28/01/2023
The Minister of Government Communication and the official spokesperson for the government, Faisal Al-Shboul, inaugurated today, Saturday, the Arab Media Forum, which is organized by the media and communication sector in the League of Arab States, in partnership and cooperation with the Ministry of Government Communication and the Arab Satellite Broadcasting Authority.
Al-Shboul stressed, during his speech at the opening session, in the presence of the Secretary General of the Ministry of Government Communication, Dr. Zaid Al-Nawaisa, the importance of this Arab meeting, which comes within the framework of the League of Arab States, with the aim of achieving the endeavors and goals aimed at facing the challenges facing the Arab media.
In this context, he expressed his happiness at the recurrence of Arab meetings in recent months, saying: "This is the second Arab media meeting in partnership with the League of Arab States in Amman in six months, hoping that together we will achieve what we all aspire to in terms of benefit and impact."
Al-Shboul said: "It is no longer a secret to anyone the magnitude of the challenges facing societies around the world, and Arab societies in particular, as a result of the information revolution and the negative effects of its use. that".
In this regard, he stressed the need for Arab collective action to combat what threatens Arab societies as a result of the negative use of social media, and the influence of some media outlets on it, namely: hate speech, violation of privacy, and false or fake news, in addition to the need to enable Arab media in front of social media. Which is now taking over the advertising market around the world.
Al-Shboul pointed to the strengths of the joint Arab action to address the dangers of social media, the most prominent of which is the presence of 175 million subscribers on the Internet, who are providers of content in the Arabic language.
And he stated in this regard: "If we are able to form an Arab negotiating force with international media companies while we are moving in this direction, we will definitely be able to address many of the challenges and risks that we see today, and contribute to preserving the security of our societies and protecting the media, as other countries have succeeded in that." around the world".
On media and informational education, the Minister of Government Communication stressed the need to consolidate its concepts in our Arab societies, especially among the emerging generations, and to develop scientific and practical courses in universities and media institutes. To counter the risks arising from the negative use of social media.
He drew attention to the mature Jordanian experience in media and informational education, pointing out that Jordan began integrating these concepts into all educational curricula in schools.
Al-Shboul also indicated that the rise in cybercrime around the world during the past few years, especially during and after the coronavirus pandemic, constituted, according to academic and security research and experts, an opportunity for piracy, cyberattacks and fraud, in addition to hate speech and sexual exploitation of children.
The Minister of Government Communication concluded his speech by welcoming Jordan's guests from brotherly countries, praising the role of the General Secretariat of the League of Arab States / Media and Communication Sector, and the Arab Satellite Broadcasting Authority, in organizing and holding this forum and other forums and activities. To enhance Arab cooperation in the media field.
In turn, the Assistant Secretary-General / Head of the Media and Communication Sector in the League of Arab States, Ambassador Ahmed Rashid Khattabi, said: We look forward to this forum being a regular space for dialogue between all partners, including governments, professional councils and unions, civil society, and experts to develop advanced forms of Arab media cooperation.
Khatabi praised Jordan's experience in many issues discussed by the Arab Media Forum, such as media and informational education and sustainable development, stressing that the recommendations of the forum will be closely followed up by the technical secretariat of the Council of Arab Information Ministers.
The head of the Arab Authority for Satellite Broadcasting, Muhammad Al-Adaileh, said that the activities of the forum include the government institutions forum for sustainable development in its first edition, which aims to enhance joint Arab action, in a way that serves Arab issues to encourage and strengthen public partnerships between the public and private sectors.
Al-Adayleh indicated that the forum will witness, on its second day, tomorrow, Sunday, a session on media and informational education. To review the Jordanian and Palestinian experiences in this field, with the participation of Naif Arab University for Security Sciences.
The opening session witnessed a presentation of a number of Arab initiatives to control Arabic content, including an initiative from the United Arab Emirates entitled “Our Children Hope and Our Media is a Trust” by its owner, Sheikh Abdul Jalil Al-Blooki, which aims to combat abnormalities and extremism in content directed to children and urge the creation of Arabic content that carries noble values. In addition to an explanation of the "Talent Area" platform, presented by Muhammad Maharmeh, which aims to promote Arab talents and create attractive content.
It is noteworthy that the Arab Media Forum will be held for four days in the capital, Amman, under the auspices of the Minister of Government Communication and the official spokesperson for the government, Faisal Al-Shboul.