KUNA, ONA director discuss bolstering ties
KUWAIT: Director General of Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) Dr Fatma Al-Salem and her counterpart at the Oman News Agency (ONA) Ibrahim Al-Azri met on Wednesday to discuss ways to bolster cooperation between the two media entities. During the reception of Al-Azri and the accompanying delegation at KUNA’s headquarters, Director Dr Al-Salem welcomed ONA representatives’ visit to the agency, affirming that Kuwait News Agency would provide all of its assets to help boost media cooperation between the two sides.
She reiterated KUNA’s desire to develop its news and journalistic capabilities via using the latest technologies to deliver the latest media updates to the masses. She commended the level of cooperation with ONA, saying that it would reflect positively on the development of cooperation amongst GCC media outlets. ONA’s director Al-Azri lauded the cooperation with KUNA, saying that both outlets were eager to pursue more venues of cooperation in the future. He commended the media message propagated by KUNA, indicating that it was one of the most prominent news agencies in the region.
Qatar envoy
Also, Director General of Kuwait News Agency and Qatari Ambassador to Kuwait Ali Al Mahmoud held talks on ways to boost relations, especially in media, along with cooperation between both countries’ news agencies. During the meeting, Dr Al-Salem highlighted the importance of exchanging media visions and experience between Kuwait and Qatar to achieve a prominent media position regionally and internationally, stressing KUNA’s keenness on enhancing media cooperation with Qatar through its different media agencies especially Qatar News Agency (QNA).
She also praised the competence and efficiency of Kuwaiti and Qatari media figures and journalists, which in turn positively reflects on the media discourse of the two countries. The Qatari ambassador praised the importance of KUNA’s media role in highlighting the depth of both countries’ brotherly relations and fruitful cooperation in the media fields through specialized and diverse news materials that reflect these relations. He also praised KUNA’s credibility in performing its media mission with full freedom and responsibility reflecting pioneering Kuwaiti media at Gulf, Arab and international levels amid technological and social media challenges.
Addressing challenges
Arab media must address the challenges of the ever-shifting technological landscape to bring accurate, timely, and reliable news, Director General of Kuwait News Agency said on Wednesday. Speaking at a seminar on the challenges facing Arab media in the era of technological revolution - an event organized by Kuwait University (KU) and Information Ministry, Dr AlSalem said that official and organized media must take heed of their social role as bringers of truths and spreaders of social awareness. KUNA, for instance, launched last December an extensive campaign against illicit drugs and narcotics in utter conviction of its media role in the process of combating drugs, she revealed.
Taking notice of public opinion online might provide media outlets with a general idea of what people want to read, watch, or hear, Dr AlSalem noted, adding that online media was an evergrowing sphere that requires focus and attention on part of regular media outlets. She went on saying that dealing with news via social media had changed the game completely, requiring from journalists and media personnel to acquire some new skills to follow up on developments and write news.
Providing his input to the seminar, head of Egypt’s Supreme Council for Media Regulation, Karam Jabr said dealing with the ever-changing media was necessary; otherwise, many outlets would be left behind. Having a balance of meeting the public demand and pursuing objective journalism are very hard to achieve, but Arab media must seek this path to win the trust of the people, he affirmed. He called for preparing future journalists, especially university graduates, to meet the demands of the new media to usher in the new age of trustworthy and reliable journalism.