Arab Spring coverage shows new and traditional media in unison, say experts

Twitter and Facebook are shaping the way that news is disseminated, providing a facility for news to be shared direct from the source and to spread virally among social networks. Although, as AMF panellists noted, credibility issues have become one of the primary concerns with new media, and are potentially its biggest drawback.

An increasing number of regional journalists are using new media platforms to connect with their readership, with both on and off-site content made available, increasingly via mobile devices. Dana Abu Laban, Editor-in-Chief of the MBRSC Post at the Mohammed Bin Rashid School of Communications at the American University of Dubai, expanded upon the synergy in front of a packed house in Dubai:

"Traditional media are now using information provided through new media, which I believe is a good step. New media will not replace traditional media, but are favoured by younger people for the comparatively rich content base. My own relationship with traditional media has changed after the Arab Spring.

"The manner in which traditional media portrayed the stories on the ground was disappointing. Major Arab channels fell short of expectations in offering a dynamic coverage of the revolutions. On the other hand, new media did a far more concise job. Undoubtedly, new media bring more diversity, more richness, and offers divergent views."

Freedom in new media facilitates a call to action

Pointing out that new media provides freedom of expression, AMF panellist Farah Al Ibrahim from the American University of Sharjah says: "I can express my views with more freedom and read about the many sides to the same story, as against traditional media that has a single source of information. In new media, no single party can dominate the news cycle."

"Social media wasn't the main factor of creating the change," says Al Ibrahim, speaking to AMEinfo.com. "The will of people is the main one. Social media was just one of the tools that have been used for gathering people in peaceful demonstrations. Social media became a form of self-regulation."

New media evolution leads to updates in journalism training

Panel experts examined the current sufficiency of regional media courses to empower young journalists into these convergent channels, with an all-round agreement that trainee reporters must receive full journalism training, while being encouraged to embrace all the benefits of new media.

Al Ibrahim recognises that awareness of new media platforms is flourishing, peaking a subsequent need to adapt relevant training: "New media will assure real equality of opportunity for everyone to express his/her opinion and be a part of the process of evolution. People should be more aware of how to use this tool, and must pay more attention to available resources and their credibility."

Moderated by Ebrahim Ustadi, Anchor, Dubai Media Incorporated, the panel also featured Hessa Al Shuwaihi, Dubai Women's college, Mahra Al Jneibi, United Arab Emirate University, and Obeida Takriti, Mohamed Bin Rashid School for Communication, American University in Dubai.