Sharjah Press Club, a subsidiary of the Sharjah Government Media Bureau, is hosting three special interactive debates as part of the ninth International Government Communication Forum (IGCF), being held on March 4 - 5 at the Expo Centre Sharjah. The special sessions will be headlined by leading Arab ministers, media experts and industry professionals to discuss the key issues and trends in the media sector.
The first session to be held on the first day of the IGCF will debate the "Future of News", focusing on news reporting as the main part of the journalistic work, and the challenges it faces in light of the speed of news circulation through social media and the need to make sure the news is reliable and authentic. The session will also tackle how to confront the use of rumours and misinformation to mislead the public.
Khaled Al Malek, Editor-in-Chief of Saudi newspaper, Al Jazirah, and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Saudi Journalists Association, and Randa Habib, former director of the French news agency, AFP, in Amman will take part in the discussion while Mohammed Al Mulla will be the moderator.
"The media image of Arab societies in the West" will be the topic of the second debate on the day two of the IGCF focusing on the role of media in framing and conveying of the Arab image in Western countries. The session will discuss ways of correcting misconceptions about the Arabs in the Western and other societies as well the importance of communicating the right messages and ideas.
HE Ali bin Mohammed Al Rumaihi, Minister of Information Affairs, Bahrain, HE Amjad Awda Al Adayleh, Minister of State for Information Affairs and official spokesman for the Jordanian government, and HE Osama Heikal, Minister of State for Information, Egypt will take part in the discussion while Sharif Amer will moderate it.
The SPC will also host a dialogue session, bringing together Arab media ministers with students of media and communication in various universities, with the aim of promoting direct communication between decision makers and students. The dialogue session will discuss the issues and challenges in the media sector with the ministers sharing their insights and experiences with the students in order to empower future Arab media professionals and guide their aspirations. The session will discuss the youth’s role in the changing media landscape, media responsibilities, academic content and labour market requirements.
Asma Al Juwaied, Manager of Sharjah Press Club stressed that the SPC, through these discussions and initiatives, aims to come out with the results and recommendations that serve the media sector, keep abreast of successive changes, and unify the media vision aimed at serving the societies in a way that reflects positively on the continuous development processes in the Arab media.
Al Juwaied pointed out that the media students’ interaction with Arab ministers comes as part of the SPC’s efforts to provide young people with the necessary knowledge and expertise and prepare them for the labour market, through training programmes as well as direct meetings with officials in the sector, and to discuss ideas that contribute to creating world-class future media professionals.
Last year, Sharjah Press Club participated in the eighth edition of the IGCF with seven specialised sessions, featuring top experts and speakers from across the Arab world and beyond and came up with many targeted results and recommendations.
