Dubai Media Observer

The National: a law unto itself

2011-11-20T15:07:00.004+04:00

Reader submission about a recent story that The National declined to cover, a story that happened "in its backyard":

"This type of self-censorship is common at the paper, which is not serving its readership well.

"In addition, the paper is said losing money at an alarming rate - its circulation has been frozen in place for several years now, and its employee-turnover rate is said to be ridiculously high. What is going on at The National?"

++++++++++++

The International Bar Association held its annual conference in Dubai this month, but the event, which is planned five years in advance, almost never happened. Seems that several weeks before the event was to begin UAE security officials grew worried that some of the seminars/programs might be too dangerous. [see links below]

Unfortunately, readers of Abu Dhabi’s The National (whose editors have said "strives to be The New York Times of the Middle East") interested in such topics (freedom of speech, etc) would be left in the dark, because the paper declined to cover this important angle of the story.

The National did give readers this paean to women’s rights in the UAE, which includes the following paragraph.

"For me, the most exciting part has been watching young female lawyers in the UAE become so excited to attend the IBA congress and other events being held in Dubai this week. To see how thrilled these young women are to meet lawyers of leading firms from the world's capital cities is brilliant - and the fact that so many local law firms have decided to register their female staff is a sign that the practice in the UAE is progressing, despite the glass ceiling for female lawyers worldwide."

The irony in this is more than rich when one reads the following:

"However, Mr. Ellis [IBA official] did change the title of one session that security officials objected to, entitled "Women in Islam, Challenges and Opportunities," to "Women in Law, Challenges and Opportunities." Members of the women’s committee then declared the new title too "dull," he said, and opted to scrap the session.

In addition, the paper published a piece on a speech Mohamed ElBaradei made to IBA conference attendees in which included the following sentence: He said new governments would need to ensure citizens were involved in every strata of governance and law, and must be accountable and transparent.

This type of "coverage" is rampant at The National, and has increased.

Links to coverage of the IBA conference:

UAE threatened to cancel law conference in Dubai
Lawyer defends decision to hold conference in Dubai
IBA Dubai 2011: the conference that almost never was
IBA Dubai slammed for erasing women's issues from agenda

CPI finally imploding?

2011-10-08T18:35:00.002+04:00

Rumours started to circulate yesterday that long-term editorial director at CPI, Dave Reeder, is on his way out from Dominic D'Souza's zoo. If true, it's perhaps not too surprising as CPI seems to have given up on creating new and original ideas and instead copy ITP.

I've been told that Reeder has made comments on his Facebook page but I can't verify that.

Anyone who has more information on this, comment below.

Plagiarism at The National?

2011-08-31T13:41:00.001+04:00

Post submitted by a reader - "Examples of shoddy and unethical journalism at The National":

+++++++++++++++++
As many of us who worked there knew and know, The National is a sham publication, in many ways. The people running it are substandard, and the alarming lack of ethics in many sections of the paper is enough to make one laugh.

Here is a great recent example: on page 8 of the Business section - Wednesday August 31 - there are two wire stories, one headlined "Following every move" and one headlined "Hacker reveals his code of conduct." The first one is a Reuters piece, written by Jillian Kitchener; the second one was written by Rich Jaroslovsky. But readers of The National's Business section on that day would have no way of knowing who wrote the pieces, because the editors of the section (and this has been the case since the current editor took over the section) lied to those readers.

You see, both stories are bylined "The National Staff" ... and at the bottom of the pieces the email contact reads "business@thenational", followed by "with Reuters" for the first piece and "with Bloomberg News" for the latter.

What a farce. The National's Business staff added nothing at all to those pieces ... they are totally copied and pasted from those wires; all of the work was done by the original writers, and they received no credit from their brethren at the "NY Times of the Middle East."

This is unethical, shady, sloppy and simply ridiculous. But the practice is daily routine in that section.

Sad, pathetic. If anyone of any import read the paper, noticed what was in it, these practices would have stopped a long time ago. As it is, the editor of the National's Business section will be able to continue his lazy brand of journalism for as long as the paper loses money. Any editor with any integrity would never state that his section/staff wrote something that was written by someone else; indeed, in some minds, this is plagiarism.

What examples of poor ethics at The National can you share?

Media jobs in Dubai and Abu Dhabi

2011-06-29T14:25:00.005+04:00

We regularly get asked about jobs in the UAE and how to get them. So to throw it out there to readers:

- how did you get your own job?

- what are the best recruitment agencies for media jobs in Dubai? and the worst?

- which job ads sites are most useful?

- is there need to visit the UAE and go doorknocking, or can jobs be picked up remotely?

- what about jobs on the sales side as well as editorial?

Read: all about it

2011-06-23T02:14:00.002+04:00

By request, the Metro's new free sheet "Read" - thoughts/opinions?

Media Misdemeanour

2011-06-04T16:20:00.002+04:00

Miss L. Lane asks if anyone has any further information or comment on this 30th May story from The National:

A British journalist was acquitted this morning of defaming an English-language newspaper in Dubai and describing its management as unethical and immoral.

MT, 49-year-old former business editor of the newspaper, denied the charges in the Dubai Court of Misdemeanors Court in September 2010. Prosecutors had said he described the newspaper's management as "driven by sex and money".

MT wrote on the newspaper's website that women who failed to get jobs at the newspaper had claimed they were rejected because they didn't have sex with the managers.

MT was also accused of abusing the Etisalat telecommunications system to hassle the newspaper's management and directors, as well as insulting by posting defamatory material using the paper's website.

At the time of the incident, an Egyptian manager at the paper lodged a complaint at Bur Dubai Police Station. He told police that an internet user had posted defamatory material on their website.

About a month later, the newspaper identified MT and reported him to police.

The verdict is subject to appeal within 15 days.

A rival for The National?

2011-04-27T05:03:00.005+04:00

According to a commenter:

It seems a new newspaper will soon be launched in Abu Dhabi. It's recruiting reporters - http://www.journalismjobs.com/Job_Listing.cfm?JobID=1250147
Are you surprised to hear this? Is there a market for more newspapers in the UAE? I thought the ad market was drying up.

The ad points to "the projected launch of a new local daily print publication for Abu Dhabi" by "a successful local publisher (small, well-funded, profitable, keen, entrepreneurial) with a number of print, online and video products".

More interestingly, they seem to be expecting some kind of Armageddon to break out among the seven-star hotels of the world-leading cultural capital of the UAE:

"this is not a job for those who like safety, an easy life, or the support infrastructure of a big organisation."

Screenshot in case it disappears:

Getting paid

2011-03-18T12:54:00.002+04:00

It's long been a dilemma for freelancers to get paid in the UAE, here's one reader seeking advice:

What do you do when a UAE publishing company owes you more than Dhs40,000 (and has done so for the best part of a year)?

I have emails, text messages and paperwork to prove it. I have been promised the money on many, many occasions - and heard every BS excuse under the sun when it hasn't arrived.

Would those in the know recommend I sue the company, complain to someone or other...or write the money off and just tell as many people as possible?

Any wisdom gratefully received.

The region revolts

2011-03-05T16:41:00.002+04:00

As requested, a thread to discuss UAE media coverage of the riots and general unrest throughout the region.

Anyone aware of any blackouts over certain issues?

Doctoring the news...

2011-03-03T13:52:00.008+04:00

Here's an intriguing submission, based on this Arabian Business article about a US doctor who claims that gastric bypass surgery can cure diabetes:

There's something horribly wrong with this story. Why would you contact a California based plastic surgeon about diabetes in the Middle East? Why would you publish such a sensationalist headline? Why would the story run despite being complete bollocks? Well maybe the fact that the source quoted has the same last name as your editorial director and looks exactly like him explains it somewhat. This is blatantly nepotism at the expense of editorial integrity and a horrible crime against journalism, particularly given the importance of the subject matter.

If one reader contacts Dr Bhoyrul over fears of diabetes then his namesake and possible/probable relative should be hounded out of the profession.

UPDATE: we have been contacted by the editorial director of Arabian Business, with the following clarifications:

1. Dr Bhoyrul was interviewed during his visit to Arabian Health
2. Dr Bhoyrul is a reputable and sought-after surgeon for the procedure in question
3. Dr Bhoyrul is a relation of the editorial director of Arabian Business

As further comment, the main problem with this article is that it fails to do much justice to Dr Bhoyrul. As basic journalism, let alone medical journalism, it's piss-poor. It makes no distinction as to what kind of diabetes Dr Bhoyrul is referring to (from his comments, it seems likely that Type II diabetes or "adult onset" diabetes is the type he treats). There are also no references to any medical studies or sources, except anonymous "experts". How about the World Health Organisation, or the American Medical Assocation, or any other venerable and reputable body who likely publish statistics on obesity and diabetes?

The headline also sensationalises and misrepresents Dr Bhoyrul's own comments within the article. Dr Bhoyrul explicitly states:

"The surgery is not the answer to obesity. The solution is preparation and making lifestyle changes and keeping up with the programme for the rest of your life"

whereas the headline claims:

Gastric bypass surgery could cure diabetes 'within days', US doctor says

Poor writing and poor subbing. Not the best way to communicate such an apparently promising medical advance or represent the doctor pioneering it. Relative or nor, Arabian Business should feel ashamed at printing such poor copy.

Declining standards at The National?

2011-03-03T05:52:00.003+04:00

A reader expresses frustration with declining journalistic standards at the The National: "Shows evidence of really poor writing skills in the first place, with poor subbing letting all these things go through...it's something that has the potential to be a really compelling news piece, but for me anyway, it was ruined by the poor writing and grammar. Instead of focusing on the news interest the story holds, I was tut-tutting at what idiot had written this (or rather, what idiot employed him if he can't even write a concise, error-free news item!?)."

Inmate drug binge touched off prison riot, court hears
Salam al Amir

DUBAI // Two detainees at Al Rashidiya detention centre broke into its clinic and stole medicine, touching off a prison riot, prosecutors said this morning.

Prosecutors said AM, 25, and AA, 22, both Emiratis, with damaged public property, stole drugs worth Dh975 and assaulted and resisted police officers. Both had been detained on drug-consumption charges.

On May 29, 2010, AM requested to go to the bathroom, and while there, he unlocked his cuffs, records show.

He then pushed past a police officer, broke down clinic's door and started swallowing different tablets, prosecutors say. At that point, the charges said, AA got out of his cell and also rushed into the clinic.

Prosecutors said they assaulted the police officers trying to control them and prevent them from swallowing the tablets.

And during the confusion, all the detainees in that area managed to get out and fought with police officers.

Riot police were called in and controlled the detainees, said records.

Records show that both suspects were lying on the floor unconscious from swallowing too much Rivotril, Valium, Xanax and other types of anti-depressants and sleeping pills.

The next hearing was scheduled for March 20 to summon the suspects.

Motivate moving?

2011-02-28T06:45:00.003+04:00

From a source:

(de)Motivate is apparently moving to media city in September (but I won't be holding my breath...why move, when they're living (probably) rent free in that crumby building by Al Tayer Motors in Garhoud? i'm sure the office building is also Al Tayer.

As we know, DMC is crazy expensive floor space, and given the company is too tight to even provide decent tea & coffee/lunch room facilities, hot water in washrooms etc and forces employees to pay for parking while at work, I can't see them forking out for DMC offices. But I could be wrong.

How's everyone else enjoying DMC-life these days? Any old timers remember the peaceful era of just three buildings by the lake, before banks and hotels started crowding in, rents increased tenfold, parking vanished and it all went to general shit?

Emirates 24/7 shift to Yellow Journalism

2011-02-15T17:41:00.002+04:00

Emirates 24/7 business changed to Emirates 24/7 few months ago and has many offbeat stories embracing yellow journalism. Is this shift helping Emirates 24? www.emirates247.com/offbeat

Can You Spot 6 Mistakes In This Article?

2011-01-27T11:44:00.004+04:00

We are BACK!
Recently I was browsing the famous Gulf News and stumbled across this article - Shattered lives after traffic accidents in UAE . I was appalled to find so many grammatical and structural mistakes. After reading the article those journalists surely did not give the respect and attention this article deserved. Can you spot them?

Call for contributors

2010-10-31T12:46:00.005+04:00

We're still alive, just. However several members of the team are no longer around, and sadly this place is sinking into a mire of inactivity.

So we'd love some new contributors. Just send an email - from an anonymous account - no need for your real name - to dubaimediablog@gmail.com

The spies within?

2010-08-21T13:44:00.002+04:00

Intriguing email from a reader:

Anything to report on the rumoured full-time Emirati censor who's joined/will join the National staff?

We've heard nothing, have any of you?

Twitted off

2010-08-04T13:22:00.005+04:00

The National reporter David Cosh is a bit pissed off with Arabian Business, according to his Twitter feed:

Kinda furious that Arabian Business lifted my blog post on RIM's entire statement without any attribution.

Here's David's post at The National

Here's Arabian Business's article on the same.

New daily sports paper for UAE

2010-08-01T14:03:00.000+04:00

Thanks to a commenter for the tip-off:

UAE-based publishing firm is to launch an English language sports newspaper later this year, it was reported on Sunday.

Sport 360 will be based in Abu Dhabi, will be published seven days a week, will have a minimum of 40 pages and will be in a format slightly bigger than a tabloid, according to a report in the Gulf Times daily newspaper.

"Market research showed that there is a huge gap in the market in the region for the sports enthusiast. People are looking to read about sports that the daily newspapers here do not cover well in terms of quantity and quality," Michael Chalhoub, chief executive of Gulf Sports Media, the newspaper's parent company, said in the report.

Full article here

Rock the Casbah

2010-07-31T12:15:00.001+04:00

From a commenter:

Rolling Stone Middle East being launched before the end of the year. Ex-ENG staff on board apparently. Publisher is the same as FYI - poor man's What's On. Will such a cult mag work out here?

Layoffs at Gulf News?

2010-07-25T15:22:00.002+04:00

Several commenters have mentioned possible layoffs at Gulf News.

If anyone has heard anything, feel free to discuss.

Forbes: the return

2010-07-20T00:51:00.001+04:00

So Forbes Middle East is to launch according to this story on Zawya. But whatever happened to Forbes Arabia?

WTF Publishing LLC

2010-07-19T16:20:00.001+04:00

Thread request:

Can anyone tell me how these magazine survive as they don't appear to have any advertising to speak of... and they can't all be Lebanese vanity projects can they?

UNFAIR
Brownbook
Desert Fish
IN Magazine
Virtuosity
Men's Style
Fur & Feathers

Emirates Business 24/7

2010-06-22T15:35:00.004+04:00

Apparently not looking so healthy according to several commenters:

The big bosses are now debating as to how put it down 'peacefully' without attracting much negative coverage. Last I heard was it might be given a final lease of life as an online-only website with a trimmed down staff. Most senior editors are still in dark about the future. A final solution is still being debated... But people have been sacked quietly in twos and threes. Pagination has been cut back to 40 pages from 48.

Mass staff cuts at TMF

2010-06-17T00:19:00.003+04:00

Rumours have been swirling and here's some corroboration:

As a former staff member, I can confirm that around 16 staff from TMF have been laid off in a mass staff cut at the company.

Citing the loss of the Thai airways inflight magazine Sawasdee, low ad revenues across the company and generally poor business results, the unfortunate decision has been made by TMF management.

The company is still a going concern, and will continue through this tough period.

Even as a staff member affected by the cuts, I can confirm that these events have taken place, believe this, not any erroneous reports printed elsewhere online.

We are all disappointed, but understand the business reasoning behind the decision, though all regret the sudden nature of the news.

Our sympathies to the staff that have been laid off, and we hope you find new positions soon. Anyone who's hiring, or knows any companies that are, feel free to post about it in comments.

EDIT: I just want to clarify that we're approving all the comments we can, but unless sources are provided, we can't publish some of the allegations that have been made regarding the management of TMF. Likewise allegations about their personal lives. If you can stand them up, then feel free to post with sources or email us. Comments that we consider fair opinion or "fair comment" are however going up.

Nice win for 7Days

2010-06-16T15:44:00.003+04:00

It's won two separate libel cases - link here:

In the first, Vincent Antia sought to claim dhs1 million over articles he alleged featured both true and fabricated information about his family.

The articles reported how his wife, Sally Antia, had been arrested for having an affair with a male friend. She was later sentenced to one month in prison.

Antia’s claim was dismissed by the courts, which said: "the press has a vital and effective role in directing society and thus it should have sufficient freedom of expression and should consider the public right to information".

In the second case, Ehab Ibrahim Mohamed Al Labban had claimed for dhs5 million for similar reasons. His wife, Marnie Pearce, was sentenced to six months in prison followed by deportation for having an affair, which she denied.

7DAYS published articles on the case.

Al Labban claimed the articles were defamatory, but the court dismissed the claim.

Anyone got any more juice on this?

"The future of media"

2010-05-19T16:22:00.003+04:00

Just for a change, here's a plug for an event (we are not associated, contact Polaris for more info):

Digital Journalism: The future of media
Expert Panel Discussion

Date: Monday, 24th May 2010
Time: 7pm for 7.30pm start
Venue: Shelter, Warehouse 209, 318 Road, Al Quoz Industrial 4

The expert panel will include respected industry figures such as:

Mark Briggs--Visiting from the USA, Briggs is a blogger, journalist and authority on the media revolution. He is also the author of Journalism 2.0: How to survive and thrive in the digital age, and CEO of Serra Media.

Pia Heikkila--A freelance digital journalist at the forefront of the media revolution, and co-creator of the new SAE Institute Digital Journalism Course.

Nabila Usman--writer and journalist, business development executive at Newzglobe.com, an online portal that provides edgy, bold & quirky news from the region.

Khaled Khalifa - Head of Office, United Nations - Integrated Regional Information Network (IRIN) Middle East and Asia Bureau.

The discussion will be moderated by Reg Athwal, Co-Founder and Chairman of online television platform onetvo.com.

“Wow! How did I reach that circulation?”

2010-05-12T10:50:00.005+04:00

An impressive performance, if the Grand National's claims can be believed:

Two years after its launch, Newland has stepped aside to become editorial director and Fattah has become its editor. The paper's sales have doubled year-on-year with 20,000 paid subscriptions. Another 20,000 issues are distributed for free of charge - to encourage further subscription - while a further 20,000 are sold in retail outlets across the country. It has also proved to be popular amongst the local Emirati community as well as with expatriates.

Click here for a three page article on all the paper's many glories

Shock horror sensation: yes, it's a new thread at last

2010-05-05T15:21:00.003+04:00

Unfortunately despite several very interesting suggestions we really cannot do posts on unsubstantiated and potentially defamatory rumours and allegations of corruption and sexual indiscretions among UAE media people, much as we might love to.

So while we await an exciting yet safe suggestion, how about your opinions on this thought-provoking anonymous reader comment:

We all know that all of you westerners working in the media in the UAE are good for nothing and will do anything just to suck the money out of any company you work for. I just hope one day the media industry will wake up and kick you all out back to where you belong.

Big shake up at The National

2010-03-07T05:06:00.006+04:00

Sorry for the delay with getting a post up on this. Lots of people leaving, we're told at least fifteen staff have been fired or resigned over the past month:

Reporters/eds.
This is the best way I could think of to inform you all at once that I have handed in my notice and will be leaving The National to launch a media relations consultancy in Abu Dhabi.
My resignation is lodged and my last day of employment is to be March 31.
I'm really excited about my next move and will fill you all in on the details over the coming few weeks. It will come as no surprise to many of you that my partner in the business is my colleague Matt Slater, who will leave the company on the same day.
I just wanted to say thanks to everyone I have worked with over the past two and a half years as we launched and developed The National.
I will remain in my role until March 31 and Hassan and Laura will be announcing the next National Editor before then.
Thanks again for all your work,
Gregg Fray
National Editor
The National

UPDATE from a commenter below:

3 people were laid off a few weeks ago: two online editors and one woman who did some kind of unspecified work on multimedia. There was no notice and they were marched up to the human resources office and told to pack up and leave on the spot.

In addition to Matt Slater and Gregg Fray, another dozen people at least have left. We can count.

Deputy news editor Roland Hughes, arts reporter Jessica Hume, national reporters Rasha Elass, Jen Gerson and Tim Brooks, photographers Ryan Carter and Phil Cheung, Saturday foreign editor Cassie Biggs, deputy chief sub Bob Garton, copy editor Nick Stout and subeditor Luke Kummer. That makes 11 plus Slater and Fray and there are probably others.

The "emiratisation" of media

2010-01-31T12:12:00.002+04:00

So much is absolutely fucking tragic about this article and in this article that I can't even be bothered to pick anything out to comment on. Read it and weep.

UAE editors back emiratisation of media

Dubai: The editors-in-chief of local newspapers endorsed a memorandum on emiratisation of the media sector in the UAE during their periodic meeting held at the Gulf News headquarters on Wednesday.
The memorandum, submitted to Saqr Gobash Saeed Gobash, Minister of Labour, Chairman of the National Media Council (NMC), for further perusal of the Cabinet, highlighted the real partnership and exemplary communication between the concerned public and private media establishments on one side and the government, represented by the (NMC), on the other.

Arab Media Group chief resigns

2010-01-18T11:48:00.002+04:00

One of the shining stars of Dubai's media industry falls from the firmament:

Abullatif Al Sayegh on Sunday confirmed he had stepped down as CEO of the Arab Media Group (AMG) after nine years with the company.

“I am gone. This was on my own terms, with everyone’s approval, with everyone being happy. This is a company that I will be grateful to for the rest of my life. What an amazing opportunity I had – at this age to have all the knowledge that anyone would be dreaming (of having),” the 35-year-old told Arabian Business.

“I have been here since 2001, and I believe now I have completed nine years it is time to (move on). It is not about making more money, it is about...I have done quite enough, and I saw my role was not as effective as it used to be. I am a person who just wants to keep going and building and doing more, and right now everything is established,” Al Sayegh said.

Full article here

Media Week staff quit?

2010-01-09T11:16:00.003+04:00

New post request:

Media Week’s editorial staff has left the building, it seems. The current roster of writers and editors have now either left, or are serving their last days today, leaving the Emirates Neon Group magazine without an editorial team, for the moment.

Although no-one’s saying as much on the record, AdNation understands the team quit over unpaid wages. Dues for some staff remain unpaid since the summer, we hear.

ENG publishing director Mike Orlov didn’t comment directly on the suggestion that ENG wasn’t paying its staff, but described the current employment situation as “volatile” and said ENG wished its former Media Week employees all the best.

“It’s a very difficult market situation. A very high number of companies are owed a great deal of money by their customers, which has led to problems with companies meeting their requirements, and ENG, amongst many other businesses, has suffered,” said Orlov.

Full story here

Gulf News - Editor's notes?

2009-12-30T02:02:00.006+04:00

Via a comment, did the subeditor forget to remove the government instructions from under the headline?

Original article here, still showing the strange intro text.

"Toning down" Dubai coverage

2009-12-24T08:50:00.001+04:00

From the Wall St Journal:

DUBAI-- Gulf News, a newspaper part-owned by a senior government minister in the United Arab Emirates, has told its journalists to avoid using the words "bailout" and "default" when writing about Dubai's debt crisis, according to an internal memo sent to staff and seen by Zawya Dow Jones.

Reporters for the paper, the largest English-language daily in the U.A.E., were also urged to steer clear of the phrase "debt crisis" and asked to "ensure the following politically correct terminology is used" -- words such as "financial consolidation" and "fiscal support" -- when describing the sheikdom's economic problems and the assistance it has received from Abu Dhabi, according to the note sent Dec. 14.

"This is a style guide," said Francis Matthew, the Dubai-based paper's editor-at-large when asked by Zawya Dow Jones about the memo. "We're trying to restrict people from using financially incorrect terms."

More here

National Paint Job

2009-12-08T00:12:00.002+04:00

Thread request:

How about a new topic? The National has shown its true colours with its insipid and benign reporting of the Dubai debt story? It's just another PR lead pamphlet for the UAE gov and about as credible as Em Biz 24/7/... Discuss.

Censorship in crisis

2009-12-07T13:44:00.001+04:00

Has your publication been censored over the reporting of the Dubai crisis? And - as PR Week claims - has the PR machine at Dubai Inc failed?

A reader writes...

2009-12-02T10:57:00.002+04:00

The original comment is here at 09:06:

Why do journalists think their right to do whatever they want defines democracy? There isn't a democracy in the world that doesn't have some form of censorship.

And guess what? Dubai doesn't say it is a democracy, or has any aspirations to be one. All the so called great democracies are full of corruption and sleaze and sex slaves and poverty and exploitation and self interest and everything that's bad about humanity. But you can say what you want in the local rag newspaper so everything's OK.

Journalists suck. You're all so smug and sure that what you do is so important.

Anyone feel like responding?

Dubai bans the Sunday Times

2009-11-30T13:10:00.003+04:00

The Sunday Times has been pulped in the UAE, but honestly is anyone surprised?

DUBAI -- The Sunday London Times newspaper was removed by authorities from shelves in the United Arab Emirates on Sunday amid intensive reporting of Dubai's debt problems, an executive at the paper said.

The National Media Council ordered the paper blocked by distributors without providing a reason, an executive at the paper in Dubai told Zawya Dow Jones.

The Sunday Times edition available in the U.A.E. on Nov. 29 featured a double-page spread graphic illustrating Dubai's ruler Sheik Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum sinking in a sea of debt. The Times wasn't given a reason for the block, or a timeframe when it will be lifted, the executive said.

A government official in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the U.A.E., said that the picture of Sheik Mohammed, which accompanied a story entitled: The sinking of Dubai's dream, was "offensive."

Under the U.A.E.'s media code, publications are prohibited from criticizing the sheikdom's rulers. Local media and government officials have criticized international press coverage of Dubai's debt crisis. Markets around the world fell last week after the government requested a debt standstill for one of its biggest conglomerates.

Earlier this month Dubai's Sheik Mohammed told reporters gathered at an investment conference in the city to "shut up" and stop criticizing the emirate and its crucial relationship with Abu Dhabi.

Dubai is struggling to deal with it debts estimated to exceed $80 billion.

The Sunday Times is part of News International, a unit of News Corp., owner of Dow Jones & Co. The Times and The Sunday Times are published in the U.A.E. through a local partner SAB Media.

If anyone has a scan or screenshot of the "offensive" graphic, we'd love a copy.

Dubai Biscuit Breakfast

2009-11-16T13:24:00.002+04:00

Thread request:

We all know that radio here is bland and PC but it plumbed to new depths this morning when most of the Business Breakfast on Dubai Eye was devoted to a biscuit tasting competion. I was in the car listening with a business visitor to Dubai Air Show who asked if this programme was a joke because it gave completely the wrong impression of Dubai as a business centre. We are living in a city that is trying to climb out of a recesssion and if this is the best the two purile and amateurish presenters (who insist on telling you their names every five minutes) can serve up then no wonder most new business is moving to Abu Dhabi where thankfully you cannot pick up the signal for Dubai Eye.

Nose-dive/Crash landing/[insert aviation disaster pun here]

2009-11-08T23:54:00.002+04:00

This probably has merit as a thread:

As many of you know I was in Dubai for the past year working for the Arabic satellite channel Al Arabiya, where I was in charge of the English website. Unfortunately journalists in Dubai and and the Arab media more generally do not enjoy the same freedom of the press as journalists in the U.S. Earlier this month when I refused to compromise my journalistic principles and compromise my credibility, which I have spent the past decade building, I was laid off.

Yesterday I arrived back in Washington after being forced out over an article about Emirates Airlines. The airline is on of the channel's biggest advertisers, and the head of Emirates is a Maktoum (a member of the royal family) and also happens to be the head of the regulatory aviation administration. The day after publishing the article I lost my job, prompting the press freedom organization Reporters Without Borders to write about my case (read the press release www.rsf.org/Fired-for-implicating-Emirates.html. I posted the original story on my blogs www.arabisto.com and arab-media.blogspot.com and will be writing more about my experiences in Dubai now that I am out of the country and do not have to worry about being arrested or fined.

I thought this was an important issue of press freedom that I wanted to share with you. In the meantime I'm back in in Washington looking for the next step to take in my career. I hope you are all well and appreciate you taking the time to read this.

Sincerely,

Courtney C. Radsch
Journalist & Media Consultant
http://www.radsch.com

No Cannes do

2009-10-26T12:37:00.002+04:00

Thread submission:

This year's Middle East Film Festival presented a superb slate of movies, documentaries and shorts, so why does it continue to be the dullest event in the UAE's cultural calendar? Poor branding, weak marketing and worse PR, how does an event with so much money get it so very wrong?

Wam Bam Al-Bayan

2009-09-09T00:33:00.002+04:00

Via a reader, does anyone have any more info on this:

WAM Dubai, Sep. 7, 2009 (WAM) -- The ownership of Al-Bayan Press, Publishing and Printing Establishment is to shift to Dubai Media Incorporated (DMI). H.H. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of UAE and Ruler of Dubai, has issued a decree ordering the transfer of the ownership of the Dubai-based establishment with effect from the date of issuance of the decree.

The decree calls for the transfer of all assets, properties, commitments and rights of Al-Bayan to the DMI and so shall Al-Bayan's staff and workers to boost media work and unify the efforts of media practice for better services to the general public. The decree which takes effect from the date of its issuance is to be published in the official gazette.

With the transfer of Al-Bayan ownership, the DMI, which already has under its umbrella five TV channels, has further expanded to include Al-Bayan, which has become by virtue of the new decree an integral part of the DMI family, which includes Dubai TV, Sama Dubai, Dubai One, Dubai Sports Channel and Dubai Racing.

For men

2009-08-14T17:41:00.002+04:00

It seems the Dubai men's magazine market is about to explode - GQ and Esquire, anyone? But what's to say new titles - even if international brands - will do better in this market than any previous attempts? Will the ad spend ever be big enough to support new men's glossies?

Gulf News has to pay more than £1m in libel suit

2009-07-26T16:31:00.005+04:00

Whoops. Gulf News has lost a libel case in the UK courts.

According to The Times website today, the damages and costs are more than £1 million.

AN EDINBURGH property developer has been awarded more than £1m in damages and costs against a Dubai newspaper after it wrongly said that he had deceived Middle East investors.

Mark Emlick, chairman and founder of Dunedin Independent, one of Scotland’s largest privately-owned independent financial advice businesses, won his case against the Gulf News in the High Court in London this week.

He brought the case for defamation of character after Gulf News reported in April last year that he and a partner were being sought in Dubai and in the UK by investors who claimed he had absconded with their money after a property deal that involved his company Strategic Property Investment group (SPI) went sour.

Are you using more PR material than ever before?

2009-07-06T12:52:00.003+04:00

Apparently media are using more press releases than last year: could it be related to number of job cuts?

Journalists in the region are using press releases more often than they did in 2007, although many reporters still feel they receive a disproportionate number of irrelevant emails from public relations executives, according to the MediaSource/Insight Middle East Journalist Survey 2009.

In 2007, when MediaSource/Insight Middle East conducted its first survey, 58 percent of pollsters said they use none or less than 10 percent of the press releases emailed to them, compared with 45 percent in 2009.

“The ‘most irritating practice’ for both the Arabic and English media remains the sending of irrelevant press releases, just as it was in our 2007 survey,” said Ben Smalley, managing director of MediaSource.

“The survey reveals a pressing need for PR practitioners to become more targeted and develop a greater understanding of the subjects covered by the media outlets they are dealing with, rather than adopting a scattergun approach to distribution,” he adds.

The survey also found that while 63 percent of English-language journalists working in the Middle East say that the quality of journalism in the region is improving, only 22 percent believe the level of reporting is either ‘very good’ or ‘fairly good’ , compared with 47 percent of Arabic journalists.

MediaSource/Insight Middle East surveyed 219 journalists working for Arabic and English-language print, broadcast and online media in 13 countries across the Middle East.

Are you using more PR material to fill space, or do you think the quality of press releases is worse than ever?

20 days leave for Emarat Al Youm

2009-07-02T17:19:00.005+04:00

Emarat Al Youm has been suspended for 20 days for defamation. While the Arabic paper was always edgier than its sister paper, Business 24-7 (the artist formerly known as Emirates Today), this is certainly something of a surprise for a Dubai government-owned publication.

UAE arabic daily Emarat Al-Youm has been suspended for 20 days and its editor-in-chief fined 20,000 dirhams ($5,448) for defamation relating to a 2006 story accusing a stable of giving steroids to horses.

The Abu Dhabi Federal Court of Appeal upheld a lower court's previous ruling on the case brought against the newspaper by the owners of Warsan Stables, UAE daily Gulf News reported on Thursday.

The UAE Journalists Association criticised the ban, which it said will damage to the UAE's reputation with international press freedom and human rights advocacy groups.
“Although we do not have the right to object a court ruling, but we reiterate our rejection of banning the newspaper or any other local newspaper from publishing, association Chairman Mohammad Yousuf was quoted as saying.

How do you feel about this? Fair treatment? And, if there are any AMG readers, can you tell us if there have been internal repurcussions?

Adieu Newland?

2009-06-07T17:32:00.004+04:00

The Independent on Sunday has claimed that Martin Newland is stepping down as editor of The National.

Just a year after the launch of The National in Abu Dhabi, rumours swirl that Martin Newland is to step down. The former Daily Telegraph editor set up the English-language paper, recruiting several ex-Telegraph hacks to join him.

Colin Randall and Sue Ryan were among those lured by generous tax-free salaries, the full details of which were memorably leaked on to the internet. My mole says Newland will continue to work for the paper but not as editor. I'm told his replacement will need to be pro the Emirates government and royal family, its proprietors. Newland did not return my calls.

Bearing in mind the National moles have all gone very quiet, is there any chance we can get this confirmed? Was Newland pushed, did he jump, or was he just unwilling to toe the party line any more?

Who is this?

2009-05-13T21:02:00.003+04:00

Any ideas who or what this man is referring to in this recruitment post?

Looking for Angel/VC investors for media ventures in the Middle East backed by a well known media figure.

I for one cannot wait to find out more - especially what Emirates Leasing, a subsidiary of Dubai Islamic Bank, has got to do with it.

Draft media law starts to bite

2009-04-16T22:39:00.004+04:00

Despite claims from UAE Inc that the new law will not encroach on media freedom, it seems that there are already a number of cases where it has. Worryingly, these include the news wires, as reported in the Guardian, and verified by a couple of our wire sources in Dubai.

The article, which states that a Bloomberg journalist was detained at Dubai airport and warned to be careful, also confirms that the double whammy of the Panorama documentary and the Independent's article on Dubai have struck a nerve with the powers that be.

Have any of you noticed increased censorship, self- or otherwise? Or run-ins with local authorities over stories you have run?

Down the tubes

2009-04-06T00:36:00.003+04:00

Is your publication going down the tubes? Budget cuts, non-payments, layoffs, CEO just transferred all the remaining dirhams to his Swiss account, etc?

Here's a thread to spill the beans.

Was this a joke?

2009-04-02T10:48:00.004+04:00

I am still hoping this is an April Fool's joke from Business 24-7, but quite frankly, it's not funny. Apart from the laughingly biased reporting. And I didn't think anyone at Business 24-7 had a sense of humour anyway....

Emirates has offered cabin crew voluntary unpaid leave starting May 2009, from one to six months.

An Emirates spokesperson said: "After a careful review of our operational requirements, we have decided to offer our cabin crew staff the opportunity to apply for unpaid leave on a voluntary basis, starting from May 2009. In anticipation of our growing fleet, Emirates' recruitment efforts over the past 12 months have been highly successful in meeting our operational requirements. Combined with a sharp drop in cabin crew attrition, we now find ourselves in a position to be more flexible as an employer.

"We believe some of our staff will welcome the opportunity to take time off to pursue personal interests such as studies, hobbies, or spend time with family and friends.

"There are limited slots available, depending on seniority and the aircraft type the crew is trained to operate on. Cabin crew may opt for unpaid leave from a period of one month, up to a maximum of six months. While on leave, they will still be employees of the airline."

Please can someone assure us that Emirates don't really think that six months unpaid time out to pursue basket-weaving and navel gazing is what their trolley dollies want?

National staff salaries leaked on internet

2009-03-10T23:28:00.002+04:00

From Maktoob.com:

National staff salaries leaked on internet
Tue, 10 Mar 2009 03:46 PM

The salaries of the National’s entire editorial staff have been leaked on the internet in what is being described as a serious data security breach at the Abu Dhabi-based newspaper, Maktoob Business can reveal.

The monthly salaries of over 250 employees, including editor-in-chief Martin Newland, have been posted on Wikileaks, an internet site dedicated to the publication of confidential information.

...

Sources at the newspaper confirmed some of the salaries in the document were accurate said the leak might have been in retaliation for the freezing of bonuses this year or the u-turn on free housing.

Newland declined to comment when contacted by Maktoob Business. Abu Dhabi Media Co (ADMC), which owns the National, was not immediately available for comment.

Sun, sea and sanitised reporting

2009-03-06T17:14:00.004+04:00

Not content with gagging the UAE media ("not to stop bad news but to stop journos digging for bad news blah blah" - Abdullatif), government authorities are now trying to silence business people too.

In a letter from Dubai's Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing, hoteliers were requested to comment only on business at their own hotels, since DTCM would “take the initiative of providing statements about the tourism in Dubai in general”.

This was “to ensure accuracy of the information published about Dubai” and to “avoid any misleading or conflicting statements,” the letter said.

Here's me thinking that hoteliers are probably well placed to comment on tourism in Dubai since they have ACTUAL room figures, not "government statistics". And they would ACTUALLY know - based on guest feedback - about whether tourists are fed up of construction, pollution, skanky water, price increases etc.

What's next? DIFC banning licensed companies from commenting on the state of the market? TECOM banning tenants from talking about internet usage and ADSL speed?

RAK hit and run

2009-03-05T10:49:00.003+04:00

From today's Gulf News (extracts below):

An American journalist working for an English daily from Abu Dhabi has run over an Egyptian security guard at the entrance of a university here because the guard denied him access to the campus.

The security guard did not allow entry to the journalist identified as "J." because he did not have an "entrance permission" which is a must for visitors as per the university regulations.

The Egyptian security guard is demanding Dh50,000 in compensation, and the university is demanding to continue with the case against the journalist and his sponsoring organisation.

The sources said that it has been reported that this particular journalist had repeatedly entered the university surreptitiously. He had entered with the university students and without holding any proper permission and this harmed the university's image. The sources said that the journalist had violated the privacy of the university.

Inspirational leadership

2009-02-26T19:44:00.002+04:00

From a comment:

Could I suggest urgent new thread based on the following letter sent to all AMG staff today - maybe DMO readers can comment on the "unique story of this organisation"?

Dear All,

As you are all aware we are all witnessing the dawn of a Change. Markets are shifting and organizations are being called upon to reassess their businesses and drive their activity towards consumer needs.

As a group, we are not immune to the depth and severity of this situation that has been reflected in our daily lives as well as our business in their different shapes and forms. The current Global economic tides have forced us into a careful recalculation of our business decisions.

To address the challenges we face, now more than ever, we need to restructure our business and transform AMG into a results driven organisation, which values quality over quantity and is focused on accelerating its rate of growth. As a result, very difficult decisions, including Staffing, will have to be made today.

We want to remember the unique story of this organisation and how we have shown, within a short time, our innovative roots and strong vision.

To fully realize our potential, we will all need to make adjustments and compromises. I am confident that if we work together, as one team, we will come out of this difficult time in our history even stronger and be well placed to multiply our growth moving forward.

Thanks and regards,

Mohamed Almulla

Group Executive Director

Go for your lives.......

Radio kaka

2009-02-18T14:04:00.001+04:00

Another new thread request:

Can we get a thread going about the 'legal' issues between ENG and Fujairah Radio Network? This is apparently the reason that Coast is just playing music on a loop. Surely that has to be more interesting than 'Taps and Washers Weekly' being suspended by shite-TP.

Anyone got any info..?

Magazine closures

2009-02-16T23:36:00.003+04:00

New thread request:

We (ITP) have closed another two magazines today...(thought I would get in there first)

My good friend over the road at Motivate tells me they are going to announce one more "suspension" in the next few days.

Any guesses?

Turning the mirror back on PR

2009-02-05T12:53:00.004+04:00

One commenter has requested we tackle the issue of PR; we agree - let's face it, half of you will end up working in PR anyway, so we're all for it.

How about we do PR for a while. Stop sending me 2009 calendars, stop 'reverting shortly', stop saying 'do you remember me, we worked together with...' (yes moron, i remember you - I'm not 94 years old). Stop filling every press release with the following words: solution, integrated, delighted, strategic, iconic, leading, inaugural.

Who gives a crap if a two bit company has been 'awarded' a contract? if the company is listed maybe, but most aren't so why bother - all it does is tell people how small the company actually is. Why do you approach me about clients you clearly know nothing about? Why do you think i would like to go to dinner with your insurance company client - even if it is free! If i say i'm not interested why do you approach my colleagues trying to get in that way - no means no!

Why, if your client's stock price is going down faster than a Somali hooker, aren't you having them talk to the public about how great their order book is? What the hell is your job if not to make the company more viable to investors?!?!?!

I could go on but i also know my co-media member friends will want to shout loud about the utterly ridiculous crap they receive and deal with each day. PR in the UAE, its not just the media that is full of people who couldn't get a job anywhere else.

Is there still no love lost between PR and media? If there are so many ex-journos in PR, why are the press releases still craply written? And, do any PR people have any balls? And do any of them truly understand deadlines - especially for news wires?

Update: and what happens when a magazine like MEED hires JiWin to do its PR? At a time when the construction and real estate industries are falling apart, will MEED have to stick its neck in to avoid upsetting some of JiWin's clients, like Sama Dubai, Tatweer, Tecom and Dubai International Capital?

Big Unrest at The National

2009-01-27T09:51:00.003+04:00

According to an anonymous commenter:

Big, big unrest at The National. I know we have a relatively healthy number of staff, and yes we have the backing of some very wealthy men, but the vibe around here isn't very good. Everyone around me is looking over their shoulder. I'm not privy to information at all (I'm a mere reporter) and I can't tell you anything for certain, but there is a feeling of impending doom around here. I suppose we wouldn't be the only ones to face cutbacks. But I'd be surprised if a few senior people, and quite a few others, are still here at the beginning of Feb. Horrible feeling.

Censorship? or more media freedom?

2009-01-21T14:47:00.004+04:00

How do you feel about the new UAE media law? Do you feel it protects you and is a step away from censorship, or do you believe it increases your chances of being punished for ruining the country's reputation?

Jail is out (good news); fines are in for damaging the UAE's reputation or economy. Potentially, does this mean fines for any negative stories about the UAE? There has been plenty of coverage on the country's economy, as well as issues of transparency particularly in the real estate sector. A lot of this coverage in recent weeks has been negative. Will this change?

Return of the Jedi

2009-01-20T17:46:00.002+04:00

Interesting goings on at Motivate - magazines closing down (Society Dubai, any others?) and former Motivator, Jason Leavy, back from UK to take up a new position as Publishing Director. Leavy used to edit What's On, before leaving to set up Society Dubai (which was sold to Society Dubai after Leavy moved to ITP as group editor of Ahlan - you following?)

anyone got the lowdown?

Rewriting history

2009-01-05T18:53:00.005+04:00

Holy crap. Even by Gulf News standards, this editorial is a shocker. The opening para from Dr Mohammad Al Mutawa (professor of sociology at UAE University in Al Ain) says:

Today, the whole world stands as a witness to the fact that the Nazi holocaust was a mere lie, which was devised by the Zionists to blackmail humanity. The same Zionist entity swindled the world out of billions of dollars over the years to compensate the wrong and unjust which they claim to have been inflicted on their people.

Obviously, a qualification in history isn't a requirement to study sociology in Al Ain.

Update: The Guardian has picked up on the Gulf News column.

Getting his Bloomies in a twist

2009-01-05T12:39:00.003+04:00

You could forgive Dubai's Bloomberg cubicle slaves for getting a little hot under their collars. Uber-boss Michael Bloomberg - 100% owner of the media corp - has gone on a well-publicised (naturally) tour of Israel to pledge his support.

Bloomberg (the man, not the newswire) issued some heart-felt quotes after he was "hustled" to a bomb shelter. "It gives you great comfort to know that the Israelis are doing everything they can to protect their people, but sadly there is no defense against a rocket if it hits you."

All in all, a worry for the large and growing bureau based in DIFC?

Happy New Year

2009-01-04T19:13:00.000+04:00

Happy New Year, and bah humbugs of the season. Any of you media types care to make predictions for 2009? Guess the date Business 24-7 closes down? What new publications will Abdullatif launch in its place? And do we care?

Any nominations for the DMO New Year's DisHonours List?

Obviously, we've been lazy over Christmas and New Year and haven't even been in the office to while away our time on DMO. Postings may/may not resume shortly. In the mean time, send in your titbits of media gossip!

The abs and the abs not

2008-12-08T10:57:00.001+04:00

Is the Dubai fitness market in good enough shape to support two niche mens magazines? ITP have launched Men's Fitness and Motivate will soon launch magazine juggernaut - or gay icon, depending on which side of the gym you stand - Men's Health. It's going to be Reebok's at dawn down Garhoud way.

Great post and great title courtesy of an anon - thanks.

Farewell to ITP arms

2008-11-21T16:38:00.003+04:00

Seems the ever-revolving door at ITP Business is spinning even quicker with the rumour that Sean Cronin, editor-in-chief of Arabian Business, has stormed out - apparently because of internal censoring. Another recent escapee is David Westley, editorial director of ITP.net. Could they both be heading up the Sheikh Zayed Road to join Richard O'Sullivan in Abu Dhabi?

Is the death knell sounding for City 7?

2008-11-18T20:59:00.003+04:00

From a reader:

Rumours are flying that City 7 is about to go bust. Would anyone notice if it did?

Would you pay $300 million for ITP?

2008-11-13T16:15:00.003+04:00

From a commenter:

ITP is up forsale. $300m and its yours. Serafin is touting it about, but noone wants to touch an overstretched media house in an economic downturn with ads orders being cancelled faster than those being placed. Maybe launching a mag a week wasnt so smart after all, as for those commitments in India, tsk.

Sure as hell isn't on my Christmas list.

Mental blocking

2008-10-29T16:16:00.004+04:00

Whoops. ArabianBusiness.com has finally been blocked by Etishite. After a quick bypass of the proxy, we can't see anything offensive, unless its the exclusive about Dubai Mall being delayed again. Apparently the site falls foul of the Prohibited Content Categories. Does anyone know who has had their feathers ruffled over the website's content? Or was a Motivate minion a bit bored, and contacted the TRA to get the site blocked?

7 sent

2008-10-23T14:21:00.003+04:00

From a commenter:

Can we get a thread going on City 7’s X factor-style hunt for a new women’s show presenter(s)? It’s proper car-crash TV, which is ironic as it’s hosted by Adam whassisname, the car safety expert. It’s required viewing if you can stand the sheer horror of watching a bunch of impressionable bints being patronized by a panel of cretins who all look like extras from a M&M’s advert. One life-affirming moment follows another as the bald guy and the two fat girls exercise their idiocy in a studio setting not too dissimilar to those that Al Qaeda use when they’re X-factoring their hostages heads off.

For sure. We didn't even realise City 7 still existed!

Impressionable bints being patronised by cretins? Sounds like a regular Tuesday night in Scarletts.

On-Air Swear

2008-10-22T16:48:00.003+04:00

Virgin DJ Revin John has been fired for reading an "offensive article" on air:

Mahmoud Al-Rasheed, general manager of Arab Radio Network, told Arabian Business in an emailed statement on Wednesday that the presenter had been asked to leave for “inappropriate on-air conduct”.

John, who is originally from South Africa, is believed to have read an interview on-air which was offensive for religious reasons.

The sacking follows an interview John gave with Dubai newspaper Gulf News in June, in which he said he had “studied the Middle Eastern market thoroughly” before his arrival.

And a DMO commenter already has more:

Virgin Morning show presenter Revin John has been released of his duties with immediate effect. This apperantly stems from him airing a pre-recorded "joke" in which he communicates to God, asking Him what was on his agenda. The deep voice over replied "world peace, Madonna and Britney." That's just part of the gag, but you get the gist of it. It appears Haks aren't the only ones here who can easily get the sack for their "public" mistakes, eh?

Just a thought

2008-10-22T00:20:00.002+04:00

Has anyone at ITP proofread the programme for the Media & Marketing Show conference, which is hosted by ITP and Arabian Business? Would have been nice if they could spell Saatchi and Saatchi right, and I'm not sure Joseph Ghossoub would be particularly overjoyed to be plain ole Jo in the agenda. Delighted to see Martin Newland is giving a presentation on What it takes to survive in Middle East Journalism. But what I really want to know is: what the hell are Forenoon Sessions?

And before you start squealing about how we're always slagging ITP off, we're not. We try and post other topics, but you lot end up at the same conclusion anyway. But, to be honest, schoolboy errors like this one are just asking for mockery.

Campaign the Sequel

2008-10-18T11:33:00.003+04:00

Hurray, Campaign's coming back at the end of the month! Will it have the same wit, bite and verve under new management at Motivate? Will it slag off its own advertisers? And, more importantly, will The Spin be back?

With the recent launch of Mediaweek by ENG, there's plenty of newsprint dedicated to marketing and advertising. Is the market big enough for these titles plus Communicate and Gulf Marketing Review?

Media vs Media

2008-10-10T12:09:00.005+04:00

Poor old Gulf News is unhappy with the latest Fleet Street coverage of Dubai - article here:

Two articles published three days apart from each other in leading British newspapers lashed out at how expatriates live and work in the UAE. The list of criticism included: the state of thousands of labourers, the thriving business of prostitution, the status of the 'rich' and 'pampered' Emiratis who are the only group enjoying the oil wealth, 'racism' of all forms and shapes, lack of accountability and transparency, the demographic imbalance, and of course, the case of sex on the public beach.

[...]

Hence, when such articles of criticism appear, they come across as a reminiscent of an ignorant bygone colonial era. Unfortunately, and much so disappointedly, some seem to be still entrapped in the old mentality of discriminatory bias between East and West.

So know now that objecting to slavery, oppression, discrimination and racism makes you a ignorant biased Colonialist.

War resumes on the National front

2008-10-06T22:52:00.004+04:00

Oh what a capital cock-up.

The National, owned and edited in Abu Dhabi, has had to print a retraction of a story that ran on the front page of its Business section, claiming that Dubai house prices fell 16 per cent. The story was particularly timely as it ran on the first day of Cityscape. Unfortunately, that meant it was particularly high profile coverage. Is that the smell of sweat and fear, and the sounds of clashing drums, cymbals and rolling heads, in The National's offices? Sources tell us that Dubai Inc has "gone mental" over the story, especially as it comes at a time where question marks have been placed over the city's ability to maintain its real estate market in light of the global economic crisis.

Here is the retraction:

In today’s edition, The National incorrectly cited a report by Colliers International as saying that Dubai house prices fell by 16 per cent in the second quarter. Colliers actually said the rate of growth in prices slowed to 16 per cent in the second quarter from 43 per cent in the previous quarter. The National also incorrectly quoted the regional director of Colliers International, Ian Albert, as saying that prices had fallen. He said that the rate of growth had slowed. The National regrets the errors.

Regrets the error? I'll bet it does. Expect to see a number of fawning "Dubai is good" stories over the next few weeks until the fuss dies down, and The National can return to its familiar Dubai-bashing ways.

Now that's what I call news, volume 1

2008-10-05T17:24:00.004+04:00

When is a newspaper not a newspaper? When it's the Cityscape show daily. The event doesn't start until tomorrow (it runs until October 9th), yet each day's edition is already done and dusted. The cut and thrust of journalism at the "world's largest real estate event"...

New sheriff for 7Days?

2008-09-29T12:21:00.002+04:00

From a reader:

Can DMO start a thread about what the arrival of Mark Rix from Associated as new CEO of 7 days means, especially for Steve Lee? The journalists were all laughing like drains when they were told.

Can Associated claw back anything after its purchase of a majority share in 7Days? Distribution and readership have fallen, and I would imagine ad sales have too.

Radio FM

2008-09-23T14:17:00.000+04:00

A submission from british audio:

------------------
It's been a while since the state of radio in the UAE had a severe blogging - and so it is with regret that we have to announce the sad demise of decent radio in the region - after a long and painful illness.

Many questions spring to mind: why is the blogosphere devoid of commentaries regarding the future of ARN (what will they re-brand Virgin as now that the name is to disappear) ... and what has happened at Coast FM? Are ADMG/The National really going to launch two or three new stations (and if so, what formats/frequencies/etc.?) and why oh why do the powers that be at Gulf News Broadcasting (Radio 1 and 2) allow their presenters to be so bad at everything they do (with the possible exception of Fadi, but then again, only on occasions)?

I listen daily with interest to the most appalling murder of the English language (pronunciation, word/syllable stress, grammar etc.) from both announcers and supposedly highly paid voice-over specialists with my head in my hands and my hands hovering over the off-switch. You'd have thought that the Gulf NEWS would have a NEWS reader who could pronounce GULF ... instead of GOLF. Who approves the most mindlessly atrocious copy for commercials (which manage to be both patronising and irritating in equal measure - Marks and Spencer lingerie, anyone?) Or any ad. that tells you an offer is only good "'til stocks last" instead of 'while stocks last'?

I am in danger of exacerbating a heart condition every time I swith on - am I the only one, or is this just an anti ITP/Motivate site?

At least help me out and point me in the direction of some decent radio....
------------------

Pounds of flesh?

2008-09-19T12:29:00.003+04:00

The rumour mill is buzzing that this comment on the esteemed publication popbitch refers to a Dubai/ex-Dubai hack. Certainly, there has been a marked increase in the number of UAE stories being leaked to the site in the last year...

Which newspaper hack is on sick leave thanks to management discovering that he has been fiddling expenses to up to half a million pounds over the last few years? He was so creative he set up friends and family members as fake contributors and paid them for imaginary stories.

The hack offered to pay back most of the cash if management didn't prosecute but is now threatening to spill the beans on all sorts of senior management fiddles if they go ahead.

It poses an interesting question as to the nature of expenses. Most hacks have done it at some time, even if it's claiming for a business lunch with a mate from PR... what policies exist for claiming back expenses in Dubai? Do companies reimburse expenses willingly?

Truly inspirational

2008-09-17T17:29:00.005+04:00

The latest heart-warming news to come out of ITP is the Inspire Awards - just 74 days away, according to the website.

Inspire Dubai is a celebration of our Emirate’s most amazing individuals – the unsung heroes and heroines who make Dubai what it is for the 1.5 million of us who call it home.

Hope there's a special category for the amazing individuals at ITP - the organisers - for managing not to gag as they wrote the copy. And another category to those ITPers who manage to go into work, time and again, with no praise and no thanks from their masters. DMO would love to sponsor that category....

And a special word goes out to the kind souls in Garhoud who are selflessly putting on this event. And selling sponsorship around it. Hope all the profits go to a charity other than the Directors' Bentley Fund.

Launch your missiles at the KT relaunch

2008-09-08T16:15:00.005+04:00

By request, a Khaleej Times relaunch thread.

Your opinions on The Nation's Favourite No 1. Revamped Newspaper please.

PS: Anyone else still dearly miss the "dear readers" editorial letters by former KT Dear Leader Mohammed A.R. Galadari? You can still find them here - Comment Section - if you are feeling nostalgic.

Starting a magazine in Dubai

2008-08-16T10:55:00.003+04:00

A question from curious george:

If someone wanted to start a mag in dxb how should they go about doing that and if ITPs practices are norm (lying, scamming, cheating, etc), could an honest mag ever have a chance?

Any advice/answers welcome.

Car crash reporting

2008-08-08T10:58:00.004+04:00

For a moment, we thought the combination of the sweaty smoggy haze of Dubai and pre-vacation excitement had turned us soft and fluffy, when we let this piece in Gulf News slip through the cracks. Luckily, we woke up with hangovers today and wanted to vent.

Could we have reached new depths in the UAE with Gulf News' My car saved me from death? We would urge you to read it in its full glory. Stand-out quotes from the driver include:

"I felt safe and protected in my Volvo S80... During the accident I really praised myself for driving a Volvo."

Good job that the manufacturers were on hand to provide a quote as well:

"The testimony of Eric Brouwer demonstrates that the Volvo S80 has been developed to make it one of the safest cars in its class....[He} is a living proof that Volvo is committed to manufacture vehicles with high safety criteria."

Next week: a news story about how many hot women are attracted to a convertible. Brought to you by the makers of Porsche.

Vanity fare

2008-07-29T13:25:00.002+04:00

It seems the UAE isn't the only country that loves its vanity publishing . Wonder if the Cook County magazine had better or worse spelling and grammar than we get here?

Hands on services

2008-07-28T11:45:00.004+04:00

Cracking piece in the Kipp Report today, questioning whether Gulf News has been running ads for massage parlours with benefits. Interesting to see German girls are charged at a premium; they must have particularly good hands.

Has anyone else noticed adverts like this in UAE publications?

For what it's worth, I think the Kipp Report is pretty good.

Crunch Times for Khaleej?

2008-07-27T21:56:00.001+04:00

According to The National, the Khaleej Times will be given a (long overdue) overhaul. The paper reports that Rahul Sharma, formerly the Delhi editor of Hindustan Times, has been appointed as editor, with Didier Brun, former senior vice president at the International Herald Tribune (IHT), as chief executive.

With excellent distribution already in place (something The National struggled with in Dubai in the early days), and Dubai heavyweight financial backing, this is an interesting move. But can the Khaleej Times possibly survive without its glorious comment pieces pieces by Mohammed Galadari, or investigative reporting?

How will the new improved Khaleej Times sit in the existing media landscape? And what next for the increasingly dreadful Business 24-7? How will Gulf News fare? And what's the future of 7Days? Post your comments in the normal place.

Living the teen dream

2008-07-22T16:45:00.007+04:00

You can just hear the voiceover advert now, as the UAE gets its first teen magazine.

It's so dreamy - soon there will be a magazine for me and my friends! We'll get advice on boys, and kissing, and how to dress like Britney Spears or pose semi-naked like Hannah Montana without upsetting our daddy!

Or I'll learn that it's ok to be just like Lindsay Lohan and find love's young dream with another girl! And they'll answer my question of "how far is too far"!

I'll finally know what Jake Gyllenhaal's favourite colour is and the name of the Jonas Brothers' pets!

And just think of all that totally awesome but cheap fashion from Top Shop and Miss Selfridge, that'll make me look like a total Lolita but if I'm lucky, I'll be helping those poor Asian sweat shop kids* at the same time!

Sadly you won't learn anything that's going to actually help you in life: how to make vodka jelly and have a crafty fag without your parents knowing. And you're unlikely to get the answer to your real dilemma: will my parents give me a nose job for my sweet sixteenth if I ask them nicely enough?

Because this new magazine is being launched in Dubai, by ITP, who may well be trying to keep their noses clean. Expect to see pages of fluffy kittens and "how to complete your homework in time" features instead.

For anyone interested in editing this gem of a new title, especially if you have a passion for the female youth market (and don't happen to be a skeezy male journalist working within the hallowed Garhoud halls), then you can apply here):

* DMO is not condoning the use of sweat shops, nor implying that Top Shop and Miss Selfridge use them.

Open Skies: officially excess baggage

2008-07-21T21:10:00.006+04:00

The Emirates in-flight magazine Open Skies has been considered surplus to requirements on the A380 super jumbo. Hope that means passengers will also be saved from the shocking luxury buying guide, where a couple of million Skywards miles and a couple of million dollars can buy you a jet-propelled personal rocket pack, or something equally useful.

Was this really an eco-friendly measure from Emirates (and - yikes - will they cut gold card baggage allowance on the A380 as well?) or was there another reason?

Note from editors: to make it clear, it's only the A380 route so far that will be without the Open Skies magazine (so no danger of us being deprived for many years to come). This isn't what we originally posted. That will teach us to cut & paste from someone else's article, which has since been amended. But at least we credited the article we ripped off, right?

Radio rant

2008-07-10T13:51:00.003+04:00

We could feel the bile dripping from this comment, which was sent to us this morning.

Just thought I'd slot this in while the rage is still incandescent. Nearly crashed my car today listening to Jess Swann and Akhtar Khan (he of the incredibly posh accent) on Dubai Eye talking about counterfeit goods in Dubai. It was possibly the most badly researched (and presented) bit of broadcasting I’ve ever heard in my life.

Their conclusion was - pirated goods meant that ‘luxury’ items (i.e anything from perfume to pashminas) are available to the poor therefore it was morally justifiable.

Piracy poses a massive threat to the global economy and is built on established criminal networks that finance human trafficking, narcotics, terrorism and scariest of all, the massive shift towards counterfeit pharmaceuticals.

Ironically, it is the economies and health of Third World countries that manufacture the illicit goods that are most at risk, which is probably why people don’t give a shit. There is not much of a line between buying illicit handbags in Karama and lethal medication for your kids. Somebody take these idiots off the air today.

Thank F**k It's Friday brunch

2008-07-07T14:03:00.003+04:00

This is hot off the sleaze press from an anon commenter:

No names, no pack drill. A senior (female) salesperson from a certain large Dubai based English language publisher was arrested on the beach on Friday.

She'd been to two brunches, met a tourist, and headed to the beach with him. The first time the police found them in fragante delicto, they were kicked off the beach with a warning. When they went back, she mouthed off at them, apparently with a religious slur, which resulted in her being arrested.

The Arabic boss of her company had to cut short his holiday to get her out 36 hours later.

The trial (if it hasn't already happened) is imminent.

Anyone got any other (suitably anonymous) stories about media folk's brushes with the authorities?

Here at DMO, we remember hazy tales of a female journalist getting Blue with a boyband member, but it was never confirmed.

A novel approach to Dubai

2008-07-02T09:25:00.001+04:00

It warms the cockles of our DMO hearts when we can report on the success of a former Dubai journalist, especially when we're genuinely pleased. David Williams, who many of you will know as a freelance journo or as provider of media passes to the rugby or tennis, has had his first novel published.

Desert England is a thriller about football hooliganism, and is set in England and Dubai. While we're still waiting for our preview copies, we're told that some of the scenes in Dubai cut pretty close to the bone.

David is appearing on the book show on Dubai Eye on Saturday; a case of the poacher turned gamekeeper?

The Magnificence of Mr Mugabe

2008-07-01T10:29:00.004+04:00

Superb thread submission:
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Are ITP and AMG going for the World Dictatorship Tour 2008?

While you might think it was difficult to top the Arabian Business visit to China (one week after the brutal supression of dissent in Nepal) that resulted in some of the least critical commentary in media history, ITP has gone one better by sending Ahlan! to Zimbabwe in the same week it saw the collapse of a democratic election and - hey! - the brutal supression of dissent.

Best quotes? (From the Zimbabwe Chronicle):

"The journalists talked much about their expeditions in the county and one of the touring journalists, Kate Hazell of ITP, a media group with over 200 publications that covers most countries in the Middle East was overwhelmed by the tourism packages, which the country has on offer. "It’s not my first time in Zimbabwe, I was once here sometime back. I didn’t know one can afford to do hunting as well," said Hazell."

Full marks too to AMG's Adam Wilson, who's quoted as saying:

"I work for a publication that focuses mainly on business. Our readers are mainly top business executives and I hope that if I can write all what I have seen they will be interested in the opportunities that exist here both in terms of investment and leisure."

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Next up: Grazia covers Pyongyang Fashion Week.

Notice

2008-06-27T00:51:00.002+04:00

We have removed the Canvas post and won't be publishing any futher comments on that issue at the moment.

The Aussie exodus

2008-06-22T15:37:00.000+04:00

As more and more Dubai media people seem to be fleeing Down Under, we've actually had a request by a newly-Sydney-based PR type for prospective job candidates. You don't need to be Australian - their company has been recruiting from the UK.

So if you're fed up of sand and camels and ITP then drop us an email to the usual place (dubaimediablog gmail) and we can pass the details on. No word if the package includes a six cylinder kangaroo, but you never know.

The Brotocols of the Elders of the National

2008-06-10T16:48:00.004+04:00

Someone commented this on an earlier thread - here - and it seemed interesting enough for a new topic:

The National also has some kind of pro-Israel agenda. Anyone who has an eye for such editorial policies will notice it.

Starting with labeling "Jerusalem, Israel" on a map (which even Fox News wouldn't do) to calling the boundry between the Israeli occupied Golan and Syria proper the "Israeli-Syrian border".

Aside from that, referring to Jewish colonists in the Golan as "Jewish residents of the Golan" is a really good job at explaining the reality of the occupation to the reader.

The National's pro-Israel editorial policy is being watched closely. Not just by me and others but also by people high up in the government.

Nice to know that the government of Abu Dhabi has come out with an official paper that has Zionist leanings. That' what happens when you bring in an EIC (Newland) that is openly sympathetic to Israel. Read his op-ed in Canada's Macleans magazine. Looks like Abu Dhabi is a asleep.

Thoughts?

Edit: A reader has added this comment, which is also worth discussing.

There seems to be a perception that The National is really hitting Dubai while giving Abu Dhabi more positive coverage. I work at the paper and I have been hearing this from journos and from business /government officials in Dubai. A few days ago I was politely told to piss off because of the paper's position on Dubai.

Other than the paper's obvious pro-Israel stance, is there also an anti-Dubai bias?

New men's magazine

2008-06-05T13:45:00.005+04:00

Our sources tell us that the first magazine from ENG Media will be a weekly men's magazine called QI and will be launched in about 2 weeks. Former Charged editor Alex Ritman will be heading it up. Regional men's magazine are of a notoriously low standard here (witness Arabian Man or Al Nisr's awful 4Men) so does this mag stand a chance? We are not too optimistic.

Moving in - and moving up?

2008-05-29T07:54:00.000+04:00

Yup, because new premises are gonna fix the problem ... The UAE Journalists Association has got a new home.

This bit is genius:

He said the upcoming premises will be a top-notch centre, equipped with sophisticated tools. "The headquarters will be a meeting place amidst a social and professional environment. It will contain all the required facilities such as auditorium, library, computer centre, journalism training centre, sports and social facilities plus a cafeteria," he said.

By sophisticated tools, I was rather hoping the centre would be equipped with - oh I don't know - actual journalists? However, it's more likely to have bugged phones and blocked internet.

TV ads

2008-05-20T17:06:00.002+04:00

By request from an anon commenter:

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TV advertising. first there was the Lacnor ad in which the young girl cuddles the juice carton like it was mammy and now there's one in which a mother struggling to comfort her baby finds the only way to do it is to put her KFC grease covered finger into the tot's mouth.

who approves this crap and is anyone else bothered by it?
----------------------

Turning the TV back on

2008-05-17T03:25:00.002+04:00

We've been a bit overkill on the National, so back to TV. Scroll down this article: Bridging The Gulf.

The attempt to fuse Western talent and values with Arab control have not always been smooth in the media business. Al-Jazeera, the original beacon of a popular, autonomous media, owned by the Emir of Qatar, has faced serious challenges in the period since it launched its English-language rolling news channel. Its first year was dogged by clashes over terms and conditions. Jo Burgin, a former senior executive, is seeking £1 million in compensation, claiming that she was dismissed because she is a “white, Christian woman”.

Yesterday al-Jazeera English brought in Tony Burman as managing director, who had previously run CBC News in Canada, in an attempt to heal some of the rifts created under the previous regime. Nigel Parsons, the former managing director, was pushed upstairs to a role running “business acquisition and development”. For all the problems, al-Jazeera's output remains of high quality and there are no allegations of overt interference.

Nevertheless, with Gulf states pouring cash into media, outsiders believe that they have something to contribute. That thinking underlies the decision by the BBC World Service to launch an Arabic channel, because the BBC believes that it is able to offer an independent voice. But, whereas it might have had to battle before with censorship, now it has to battle with vibrant rivals for audience - a sign that a market for media is developing.

Have we got any Al Jazeerans reading who can give their perspective on the "rifts"? Enough ex-Dubai media are now working there. And anyone been hired from BBC Arabic? There used to be some ex-BBC Arabic staff working at MBC, are they planning to return?

International media up the pressure

2008-04-28T13:20:00.003+04:00

One reader has asked us to open up the debate on the upcoming UAE versions of the Financial Times and International Herald Tribune. This follows on from the local edition of The Times.

How do you think these titles will fare? Will local papers like Gulf News and the newly-launched The National suffer? Or, will it just mean that existing FT and IHT buyers have easier access to their paper of choice, and there will be very little effect on the local market? And, will this further highlight the lack of available talent at the upper end of the local business media market (with newswires and publications already struggling to fill their vacancies)?