Tenth Edition - AMF 2011 (Arab Media Riding out the Storms of Change)
17-18 May 2011
The 10th edition of the Arab Media Forum will focus on the media aspects of the political and social changes currently being witnessed in the Arab world. It will aim to accurately and comprehensively reflect the on-ground reality of the Arab media landscape and highlight recent developments in the direction and demeanor of messages that are being disseminated by media outlets.
Marking the tenth anniversary of the event, AMF 2011 will trace the journey from its first edition in the year 2000 to its current format as the most prominent annual media gathering in the region that hosts under one umbrella more than 2,000 attendees from across the global media spectrum.
The open workshops will discuss a series of issues such as the shift in media content towards local news for local audiences, and the nature of competition between different media outlets, particularly the satellite channels. Other sessions will deal with the media scene in Jordan, issues related to the phenomenon of on-air medical clinics and the responsibility of the media in raising viewers’ awareness.
Workshops will also be dedicated to discussing the international media’s redefined image of the Arabs following the latest political and social developments in the wider region. A session titled “A New Window through which Winds of Change Blow!” will analyze the evolution of social media networks and raise a number of questions and viewpoints on the extent and impact of their continuing proliferation.
The forum will additionally debate on more focused issues such as the trend towards open-source culture in a session titled “End of the Era of Secrecy”. The media’s ability to keep up with the shifts and social transformations in the Arab street will also be brought up for debate.
This tenth edition will look into the growing impact of the Arab youth on the media and its use of new social media tools through a workshop titled “The Arab Youth Create their own Platform”. In the lead up to the forum, media students from the UAE universities were involved in a series of meetings for preparing the workshop’s agenda. More than 60 UAE national students will participate in the 2011 edition of the conference.