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Media firms face challenge
 of giving news on the go

Readers who were earlier glued to their computers now use three or four different devices everyday to consume news.

Rapid changes in technology are forcing a change in the news business and major newspapers across the world are undergoing great changes, experts at a major media conference in Dubai noted on Wednesday.

Declining print readership and increasing dependence on mobile devices were the focus of talks on the first day of the Middle East conference of World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA).

Readers who were earlier glued to their computers now use three or four different devices everyday to consume news.

Shaikh Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai and Chairman of Dubai Media Incorporated; Vincent Peyregne, Chief Executive Officer, WAN-IFRA, France; Princess Rym Ali; Mona Ghanim Al Marri, Director-General of Government of Dubai Media Office; Dhaen Shaeen, attending the opening session of the 9th WAN-IFRA Middle East Conference in Dubai on Wednesday. - KT photo by Juidin Bernarrd

“We do not have a clear road map to tackle changes in media. The future will combine the best of traditional media and digital tools, increasing speed and engagement. We have to manage time and learn to exploit it,” said Dhaen Shaeen, CEO of Publishing at Dubai Media Incorporated.

He highlighted the changing face of journalism in the UAE and how new technology was being implemented in state-owned newspapers to meet the expectations of audiences.

“Being able to listen to different opinions is important. The old form of journalism has become obsolete and we have to find new form. In the UAE, we are working to modernise journalism and are putting in efforts to implement latest innovations,” he added.

Princess Rym Ali, founder of the Jordan Media Institute, highlighted the need to rethink media policies in the Arab world and called for better training of journalists.

“Social reform is intimately linked to the media and its ability to inform citizens and involve them in the public sphere. There can be no proper reform without media reform. Much has been said and written about the role of media, particularly about social media. Many of us in the media industry are left wondering today: Has there been a real media revolution? Were these changes reflected in the media landscape?”

She also highlighted the increasingly important role played by Arab journalists in shaping news stories of international importance.

“Today, more than ever, Arab news organisations are helping to shape global attitudes. For professionalism to be upheld in the media, there is still a great need for training. This training should cater to the needs of the local community of journalists. It is not too late to start implementing changes,” said Princess Rym.

Addressing challenges faced in reaching a highly fragmented audience, the conference’s keynote session discussed the ‘vision for a different future’. Patrick Daniel, Editor-in-Chief, Singapore Press Holding, discussed ways of building readership in difficult times.

“Readers use different devices to access the web at different points of the day. Newsrooms have to push content at the time people would consume it most,” said Daniel.

“For a newsroom to succeed, it has to adopt a hybrid strategy where it combines both print and digital. In print, we don’t have a pricing power because we can’t easily increase the price of newspapers. In digital, we have a pricing power,” he said.

“The news business is a daily business and every day is a new day. We have to provide the best news package everyday and if we do that, we will be OK!”

muaz@khaleejtimes.com