Friday, May 01, 2009
Gulf News
Dubai: A keynote speech at the Arab Media Forum later this month is going to be delivered by award winning American investigative journalist Seymour Hersh, the forum's organisers announced.
The Dubai Press Club, which organises the annual media forum, said Hersh would be speaking at the Atlantis Hotel on Palm Jumeirah on May 12, the second and final day of the forum.
The lecture will touch upon the fundamentals of investigative journalism, his own experiences in the Middle East chasing stories, the current political situation in the region following the Obama presidency, and recent international developments.
He will also illustrate how the "boogeyman" of national security is put to good use by governments to curtail civil liberties.
It will be followed by open interaction with the audience, which will consist of more than 600 top media personalities from the Arab world and beyond.Hersh, whose work over four decades has made him one of the world's most respected journalists, will address the audience at the forum on the role of investigative journalism in society with special reference to his own experiences in the Middle East.
Najla Al Awadi, Deputy CEO, Dubai Media Incorporated and member of the Federal National Council, will moderate the session.
Hersh's breakthrough stories include the 1968 My Lai massacre and its cover up during the Vietnam war, Nixon's secret bombing of Cambodia, the illegal CIA surveillance of antiwar critics inside the United States, and the abuse of Iraqi prisoners at Abu Ghraib prison by US soldiers.
Sometimes described as "the last American reporter" in view of declining rigor in journalism in the country, Hersh has won most of the major journalism prizes in the United States, including the Pulitzer for international reporting in 1970, and a record five George Polk awards.
Hersh currently writes for the New Yorker. Arab Media Forum, the largest media gathering in the Arab world, is held this year on the slogan "Arab Media: Weathering a Period of Change and Crisis," and the various sessions and workshops are expected to cover the main issues that confront the media industry, especially in the context of the global financial crisis and other developments.
The forum will also host a debate discussing Arabic versions of foreign channels. In recent years, a number of western countries including France, Germany, UK and the United States, have introduced Arabic language news channels.
The session is titled "The Arabic Versions of Foreign TV Channels: What Objectives and What Messages?"
There will also be a debate on the coverage of the war on Gaza, which will form its concluding session. It will especially focus on the divisions within the Arab media, such as the debate on describing slain Palestinians as martyrs.
Gulf News 2009. All rights reserved.
