Arab and international media experts gathered this week in Dubai to discuss the role of the media in the context of present politics, reports Rania Khallaf from Jumeirah City The Arab Thought Foundation (ATF) held its fourth annual conference, the Arab and World Media Conference 2005, 5-6 December, in Jumeirah City under the theme "Getting it right". Delegates discussed changes in the Arab world, and ways to develop a deeper understanding of the region. The conference was opened by His Highness General Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashed Al-Maktoum, crown prince of Dubai, in the presence of Queen Rania of Jordan and Amr Moussa, secretary-general of the Arab League. The highly-interactive format, led by proactive moderators, generated debate about complex questions: how has the media contributed to political reform in the Arab world? Is democracy really spreading in the Arab world, or is it politically motivated propaganda? What really determines front-page news? And what are the biggest ethical dilemmas journalists face? Urging media to bring out "the reality and truth," Moussa said in the inaugural session that the world media is propagating a lie by equating terrorism with Arabs and Islam. "Western media, by linking Arabs to terrorism, is committing an attack on Arabs, and it should not go without a response," Moussa said, addressing over 1,000 delegates in attendance. Nonetheless, Moussa underlined, "we have to accept 'objective' criticism to improve ourselves." Prince Khaled Al-Faisal, president of the ATF, reminded the audience that the first and foremost duty of the media, anywhere in the world, is to report the truth. "The media today," he continued, "shapes the world's cultural and political social orientation." It has become a "weapon with no less power as arms or fires, by which we all have been affected," he added. Faisal also pointed out that some media willingly conceal the truth for political reasons. "Media can be a tool to cover up reality and create misconceptions that can widen the gaps between Arabs and the West." Prince Faisal's speech posed more questions than it answered. He pointed out that there is an ongoing boom in the media with tens of new satellite TV channels, newspapers and radio stations appearing. "But has this media boom enhanced Arab culture or has it become a means for our young to adopt Western models and values ó sometimes even at the expense of our own standards? Has our media managed to transmit our image to others? And to what extent have our satellite TVs and newspapers addressed our issues?" he asked. Arab journalists who participated in the first session of the conference urged Arab governments to implement reforms to ease control over the media. Speaking at the session entitled "Power Shifts and Flash Points", Abdel-Rahman Al-Rashed, general manager of Al-Arabiya, said that governments in the region needed to stop censoring the media. In this context, Al-Rashid pointed out that the Arab media is still in its infancy. "Arabs have around 200 satellite TV channels, but we can have another 800. The Arab audience still needs specialised channels and publications." The discussion also extended to the Western media coverage of Iraq. Some media delegates accused the US government and media of being biased, peddling erroneous facts and misleading images of the Arab world. Peter David, foreign editor of The Economist, admitted that Western media made errors of judgment in supporting the war in Iraq. "Our judgment was based on something we did not know; the presence of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, which eventually were not found. We also underestimated the complexity of Iraqi society," said David, in response to criticism levelled to his magazine by one journalist. "In the US, we had another look at the performance of media coverage of Iraqi war and have done some self-criticism," said David Ignatius, associate editor and columnist for The Washington Post. The current circumstances in Iraq, where journalists are under threat of death or kidnapping, severely limiting their ability to relay the truth, was one of the hot issues addressed in the conference. "The opposing parties in Iraq ó both the Americans and the insurgents ó are insensitive towards journalists. They are not always provided with first-hand information about incidents, so it becomes harder on them to report the true story, which suits the interests of the fighting parties. Sometimes we use local Iraqi reporters to cover news, but they are not safe themselves," said Nabil Khatib, executive editor of Al-Arabiya. Jane Arraf, former senior Baghdad correspondent for CNN, said that "embedding" in the US army was the safest way to cover the conflict. "Though it limits the reporter's ability to choose his topics, we did several stories on issues that were not necessarily favourable to the American army in Iraq," she said. The participants of this session highlighted the importance of employing Arab-speaking journalists in order to understand local culture. "There are not enough journalists who understand Arabic in Iraq," said Arraf. Interviewed by Jim Kelly, managing editor of Time magazine, and Khaled El-Maeena, editor in chief of Arab News, as part of a special spotlight session on the first day of the conference, Prince Al-Waleed Bin Talal, chairman of Saudi Arabia-based Kingdom Holdings, said that reform is being witnessed across the region due to a number of pressures, including the pressure from the media. "The view of Western media can be changed, but the effort should come from our side," he said. Questioned on the role of media in Iraq, Prince Waleed said that the US seems to be imposing a so-called "democracy" in Iraq by supporting numerous TV channels and newspapers. This, he said, reflected the fact that the US does not understand Iraq. Prince Talal warned that Iraqi media proliferation is causing confusion and increasing ethnic tension. "In addition to a new Islamic satellite channel called Al-Resala, which will start broadcasting in few months to convey to the whole world the true image of Islam, two institutions have been set up at Georgetown and Harvard universities, aiming to focus on Arab studies, and will contribute to changing the Arab stereotype," Prince Talal announced. Abdul-Khaleq Abdullah, professor of politics at the United Arab Emirates University, said that media coverage of the Islamic movement could not be viewed apart from the conflict between Islamic groups and Arab governments. "Media men, who already have limited information about the history of Islamic groups, suffer from limited information and false information from both parties," Abdullah said. Abdullah further said that Arab media imitates Western media in its ignorant judgment on Islamic phenomena. "The Arab media gives Islamic phenomena its fair and due coverage, but the content is still far from being balanced. The Islamic groups do not have their TV channels and newspapers, and this not a positive thing. Arab media should break this 'information siege' around Islamic groups, because it is dangerous, both for them and us," he concluded.
