CNN Academy Abu Dhabi returns with expanded training program for journalists

The inaugural program, which began in January 2021, offered a full-time, five-week course featuring a combination of online learning and in-person workshops at CNN’s offices at twofour54 in Abu Dhabi. (Supplied)
Short Url
Updated 24 June 2022
Follow

CNN Academy Abu Dhabi returns with expanded training program for journalists

  • Following the success of last year’s inaugural event, the number of participants has been increased, as have activities and events, which will include an innovative simulated newsroom
  • Senior CNN journalists, content creators and production specialists will share the organization’s best practices in news gathering, verification of sources and content production for various platforms

DUBAI: Applications are being accepted for the second round of the CNN Academy Abu Dhabi journalism training program, which will begin in September.

The inaugural program, which began in January 2021, offered a full-time, five-week course featuring a combination of online learning and in-person workshops at CNN’s offices at twofour54 in Abu Dhabi.

Now it once again is offering a hybrid, intensive training program that includes workshops, this time at Yas Creative Hub, along with online webinars presented by senior CNN journalists, content creators and production specialists who will share the organization’s best practices in news gathering, verification of sources and content production for its various platforms.

“Participants in this year’s CNN Academy Abu Dhabi will go through a very clear student-learning journey,” Alireza Hajihosseini, the director of CNN Academy, told Arab News.

The class size has been expanded to accommodate 25 students, he added, and the number in-person activities and events have also increased.

During the initial stages, the participants will complete 10 courses covering core topics such as ethics in journalism, writing for TV news, and mobile storytelling and editing. They will also have the opportunity to attend the Global Media Congress alongside delegates from CNN.




Alireza Hajihosseini, the director of CNN Academy. (Supplied)

CNN Academy “wants to empower the next generation of global journalists,” which means equipping participants with the tools “they need to succeed in a digital-first news ecosystem,” said Hajihosseini.

“Among the most important of those skills is the ability to gather and verify news via social media,” he added. “To do this effectively, you must combine traditional journalism skills with digital technology.”

With this in mind, the program includes courses on mobile storytelling and multiplatform storytelling. “We are living in a golden age of content production, where more people have access to a wider array of tools to tell the stories they want,” Hajihosseini said. “Most of us have smartphones, which have effectively removed the barriers to the production and dissemination of content.”

The mobile storytelling course will teach participants how to film and edit engaging content using a smartphone, which is especially useful when producing stories for social media, or for field reporting during a breaking news event, he added.

“Online formats provide a huge range of opportunities and affordances to storytellers, so journalists need to understand the tools they have at their disposal to present their work,” said Hajihosseini.

The multiplatform storytelling class, he added, will consider questions such as: What are the foremost considerations for writers to ensure that users engage with their content? And how do you structure and design new digital platforms, such as newsletters?

During the final week of the program, the participants will take part in the first CNN Academy Newsroom Simulation at Yas Creative Hub, which has been designed in consultation with CNN journalists from around the world and Professor Rex Brynen from McGill University in Montreal, Canada.

This competitive challenge will require participants to investigate and report on a fictional breaking news story that puts their journalism skills to the test in a realistic, fast-paced setting. Each element of the scenario has been tailored to reinforce the journalistic best practices they have learned in conjunction with the broader CNN Academy curriculum.

“It is a week-long event where participants will work in teams to get to the bottom of a fast-developing story with multiple characters and sources,” said Hajihosseini.

The simulation will also include a specially developed, artificial social media platform “that will introduce challenges such as how to filter out the noise and avoid going down rabbit holes of misinformation,” he added.

At the end of the challenge, participants will produce video reports that will be judged by a panel of experienced CNN staff.

Several graduates of the first CNN Academy Abu Dhabi have gone on to establish a career in the media, including five who worked for CNN through paid internships, fixed-term positions or full-time roles.




Mohammed Abdelbary. (Supplied)

Mohammed Abdelbary, for example, took part in the academy last year and subsequently joined CNN Abu Dhabi as an associate producer on the show “Connect the World with Becky Anderson.”

“CNN Academy opened my eyes to the type of journalist I could be,” he told Arab News.

He came from a marketing background, with no academic or work experience in journalism, and said he found the program unique in that “it was made for anyone and everyone to experience. The program positions itself for storytellers, not just journalists.”

He added: “I started the program with no experience in the world of journalism but came out with the tools to get my foot in the door. I can honestly say CNN Academy fast-tracked my career by at least two to three years.”

Applications for CNN Academy Abu Dhabi are being accepted now and must be submitted by July 15. It is is open to UAE nationals and residents over the age of 21 who have a background and/or interest in media and multiplatform storytelling.


US-made weapon used by Israel in strike that killed journalists, investigation finds

Updated 25 November 2024
Follow

US-made weapon used by Israel in strike that killed journalists, investigation finds

  • The Guardian probe reveals Boeing-made kit used to convert unguided bomb into precision-guided weapon, pointing to deliberate targeting
  • Warning that targeting journalists based on assumed political affiliations is ‘dangerous trend,’ violation of international law

LONDON: A US-made weapon was used by Israel in an airstrike that killed three journalists and injured three others in southern Lebanon, according to an investigation by The Guardian published on Monday.

The British newspaper revealed that munitions manufactured in the US targeted cameraman Ghassan Najjar and technician Mohammad Reda from Iran-backed Hezbollah outlet Al-Mayadeen, as well as cameraman Wissam Qassem from the Hezbollah-affiliated Al-Manar channel. Experts have called the attack a potential war crime.

The strike, which was carried out on the night of Oct. 25, hit a chalet in Hasbaya that was being used as a press station by several media workers, including journalists from Al Jazeera, Sky News Arabia, and TRT.

The Israeli military claimed it targeted a “Hezbollah military structure” in which “terrorists were located,” but later said that the incident was under review after learning journalists were among the casualties.

Nadim Houry, a human rights lawyer and executive director of the Arab Reform Initiative, told The Guardian: “All the indications show that this would have been a deliberate targeting of journalists: a war crime.

“This was clearly delineated as a place where journalists were staying.”

The investigation found no evidence to support Israel’s claims. Cars marked with “Press” signs were parked outside the chalet, and no military activity was detected in the area before the strike.

Witnesses said Israeli drones constantly monitored the site during the 23 days it was used as a press hub.

Ahmed Baydoun, an Amsterdam-based open-source intelligence researcher who was among the first to geolocate the strike, told Arab News that while satellite imagery and eyewitness video analysis pinpointed the chalet’s exact coordinates, providing both “accuracy” and a “tangible grasp of the gravity of the situation” in Hasbaya, definitive conclusions about the incident “would require shrapnel or remnants of the ammunition from the site.”

Remnants of munitions at the scene indicated that at least one weapon used was a 500lb MK-80 series bomb equipped with a Boeing-made JDAM (joint direct attack munition) kit, which converts unguided bombs into precision-guided weapons. The use of such a bomb suggests the site was deliberately selected as a target.

Under US law, the use of American-made weapons in attacks that constitute crimes against humanity requires the suspension of arms supplies to the country in question. Both Israel and the US have denied such accusations.

The journalists killed in the strike were not members of Hezbollah, although one coffin was draped in a Hezbollah flag during burial.

Experts noted that such practices often signify political affiliation but do not indicate military or operational involvement.

Janina Dill, co-director of the Oxford Institute for Ethics, Law, and Armed Conflict, said targeting journalists based on assumed political affiliations was “a dangerous trend already witnessed in Gaza” and “not compatible with international law.”

The Committee to Protect Journalists reports that since the conflict began on Oct. 7, 2023, Israel has killed six journalists in Lebanon and at least 129 in Gaza, marking the deadliest period for the profession in over four decades.

Irene Khan, the UN special rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, accused Israeli authorities of “blatantly ignoring” their international legal obligations to safeguard journalists.


Israeli government sanctions Haaretz newspaper citing allegations of ‘anti-state’ incitement

Updated 25 November 2024
Follow

Israeli government sanctions Haaretz newspaper citing allegations of ‘anti-state’ incitement

  • Move confirmed by Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi

LONDON: Israel’s government on Sunday announced plans to boycott the country’s leading left-leaning newspaper, Haaretz.

The move, confirmed by Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi, follows a unanimous decision by Israeli ministers to order a halt to government advertising in its pages. Officials and employees of government-funded organizations are also prohibited from engaging with the publication.

“We will not allow a reality in which the publisher of an official newspaper in the State of Israel will call for the imposition of sanctions against it and will support the enemies of the state in the midst of a war and will be financed by it,” said a statement from Karhi’s office.

“We advocate a free press and freedom of expression, but also the freedom of the government to decide not to fund incitement against the state of Israel.”

Haaretz is known for its critical stance on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s right-wing coalition. It has recently drawn anger from the government for vocal support of a ceasefire to secure the release of hostages held by Hamas since Oct. 7 last year.

In response to Karhi’s decision, Haaretz issued a scathing statement accusing Netanyahu of undermining Israel’s democratic principles.

“Like his friends Putin, Erdogan and Orban, Netanyahu is trying to silence a critical, independent newspaper. Haaretz will not balk and will not morph into a government pamphlet that publishes messages approved by the government and its leader,” the statement read.

The government’s justification for the boycott centers on remarks by Amos Schocken, Haaretz’s publisher, during a recent conference in London. Schocken described the Israeli government as “imposing a cruel apartheid regime on the Palestinian population” and accused it of targeting “freedom fighters” among Palestinians, a statement he later clarified was not intended to refer to Hamas.

The boycott has drawn condemnation from international press freedom advocates, reported The Guardian.

The International Federation of Journalists said it was concerned the Israeli government’s actions represented a broader effort to restrict press freedom and public access to independent reporting.

In May, Israeli authorities shut down the local offices of Al Jazeera, citing national security concerns. The government’s decision to close the satellite news network was met with widespread criticism, with opponents calling it a “dark day for the media.”

As tensions between the government and independent media continue to rise, critics have argued the actions represent a troubling erosion of democratic values in Israel.


Event in London asks whether advanced technology might be key to longer life

Updated 23 November 2024
Follow

Event in London asks whether advanced technology might be key to longer life

  • ATOM Conference explores ways in which advances in AI, quantum computing and biomedical sciences might revolutionize healthcare and extend lifespans
  • ‘We have spent a lot of money on ... things to understand the non-living universe but … we don’t understand our bodies,’ says Armen Sarkissian, former president of Armenia

LONDON: Experts in the fields of healthcare and technology gathered for the ATOM Conference at London’s National Science Museum to explore the ways in which advances in artificial intelligence, quantum computing and biomedical sciences might revolutionize healthcare and extend human life.

They focused in particular on how best to leverage cutting-edge technologies to aid understanding of the “living universe” with the aim of improving health so that 100-year lifespans become the norm.

“Life matters. At the end of the day, whatever is happening on our planet, for us it’s about life,” Armen Sarkissian, the former president of Armenia, said during his opening remarks to delegates.

“We have spent a lot of money on our accelerators, our space stations, observation telescopes and many other things to understand the non-living universe but I realized that I don’t understand my body; we don’t understand our bodies.”

Sarkissian, who trained as a physicist and computer scientist before becoming a politician, was joined at the conference by an array of prominent expert speakers, including: Irene Tracey, the vice-chancellor of the University of Oxford; physicist Konstantin Novoselov, a Nobel prize-winner for his work on graphene; and Eric Xing, the president of Mohammed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence in Abu Dhabi.

King Charles, a friend of Sarkissian, was scheduled to attend the conference but his speech was instead delivered by a spokesperson. In it, the monarch emphasized the royal family’s commitment to medical innovation, noting in particular his own interest in cancer research and treatment.

“Many of you will know that earlier this year (the king) was diagnosed with cancer, and (he is) very keen that other people should gain some benefit from his diagnosis,” said Dr. Michael Dixon, head of the Royal Medical Household.

“Perhaps he is more aware than any of us of the extraordinary potential to unleash a healthier future for us all.”

The conference was organized by the ATOM Institute, which was founded by Sarkissian and his son Vardan, the Science Museum and Singapore University.

Speakers highlighted the fact that our limited understanding of the living universe contrasts sharply with our advanced knowledge of many aspects of the non-living one. The discussions also considered the effects of conflicts and climate change on global health.

“We are living a time where there are devastating wars worldwide; in Ukraine, in Gaza, in Lebanon, in Armenia and elsewhere in the world, hundreds of thousands of lives are being lost,” Sarkissian said.

“You can restore a bridge, you can restore a house, you can restore many things (but) how on earth do you restore lives that are destroyed? How on earth do you (restore) the millions of people who are wounded? How do you restore the mental problems and depression of tens of millions of people (resulting from) our activity?”

Other panel discussions considered pressing health-related challenges such antimicrobial resistance, which was recently highlighted at the UN General Assembly, and the resilience of healthcare systems during pandemics and natural disasters.

Specialist sessions focused on the growing global crisis in mental health; the transformative potential of AI in the health sector, including its implications for patient care, diagnostics and longevity; and ethical challenges relating to data security and privacy.

The ATOM Institute, the name of which stands for “Advanced Tomorrow,” seeks to foster collaborations on issues spanning geopolitics, medical innovation and technological breakthroughs with the aim of revolutionizing healthcare and extending the human lifespan.


OpenAI considers taking on Google with browser, the Information reports

Updated 22 November 2024
Follow

OpenAI considers taking on Google with browser, the Information reports

  • OpenAI has already entered the search market with SearchGPT
  • Google commands the lion’s share of the browser and search market

ChatGPT-owner OpenAI has recently considered developing a web browser that would combine with its chatbot and has separately discussed or struck deals to power search features, the Information reported on Thursday.
OpenAI has spoken about the search product with website and app developers such as Conde Nast, Redfin, Eventbrite and Priceline, the report said, citing people who have seen prototypes or designs of the products.
Google and OpenAI did not immediately respond to Reuters’ requests for comment.
The move could pit the Sam Altman-led company against search giant Google, which commands the lion’s share of the browser and search market. OpenAI has already entered the search market with SearchGPT.
Alphabet shares were down 1 percent after the bell, after falling nearly 5 percent in regular trading on Thursday.
 


Snap launches new office, first hub for creators in Saudi Arabia

Updated 22 November 2024
Follow

Snap launches new office, first hub for creators in Saudi Arabia

  • Diriyah’s JAX District is location for platform
  • Move will support partnership with Kingdom’s Ministry of Culture

DUBAI: Snap is expanding its presence in Saudi Arabia with the launch of a new office and the Kingdom’s first creator hub, named Majlis Snap for Content Creators, in Diriyah’s JAX District, near Riyadh.

Majlis Snap for Content Creators will serve as a platform to grow and support the local creator community through training, educational programs and opportunities for collaboration.

The opening ceremony of the new office was attended by Evan Spiegel, co-founder and CEO of Snap Inc.; Saudi Minister of Investment Khalid Al-Falih; and Saudi Minister of Communications and Information Technology Abdullah Al-Swaha.

The event featured a conversation between Spiegel and Jomana Al-Rashid, the CEO of the Saudi Research and Media Group, about Snap’s growth and popularity in the Kingdom.

Spiegel also hosted exclusive sessions with content creators to commemorate the launch of Majlis Snap for Content Creators.

The establishment of the new office will support Snap’s partnership with Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Culture by upskilling local talent.

Abdulla Alhammadi, managing director of Snap Inc. in Saudi Arabia, said that the Kingdom was one of the company’s “most dynamic growth markets” and the investment would “enhance the experience” of both Snapchat users and advertisers.

Hussein Freijeh, the vice president of Snap Inc. in the Middle East and North Africa region, said that the company’s expansion in Saudi Arabia “symbolizes more than just a physical presence,” and represented “a deeper commitment to enhancing Saudi Arabia’s digital ecosystem.”

He added: “This marks a huge milestone in our journey in KSA, and we look forward to strengthening our connection with Saudi partners and clients, in line with the country’s digital transformation agenda.”

Snapchat has 25 million active monthly users in the Kingdom, reaching 90 percent of those aged between 13 and 34, with users opening it 50 times a day on average.