Saudi Gazette

 

MANAMA — Alarab News Channel was formally introduced with an announcement by its newly appointed chairman and CEO Fahd Al-Sukait that the channel will go on air from Feb. 1, 2015.

 

Addressing the international media at Manama’s Sherataon Hotel, Al-Sukait in the company of channel’s general manager and veteran journalist Jamal Khashoggi promised unbiased, objective and independent reporting by the channel which will mainly focus on general and financial news from around the world with special coverage of the region. 

 

The multi-million dollar project has been in the pipeline for quite some time. It was initially planned to relay its transmission from Cairo but subsequent Arab Spring and some other technical difficulties made the management to shift to Manama, Bahrain. 

The channel is headquartered in prestigious Moda Mall. Its state-of-the-art technology probably makes it one of the most technologically advanced news channel in the region. 

 

The anchor room as well as newsroom is all equipped with robotics and Mozart technology which is currently possessed by just few Western TV channels.

 

During the press conference, both Al-Sukait and Jamal Khashoggi, repeatedly emphasized on the independence of the channel and both quoted Prince Waleed Bin Talal, the owner of the channel, as saying that he wants the channel to be absolutely independent in every aspect.

 

With a core focus on news, the all-Arabic language Alarab News Channel will deliver programming that covers politics, business and social affairs in addition to travel, sports and culture. The region’s leading business news will be delivered through its cooperation agreement with Bloomberg, which will provide world-class information to the region’s business community.

 

Alarab will break the mold of news presentation, becoming a platform for transparent presentation and discussion of the region’s most intractable issues and challenges and will raise the relevant questions that are of concern to its viewers. Using expert opinion from renowned guests and never-before-seen social media interaction with its viewers, Alarab will deliver news through a creative and pioneering approach.

 

A full update on the channel, the management, the technical capabilities and a brief overview of the programs of the channel were shared with the media persons, who also had an exclusive tour of the studios.

 

Recently, Alarab won “Broadcast Project of the Year” and “Best Set Design”, two prestigious awards at the annual ASBU BroadcastPro Summit and Awards in Dubai, reflecting the best-in-class infrastructure the team has put in place ahead of the launch.