The relevance of an English-language daily like Arab News in a country that plays host to millions of pilgrims who come for Haj and Umrah and more than six million expatriate workers need not be overemphasized.
The importance of such a newspaper becomes even more pressing when we learn that there are millions of others outside who closely follow developments in the Kingdom being the world’s largest oil exporter and world Islamic leader.
A publication becomes successful when it takes into consideration the importance of its readers as well as the importance of events and news, without ignoring either and giving each the importance it deserves.
A successful paper will not only give importance to content but also to its style, layout and outward look apart from selection of news. In modern days, information technology plays a big role in newspaper production. Those who ignore this technology will miss the train of progress and the readers will turn their back to look for other papers.
Today Arab News celebrates three decades of its interaction with its readers. A newspaper can win the hearts of people by providing them with correct information in the best form and at the right time.
Arab News has made tremendous achievements in the last 30 years which has benefited its readers. It informs them with the latest world developments and entertains them with human interest stories.
The growing circulation of the paper as well as the popularity of its online edition, which is visited by over two million people worldwide daily, reflects its credibility. The road to success is not easy and a lot of effort is required to maintain that success.
The need for a strong international newspaper like Arab News is growing in our contemporary world where narrow mindedness has prevailed over reasoning, bigots compete with one another to spread hatred and violence and the peaceful religion of Islam is facing a major smear campaign.
This is the time when the world needs a paper like Arab News to promote intellectual reasoning, the power of evidence, clarity of mind and sound judgment in order to help readers find out the truth.
Thirty years of success is a great achievement. The vast experience and maturity Arab News has gained over the past years is enough for it to make greater strides in the years to come. I wish Arab News to grow stronger in this age when bombs and rockets often overtake words. We have seen many writers, reporters and editors who have fallen martyrs while they were carrying out their duty. No doubt the reasoning of the printed word should prevail over gun culture in order to promote world peace and end the bloodbath.
(Dr. Saad Al-Ghamdi is executive vice president of Abdul Latif Jameel Co. Ltd.)
