This came during the 1st Local News Networks Forum, which was held Thursday at the Sharjah Sheraton Hotel under the patronage of Sheikh Sultan bin Ahmed Al Qasimi, Deputy Ruler of Sharjah, Chairman of the Sharjah Media Council, and organised by "Sharjah 24" news website, affiliated with the Sharjah Government Media Bureau (SGMB).
The forum stressed the need to adopt professional and ethical charters for news networks that include rules regulating their work and oblige employees of news networks to attend training courses aimed at developing their performance and raising their professional competencies, and linking the renewal and obtaining their licenses to their fulfillment of training programmes.
The recommendations of the forum, which was attended by many officials of local media institutions, news networks, university students, and experts, included informing media students about the latest developments in the news networks sector, involving them in training programmes and specialised events, and creating an academic course specialised in news networks methodologies.
The participants in the forum recommended drafting a law that binds news networks and sets deterrent penalties for networks that do not adhere to publishing ethics.
Tariq Saeed Allay, Director-General of the Sharjah Government Media Bureau, stressed the keenness of the SGMB to follow up on the recommendations of the forum and to develop appropriate mechanisms and programmes with the concerned authorities to implement them in line with the visions and directions of the UAE in developing media work in its various tools and outlets.
Allay noted that the forum, which has attracted many officials and specialists since its first edition, aims to read and analyse news networks in light of their spread, pointing to the importance of adopting the media developments of the electronic publishing system and keeping pace with the language of the times in order to meet the trends of the public, qualify the new generation and students and adopt their media talents, refine them and prepare them for work on electronic news platforms.
Mohammed Jalal Al Raisi, Director-General of the Emirates News Agency (WAM), stressed the importance of the forum, which brings together specialists from various media to support the media system in the United Arab Emirates and come up with developmental initiatives.
Al Raisi pointed out that the forum, which discussed the reality of news networks, contributes to identifying the shortcomings and gaps to be filled by integrating the work of official institutions and news networks, leading to building new, more widespread networks in different languages and creating media content commensurate with the great cultural diversity that the UAE embraces with the presence of more than 200 nationalities in the country.
Highlighting the importance and role of news networks, the Director General of the Emirates News Agency calls for their containment by media institutions and the concerned authorities, allocating training programmes to support them, and adopting legal legislation that is commensurate with the news content.
Al Raisi pointed out the importance of familiarising workers in the news networks with the ethics of the profession, and that the priority of working with them should be for specialists, whether media graduates or workers in the media field and those who are prepared and qualified to work in the sector.
It is noteworthy that the sessions of the Local News Networks Forum discussed the role of individual and independent news networks and their impact on the news industry and media content. The forum also dealt with the reality and future of news networks and the development opportunities available to them to contribute more effectively to supporting the national agenda and the most important local issues.
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