The editor in chief of Shams newspaper, Khalid Al-Darraj, disagreed.
He pointed out that leadership jobs, particularly in the media, relied on the ability to have space and opportunity for traveling, late meetings and being on the move much of the time that would naturally limit a woman “in a conservative society such as ours.”
He said in the Arab media, women in the most senior positions were very few in number.
“In the last 30 years, in the Kingdom, very few women have attained the position of editor which tells us a lot about the jobs and opportunities for women in general,” Al-Darraj said.
Jameel Al-Thiabi, editor in chief of Al-Hayat newspaper rejected the point of social limitations, saying that women journalists exist in every country, taking stands and proving that they can perform as competently as men. He believes that women were in prominent positions in the media long before the minister’s “green light.”
Al-Thiabi pointed out, “Sayidaty magazine had a female editor in chief many years ago, and now Rotana magazine has one. And in some media institutions, there are whole departments run by women.”
He observed that women held senior positions in both East and West, and that “Saudi women were also ready and qualified to do so.”
Although Al-Thiabi agrees that editor in chief positions come with responsibilities, he says they are also prestigious ones which should not be the main, or the only, aim of women.
“We should look from a wider perspective, aiming at women being on boards of directors in those institutions,” he said.
Al-Thiabi stressed that Saudi women should take a chance on opportunities given to her, show that she is capable of doing the job and thus maintain her position.
