Cape Town: Obstacles for Arabic Press

Posted by Bate Felix on June 6, 2007 at 3:43 PM

It is complicated trying to balance ethics, transparency and independence in Arabic press newsrooms, said Khalid Hamed Al Malik, editor-in-chief of Saudi Arabia’s Al Jazirah newspaper, at the 14^th World Editor’s Forum.

Ethics is “a complicated subject for anyone who attempts to deal with it in the context of the newsrooms of the Arabic press,” he said, addressing the in Cape Town.

“We should also note that the prevailing culture in the Arab World differs from one country to another - as politics, cultural background and education play a major role in forming the particular characteristics of each Arab country.”

Malik said that although the Arabic press is facing serious challenges like limited circulation figures, low levels of education and training, sharp political differences and failure to catch up with technological advances, it has not restricted its role simply to performing checks on the other powers in society. It has extended its role to become a link between those in power and the governed.

By Bate Felix, Wits University Journalism

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