication. One of the main advantages is the "incredible distribution platform at a very modest expense." The Internet solves the problem of how to reach the audience.  He believes that there are "incredible opportunities as well if you can be entrepreneurial enough to create a new model, and if you can fulfil a need." By operating online-only and keeping distribution costs low, GlobalPost hopes to be able to produce a higher quality of product.

The other crucial point, he explained, is that serious news consumers are now looking mainly online to find their news.  He worries that newspapers have been "dumbed down" in an attempt to attract more readers, pushing many people online. It is not just about chasing numbers of viewers, and GlobalPost expects to have a "very high quality user population" of intelligent, well-educated people.  

Stamping "Passports" to profitability

"Paid online content will be the salvation of journalism if it can be worked out"

Balboni expects the site to become profitable in three years, and it will be funded via syndication, advertising and paid premium content.  He expressed his conviction that paid online content "will be the salvation of journalism if it can be worked out." GlobalPost's premium content aspect to the site will be called 'Passport' and will be available for an annual fee. The Passport area of the site will include a service called Foreign Desk, which will allow subscribers to write suggestions for stories that they would like to see.

The foreign news solution?

There is a gap in the market for this sort of well-investigated, foreign news, and as long as GlobalPost can find enough readers who are interested enough in the world around them this site has much potential.  The passion of the people behind it for international news is indubitable, and the model that they have chosen is forward-thinking and may well work. Being online only allows it to have a vast scope and reach with comparatively few resources. It will be particularly interesting to see how successful the paid content model is, and whether this can, as Balboni hopes, save journalism. 

Related links:

http://www.pbs.org/mediashift/2009/01/globalpost-aims-to-resuscitate-foreign-correspondents-online008.html
http://www.journalism.co.uk/5/articles/533189.php
http://www.ojr.org/ojr/people/davidwestphal/200901/1615/
 

The current Israeli-Gaza conflict has proved ground-breaking in terms of the way that news is being spread. For a start, Israel has blocked foreign journalists from entering Gaza since launching its air attacks on December 27, so although Al Jazeera has been reporting extensively as it had correspondents already inside, as does the AP, many media organizations have no reliable source of independent information.  It is the perfect time for blogs, Twitter, and other forms of citizen journalism to show their merits.

 

Qatar based news network, Al Jazeera has announced a partnership with Sony Ericsson.  The partnership will allow Al Jazeera to provide built-in AJ RSS feeds on Sony Ericsson phones in the Middle East and North Africa, according to journalism.co.uk.

The RSS feeds will offer daily international news updates in both English and Arabic on certain models of Sony Ericsson phones.

Media Bistro is reporting that Time magazine will consolidate their international editions and be primarily edited out of New York.

This decision will end the decade-old tradition of major editing that takes place in London.  Also, it is being reported that the South Pacific edition will cease at year-end and will be replaced with the editorial content of the Asian edition.

Last week the Financial Times relaunched its website with a new homepage, along with five other resdesigned pages and a new Middle East section. This is the first stage of its redesign and more changes will be rolled out over 2009. Reviews about the new design have been mixed; some call it a success, some say it's a failure. The FT has been applauded for finally redesigning and "clearing up the clutter" but the criticisms go further than the redesign, some critics have called their entire business model into question.

The new design aims to make the site look more like the print version through colour and layout. The homepage is now pink, just like the newspaper, and the design of the masthead reflects the print version as well. The website has also been renamed Financial Times, no longer FT.com.

According to The National, the first ever Arabic-language business daily newspaper will be launched in January in the United Arab Emirates.  The launch of the paper is part of I-Media, an integrated media project which will "include a financial news online portal in Arabic and English, a mobile news services and the first Arabic economic news radio channel."

Qusai Aljamous, the paper's executive editor in chief said the paper will be a 40-page broadsheet titled, Alroya Altiqtissadiya, which means Economy Vision in Arabic.  The initial circulation will be 20,000, targeting business-savvy readers.  In addition, the paper will be accompanied by a 16-page tabloid supplement focusing on real-estate, banking, the stock market, commodities, tourism and lifestyle. 

The Financial Times will relaunch its website on November 11.  The new site will have five news pages including a Middle East page.

According to The Guardian, other new features include a top ten list of "must-read" stories, a list of most read, horizontal navigation for the main sections and drop down menus for sub-sections.

Source: The Guardian

The National, an Abu Dhabi newspaper launched earlier this year, announced plans to launch a multisectioned Saturday edition beginning next month.  The paper will now become a seven-day a week paper.  

According to National editor, Martin Newland, "At the moment we currently run four sections - art, sport, business and news. This [Saturday edition] will have personal finance, motoring, hopefully a magazine at launch, if not, [not] long after."

BPA Worldwide, the global industry resource for verified audience data and media knowledge, recently reported the number of print titles to be audited exceeds 100 in the Middle East for the first time.  

The countries in the region that have titles to be audited are Jordan, Lebanon, Bahrain, Oman and Saudi Arabia, as well as the United Arab Emirates.

Google has announced plans to bring Internet access to 3 billion people in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East.  The project is estimated to cost $750m and will connect countries within 5 degrees of the equator.  

It plans to launch 16 low-earth orbit satellites from Thales Alenia Space, the French aerospace group.   The satellites are set to be operational by the end of 2010.  The project is part of Google's mission to expand Internet access to the developing world and transform communication access for billions.  

The fast growing telecommunications market in emerging economies demonstrates the commercial and social benefits available and the changing telecommunications infrastructure.  O3b Network founder, Greg Wyler, stated that this project should enable "social and economic growth that will reflect the true value of the Internet." 

Sources: Financial Times, Bloomberg, Trading Markets

New media like blogs may be helping to "demystify" the Middle East and advocate peace journalism, even though it may seem as though there are more bloggers than readers, according to Jaron Gilinsky, journalist and documentary filmmaker in Jerusalem.

Chinese journalists claim that the Chinese authorities have released guidelines for the local media on how to report during the Olympics, with rules such as ignoring protests or avoiding negatively criticizing the opening ceremony. Chinese authorities, however, deny the issuing of the document.

The 21-point edict was translated in the Sydney Morning Herald and mentioned that journalists should refrain from conducting interviews about the US presidential election or China's foreign relations.

"Follow the official propaganda line on the North Korean nuclear issue; be objective when it comes to the Middle East issue and play it down as much as possible; no fuss about the Darfur question; no fuss about UN reform; be careful with Cuba. If any emergency occurs, please report to the foreign ministry", the decree wrote.  


Source: European Journalism Centre

See also:
Thousands protest China's press freedom violations
Internet restrictions for journalists at Beijing
China: Lifts some Internet restrictions after IOC negotiations

The upcoming Society for News Design (SND) Congress in Las Vegas will feature a session devoted to Middle Eastern and Arabic newspaper design. The United Arab Emirates papers Gulf News and Emarat Al Youm will both present the design aspect of each publication.

Douglas Okasaki, SND's regional director for Africa and the Middle East, mentioned that newspaper design in this part of the world has become "mature" and "professional".

Gulf News, one of the UAE's major English-language dailies, will discuss its design format, following numerous makeover projects dating since 2003 onwards.

Emarat Al Youm is the youngest daily and the first Arabic-language paper to be launched in a compact format. Extensive use of graphics and illustrations make the paper "dynamic", "easy" and "fast to read", according to AME Info.

Source: AME Info

The Palestinian-Israeli media's objectivity and editorial quality is questioned and discussed in an article by YNet News. Ruham Nimri, the coordinator of the media-monitoring sector at Palestine's Miftah organization, goes as far as to state that Arabic-language newspapers based outside the Middle East may be more reliable.

Since media outlets may have difficulties in being properly informed, news may be created. Competition may drive some media to have reporting that is "sensational", "tabloid" and "entertainment-oriented", according to Yizhar Be'er, executive director of the Keshev Center for the Protection of Democracy in Israel.

"The problem with the Palestinian media is that they don't have their own reporting. What you read in the Palestinian papers is news taken from Israeli sources and international agencies, so there's nothing much new when you read a Palestinian newspaper," said Nimri.

Palestinian media may be affected by political opinions and have less independence, according to Be'er.

Meanwhile, Israeli media is "more professional", free and "more pluralistic", Be'er pointed out. The problem with Israeli reporting is that stories may be edited to the point that the final content differs vastly from the initial report journalists provided.

"We see the editors frame the reports in a way that highlights the responsibility of the Palestinians and downplays the Israeli responsibility. The main narrative is that the other side is to blame for the situation we're in," Be'er said.

Source: YNet News