The Shoura Council member, Dr. Fayez bin Abdullah Al-Shahri, praised the role of the Civil Defense recently saying they have to endure high levels of stress in order to save citizens’ lives and that new media users sometimes criticize Civil Defense members unfairly confusing rumors with facts.

Al-Shahri was the guest speaker at a gathering of civil defense employees in Riyadh. His lecture entitled, “The new media and security: Partnership and responsibility,” was held at the General Directorate of the Civil Defense in Riyadh under the patronage of Director General of Civil Defense, Maj. Gen. Suleiman bin Abdullah Al-Amro.

Commenting on the irresponsible behavior trending on social media, Al-Shahri said that posting videos taken out of context and criticizing the performance of the Civil Defense was not doing justice to their commendable work.

He said that the Civil Defense was playing an important role in maintaining the Kingdom’s security which is the basis for a healthy and constructive society.

He explained that the security awareness campaigns have spread to include a wider audience through the new media outlets, adding that there was a need for careful planning of these programs to ensure that the message is delivered accurately to the target audiences to achieve the desired goals.

Al-Shahri stressed that each citizen must make it a duty and part of social responsibility to help the Civil Defense and supports its efforts in maintaining security and stability.

He called upon new media users to be accurate when posting information and said that there should be social media leaders who could help to negate inaccurate or fabricated information with the coordination of the media departments in the security establishment.

However, Al-Shahri also pointed out the positive features of social media which helps spread media messages of security institutions quickly and efficiently.

He also praised their interactive nature which allows for information sharing.

At the conclusion of the lecture, Dr. Al Amro honored Al-Shahri by awarding him a plaque in recognition for his role in community service, upgrading concepts of security and the development of media tools in the security department.