Palestine Media Forum Ends with Calls to Strengthen Its Media
Istanbul, 11 Sya’ban 137/20 May 2016 (MINA) – The two-day Palestine International Forum for Media and Communication ended on Friday with participants concurring that instead of relying on international media, Palestine has to strengthen its own media to provide a compelling narrative of its struggle and in dispelling the Zionist propaganda.
The participants are aware that it is certainly an uphill task due to the lack of resources and political will. However, they are also aware that a strong media could work to their advantage like how it had benefitted Israel, Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA) reported, quoting Bernama.
Imad Nayef Musa, Aljazeera’s Online Department Manager, shared with the audience during the first session of the day themed Digital Palestine that the number of Palestinian journalists too were insufficient.
He attributed this problem to the fact that Palestinian youths could not take up journalism due to the limited education and employment opportunities for them back home.
The Doha-based Imad believes a strong media is necessary to counter the propaganda against Palestine. These include the “Israel is not Palestine” propaganda through the internet and the DAESH narrative used by some media to describe the unrest in Gaza.
Meanwhile, Arlene Clemesha, Professor of Contemporary Arab History and the History of Palestine noted that often many of the new reports on Palestine were superficial and did not provide the full narrative.
Many of the media and columnists too shy away from the Palestine subject.
The academician with University de Sao Paulo in Brazil pointed out the news organisations did not want to see reaction from Zionist lobby groups or businesses and this is how they ended up with superficial or incomplete narrative on Palestine.
Moreover, there is no incentive for them to write on Palestine.
Participants too wanted to see a stronger Palestine media that would relay the actual narrative of Palestine to the Palestinian Diaspora and the world.
Many of the participants who have been expelled by Israel also stated that though they have been away from their motherland, they have been monitoring the developments in Palestine and were hopeful of returning to a sovereign Palestine state one day.
One of the participants even mentioned that the Palestine media should channel news reports in Hebrew, so that the Jews too would learn of the Gaza narrative.
The two-day event also provided an opportunity for the Palestinians in exile to meet up, learn of the developments back home and network. More than 400 participants attended the event. (T/R07/R01)
Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)
