Dubai to allocate more than $40m for content creators’ support fund

The announcements were made in conjunction with Dubai hosting the 1 Billion Followers Summit, a gathering of leading global social media influencers and content creators. (AFP/File)

Short Url

https://arab.news/rm5bh

Updated 11 January 2024

Arab News

January 11, 2024 19:24

Dubai to allocate more than $40m for content creators’ support fund

Fund to support personal and professional development of creative talents
Sheikh Mohammed announces plans for the establishment of a permanent headquarters designed for influencers

Updated 11 January 2024

Arab News

January 11, 2024 19:24

LONDON: Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, the UAE’s vice president, prime minister and ruler of Dubai, has unveiled a fund of Dh150 million ($40.8 million) dedicated to supporting content creators and influencers.

In addition to this financial backing, Sheikh Mohammed announced plans for the establishment of a permanent headquarters designed specifically for influencers.

In a statement reported by the state news agency WAM, Sheikh Mohammed outlined the initiative: “Today we issued directives to allocate a fund valued at Dh150 million to support content creators and transform the digital media sector.

“We also instructed the establishment of a permanent influencers’ headquarters that provides year-round support.”

The move appears to align with Dubai’s commitment to investing in creative talents and nurturing the digital industry, both of which play pivotal roles in enhancing the UAE’s influential global media footprint.

Emphasizing the importance of novel communication channels, Sheikh Mohammed said: “Impactful media reflects the past and provides inspiration for the future.”

The announcements were made in conjunction with Dubai hosting the 1 Billion Followers Summit, a gathering of leading global social media influencers and content creators.

The two-day summit, held at Emirates Towers and Dubai’s Museum of the Future, brought together more than 3,000 attendees, 100 speakers, and more than 300 companies from the technology and social media landscape.

The initiative will provide support to content creators, assisting them in making creative and impactful content while also attracting investments in new media.

The fund will also offer training courses aimed at nurturing local and regional talents.

In addition, the influencers’ headquarters, a joint venture between the UAE Government Media Office and the New Media Academy, aims to serve as a hub for top influencers and content creators.

Mohammad Al-Gergawi, minister of cabinet affairs, said that the fund was dedicated to “supporting content creators, talents and innovators to help transform the digital media sector (and) presents exceptional opportunities for them to fulfil their potential, grow their business and showcase the accomplishments and ambitions of the Emirati people to the world.”

Topics: Dubai sheikh mohammed bin rashid

Mother of missing US journalist urges Netanyahu to pause strikes on Syria to aid search for her son

Updated 17 December 2024

Arab News

December 17, 2024 23:07

Mother of missing US journalist urges Netanyahu to pause strikes on Syria to aid search for her son

Austin Tice, a former Marine, was abducted in Syria in August 2012 while reporting on the country’s descent into civil war
His mother says ‘credible information’ suggests her son is in a prison close to areas pounded by Israeli strikes

Updated 17 December 2024

Arab News

December 17, 2024 23:07

LONDON: The mother of missing American journalist Austin Tice, who was abducted in Syria 12 years ago, urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to pause airstrikes on Syria so that rescuers can search safely for her son.

In a letter addressed to Netanyahu, Debra Tice said her family has “credible information” that her son might be in a prison close to the Syrian capital, Damascus, and appealed for a halt to nearby Israeli military operations.

“We are aware that your military has an active campaign in the area, preventing rescuers from approaching and accessing the prison facility,” she wrote.

“We have no way of knowing if the prisoners there have food and water. We urgently request you pause strikes on this area and deploy Israeli assets to search for Austin Tice and other prisoners. Time is of the essence.”

The prime minister’s office did not immediately respond to requests for comment, The New York Times reported.

The Israeli military has been bombing weapons depots and air defenses in Syria in what it described as an attempt to prevent military equipment falling into the hands of extremists.

Austin Tice, who before becoming a journalist served as an officer in the US Marine Corps, was kidnapped on Aug. 13, 2012, while reporting from Syria as the country descended into civil war. He was 31 years old at the time. The only evidence of his capture and captivity remains a 47-second video released in September 2012 that showed him bound and blindfolded.

In the 12 years since then, the US government has maintained its belief that he was alive and in the custody of the Syrian government. No group or organization has publicly claimed responsibility for his detention.

The fall of the Assad regime this month to rebel forces led by militant group Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham sparked renewed efforts to locate Tice. It comes as thousands of prisoners, including the regime’s political opponents, civilians and foreigners, have been freed from detention centers in Damascus.

Debra Tice believes her son is held in a prison located beneath a Syrian military museum in the Mount Qasioun area near Damascus. She described a system of tunnels thought to connect the facility to a government palace and nearby neighborhoods.

Citing anonymous sources, Reuters reported on Monday that Tice managed to escape from his captors after just five months of captivity but was recaptured by forces loyal to Assad. Credible information about his whereabouts grew increasingly scarce over the years, though US officials remain cautiously optimistic that he is alive.

The recent escalation of Israeli attacks on targets in Syria raised concerns that Tice might have been killed in the airstrikes or trapped underground. US officials also fear that power cuts in Damascus prisons, orchestrated by Assad’s forces before he was toppled, could have deprived underground cells of breathable air.

Hopes were briefly raised this week amid reports that an American man had been spotted in Damascus. However, he turned out to be Travis Timmerman from Missouri, who had been freed by rebel forces. He was arrested this year for entering the country illegally after traveling to Syria on a “spiritual mission.”

The State Department said on Monday no US government officials are in Syria to assist in the search for Tice but finding him remains a “top priority.”

Concerns continue to grow over the fate of remaining detainees in the country, particularly in areas still affected by military strikes and instability.

Topics: Israeli strikes in Syria Debra Tice Benjamin Netanyahu

Media watchdog condemns Israel over killing of 4 Gaza journalists, demands accountability

Updated 17 December 2024

Arab News

December 17, 2024 18:03

Media watchdog condemns Israel over killing of 4 Gaza journalists, demands accountability

Iman Al-Shanti, Mohammed Al-Qrinawi, Mohammed Balousha, and Ahmed Al-Louh were killed between Dec. 11 and 15
At least in two cases, the attacks were described as ‘deliberate,’ Committee to Protect Journalists reported

Updated 17 December 2024

Arab News

December 17, 2024 18:03

LONDON: The Committee to Protect Journalists has condemned Israel’s recent attacks in Gaza, which have killed four journalists in the past week alone, and renewed calls for the international community to hold Tel Aviv accountable for its actions against media workers.

“At least 95 journalists and media workers have been killed worldwide in 2024,” CPJ’s CEO Jodie Ginsberg said in New York. “Israel is responsible for two-thirds of those deaths and yet continues to act with total impunity when it comes to the killing of journalists and its attacks on the media.”

Between Dec. 11 and 15, Israeli forces carried out multiple deadly strikes targeting media workers in Gaza, killing Iman Al-Shanti, Mohammed Al-Qrinawi, Mohammed Balousha, and Ahmed Al-Louh. Sources claim that at least two of the journalists were clearly identifiable by their press vests and accused the Israeli army of deliberately targeting civilians in the area.

On Wednesday, Al-Shanti, a 36-year-old journalist who worked for Al Aqsa Radio and contributed to Al Jazeera’s AJ+ platform, was killed alongside her family in an Israeli airstrike on Gaza’s Sheikh Radwan neighborhood.

On Friday, Al-Qrinawi, editor at the local Snd news agency, was killed with his wife and three children in an Israeli strike on Al-Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza.

That same day, Balousha, a 38-year-old journalist reporting for Dubai-based Al Mashhad Media, died in a direct Israeli drone strike while returning from a medical checkup in northern Gaza City. Al Mashhad described the attack as deliberate.

On Saturday, Al-Louh, a 39-year-old freelance journalist who contributed to multiple outlets, including Al Jazeera, was killed in an Israeli airstrike on Nuseirat camp in Gaza City. He became the seventh journalist from Al Jazeera to be killed during the war.

Following Al-Louh’s death, Israeli Defense Forces spokesperson for Arabic media Avichay Adraee accused him of being a member of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad. However, as in similar past claims, Adraee failed to provide evidence to support the allegation. Al Jazeera condemned the killing as a “war crime” and part of a “systematic targeting of journalists in Gaza aimed at intimidating and deterring them.”

According to CPJ, at least 133 journalists have been killed in Gaza since the outbreak of the conflict 15 months ago, making it the deadliest conflict for journalists since record-keeping began. The real toll is believed to be significantly higher.

Media watchdogs and international organizations have repeatedly called for Israel and its leaders to be held accountable for what some human rights groups describe as ethnic cleansing. However, these demands have so far failed to produce tangible results.

The CPJ reached out to the Israeli military’s North America Media Desk, asking whether the IDF was aware of civilian presence in the areas it bombed and if journalists had been targeted for their work. The IDF replied that it required more time to investigate but did not specify a timeline for its response.

Topics: War on Gaza Israel Journalists

TikTok turns to US Supreme Court in last-ditch bid to avert ban

Updated 17 December 2024

Reuters

December 17, 2024 00:17

TikTok turns to US Supreme Court in last-ditch bid to avert ban

Justice Department calls TikTok threat to US security
Trump says he has a “warm spot in my heart” for TikTok

Updated 17 December 2024

Reuters

December 17, 2024 00:17

WASHINGTON: TikTok made a last-ditch effort on Monday to continue operating in the United States, asking the Supreme Court to temporarily block a law intended to force ByteDance, its China-based parent company, to divest the short-video app by Jan. 19 or face a ban.
TikTok and ByteDance filed an emergency request to the justices for an injunction to halt the looming ban on the social media app used by about 170 million Americans while they appeal a lower court’s ruling that upheld the law. A group of US users of the app filed a similar request on Monday as well.
Congress passed the law in April. The Justice Department has said that as a Chinese company, TikTok poses “a national-security threat of immense depth and scale” because of its access to vast amounts of data on American users, from locations to private messages, and its ability to secretly manipulate content that Americans view on the app.
The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in Washington on Dec. 6 rejected TikTok’s arguments that the law violates free speech protections under the US Constitution’s First Amendment.
In their filing to the Supreme Court, TikTok and ByteDance said that “if Americans, duly informed of the alleged risks of ‘covert’ content manipulation, choose to continue viewing content on TikTok with their eyes wide open, the First Amendment entrusts them with making that choice, free from the government’s censorship.”
“And if the D.C. Circuit’s contrary holding stands, then Congress will have free rein to ban any American from speaking simply by identifying some risk that the speech is influenced by a foreign entity,” they added.
The companies said that being shuttered for even one month would cause TikTok to lose about a third of its US users and undermine its ability to attract advertisers and recruit content creators and employee talent.
Calling itself one of the “most important speech platforms” used in the United States, TikTok has said that there is no imminent threat to US national security and that delaying enforcement of the law would allow the Supreme Court to consider the legality of the ban, and the incoming administration of President-elect Donald Trump to evaluate the law as well.
Trump, who unsuccessfully tried to ban TikTok during his first term in 2020, has reversed his stance and promised during the presidential race this year that he would try to save TikTok. Trump takes office on Jan. 20, the day after the TikTok deadline under the law.
The law would “shutter one of America’s most popular speech platforms the day before a presidential inauguration,” the companies said in their filing. “A federal law singling out and banning a speech platform used by half of Americans is extraordinary.”
Asked on Monday at a press conference what he would do to stop a ban on TikTok, Trump said that he has “a warm spot in my heart for TikTok” and that he would “take a look” at the matter.
The companies asked the Supreme Court to issue a decision on its request by Jan. 6 to allow, in the event it is rejected, for the “complex task of shutting down TikTok” in the United States and to coordinate with service providers by the deadline set under the law.
The dispute comes amid growing trade tensions between China and the United States, the world’s two biggest economies.

‘RIGOROUS SCRUTINY’

TikTok has denied that it has or ever would share US user data, accusing US lawmakers of advancing speculative concerns.
TikTok spokesperson Michael Hughes said after the filing that “we are asking the court to do what it has traditionally done in free speech cases: apply the most rigorous scrutiny to speech bans and conclude that it violates the First Amendment.”
In its ruling, the D.C. Circuit wrote, “The First Amendment exists to protect free speech in the United States. Here the government acted solely to protect that freedom from a foreign adversary nation and to limit that adversary’s ability to gather data on people in the United States.”
Without an injunction, the ban on TikTok would make the company far less valuable to ByteDance and its investors, and hurt businesses that depend on TikTok to drive their sales.
The law would bar providing certain services to TikTok and other foreign adversary-controlled apps including offering it through app stores such as Apple and Alphabet’s Google, effectively preventing its continued US use unless ByteDance divests TikTok by the deadline.
A ban could open the door to a future US crackdown on other foreign-owned apps. In 2020, Trump tried to ban WeChat, owned by Chinese company Tencent, but was blocked by the courts.

Topics: TikTok US

Netanyahu enforces media blackout on potential prisoner swap negotiations

Updated 16 December 2024

Arab News

December 16, 2024 22:53

Netanyahu enforces media blackout on potential prisoner swap negotiations

Israeli newspaper Israel Hayom says PM’s office urged military censor to tighten restrictions on information related to possible deal

Updated 16 December 2024

Arab News

December 16, 2024 22:53

LONDON: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ordered stricter military censorship on media coverage of ongoing prisoner swap negotiations with Hamas, Israeli newspaper Israel Hayom reported on Sunday.

Citing political sources, the report revealed that Netanyahu’s office instructed the military censor to impose tighter restrictions than usual on information related to the potential deal.

A statement from Netanyahu’s office emphasized the importance of confidentiality, saying: “The prime minister has instructed ministers and security officials to fully adhere to information security protocols during security discussions.”

The decision reflects cautious optimism in Tel Aviv that a breakthrough might be reached by the Jewish festival of Hanukkah, starting on Dec. 25.

However, no official details of the talks have been disclosed due to concerns that public debate or leaks could jeopardize the negotiations.

“There is significant compartmentalization and also a heavy blackout compared to previous times over the past year — so that we can succeed in bringing about a deal,” a political source was quoted as saying.

Despite months of war, previous efforts to negotiate with Hamas have repeatedly failed.

Critics have accused Netanyahu and his coalition partners of undermining potential agreements to prolong the conflict, allegedly for political gain.

Netanyahu’s personal legal battles have also fueled skepticism.

The prime minister, currently standing trial for bribery, fraud, and breach of trust, has faced allegations that the ongoing war serves as a distraction from his legal woes.

His trial, which has already been delayed due to the war, is expected to extend well into next year, with potential appeals likely to dominate Israeli politics for the foreseeable future.

Topics: War on Gaza Israel Benjamin Netanyahu

CNN says “continuing to investigate” identity of alleged Syrian detainee in controversial report

Updated 16 December 2024

Arab News

December 16, 2024 20:37

CNN says “continuing to investigate” identity of alleged Syrian detainee in controversial report

⁠Critics dub the network’s Clarissa Ward coverage as fake, claiming alleged detainee was actually an Assad regime thug

Updated 16 December 2024

Arab News

December 16, 2024 20:37

LONDON: CNN is aware an alleged Syrian detainee might have given a fake identity, and are “continuing to investigate” the background of the detainee who appeared in a recent controversial report featuring correspondent Clarissa Ward, following widespread accusations on social media that the segment — which shows Ward freeing the detainees allegedly discovered accident — was staged.

On the other hand a CNN spokesperson defended Ward’s work by saying that “No one other than the CNN team was aware of our plans to visit the prison building featured in our report that day. The events transpired as they appear in our film.”

The footage, filmed on Dec. 12, shows Ward and her crew being led through a prison in Damascus by a man dressed in military clothing. Ward states that her crew were told to stop filming while their guide shot a lock to open a cell door. The video fades to black then resumes with the team entering a pristine-looking cell containing a single occupant.

The man, who identifies himself as “Adel Gharbal” from Homs, claims he has had no food or water for five days. He says he was arrested three months earlier after his phone was searched, yet he appears well-groomed and is dressed in clean clothes.

The report was greeted with skepticism online. Many people highlighted the spotless condition of the cell and the fact that the man seemed relatively clean and well.

Verify Sy, a Syrian fact-checking platform, later identified the prisoner as “Salama Mohammad Salama,” also known as Abu Hamza, a former first lieutenant in Syrian Air Force intelligence, who was reportedly imprisoned as a result of a dispute with a superior over extorted funds. It said he oversaw checkpoints in Homs and had participated in detentions, torture and extortion in the name of the Assad regime.

CNN told Arab News that Ward’s plan to visit the prison that day was known only internally by the broadcaster.

“The events transpired as they appear in our film. We reported the scene as it unfolded, including what the prisoner told us, with clear attribution. We have subsequently been investigating his background and are aware that he may have given a false identity,” said the spokesperson.

The decision to release the prisoner was made by the news crew’s guide, a member of a Syrian rebel faction, the spokesperson added.

Critics remain unconvinced, with Verify Sy questioning whether CNN had truly fallen victim to misinformation.

“As Syrians first and journalists second, we must ask: Did CNN deliberately mislead its audience to rehabilitate Abu Hamza’s image, or did it fall victim to misinformation?” the organization asked.

The report was also criticized for several questions it left unanswered, such as why the prison was apparently empty except for this one detainee, and why his behavior alternated between trembling fear and calm during the footage of his release.

Ward, who was in Damascus to search for American journalist Austin Tice, who went missing in Syria in 2012, has faced similar criticisms before.

During reports from Gaza, she was accused of exaggerating the danger after footage showed her ducking from supposed rocket fire while bystanders nearby appeared unaffected. And her claim that she was abducted in October by a militia in Darfur while covering the conflict in Sudan lacked corroborating evidence.

A community note with a link to Verify Sy’s findings has been added to CNN’s post promoting the prison video on social media platform X.

Syrian activists and civilians have described Ward’s reporting as disrespectful to the well-documented civil defense efforts in Syria, including those by the White Helmets, and harmful to the wider Syrian cause.

Topics: Fall of Assad Syria CNN

Dubai to allocate more than $40m for content creators’ support fund

Dubai to allocate more than $40m for content creators’ support fund

Experts discuss link between social media, mental health at 1Billion Followers Summit

1 Billion Followers Summit for content creators returning to Dubai in January

Mother of missing US journalist urges Netanyahu to pause strikes on Syria to aid search for her son

Mother of missing US journalist urges Netanyahu to pause strikes on Syria to aid search for her son

American prisoner found in Syria is not journalist Austin Tice

CNN says “continuing to investigate” identity of alleged Syrian detainee in controversial report

Media watchdog condemns Israel over killing of 4 Gaza journalists, demands accountability

Media watchdog condemns Israel over killing of 4 Gaza journalists, demands accountability

Al Jazeera condemns killing of journalist in Israeli strike on Gaza

54 journalists killed in 2024, a third by Israel — Reporters Without Borders

TikTok turns to US Supreme Court in last-ditch bid to avert ban

TikTok turns to US Supreme Court in last-ditch bid to avert ban

US court rejects Tiktok request to temporarily halt pending US ban

TikTok is inching closer to a potential ban in the US. So what's next?

Netanyahu enforces media blackout on potential prisoner swap negotiations

Netanyahu enforces media blackout on potential prisoner swap negotiations

Thousands protest in Israel for Gaza hostage deal

Israel minister tells US ‘currently a chance’ for Gaza hostage deal

CNN says “continuing to investigate” identity of alleged Syrian detainee in controversial report

CNN says “continuing to investigate” identity of alleged Syrian detainee in controversial report

CNN issues apology after panelist’s ‘terrorist’ remark directed at Mehdi Hasan

‘Journalistic malpractice’: CNN staff rebel over network’s pro-Israel coverage

Latest updates

Sudan’s doctors bear brunt of war as healthcare falls apart

Vinicius and Bonmati named FIFA Best players of the year

Koopmeiners stunner sends Juventus into Italian Cup quarterfinals

How a new Saudi initiative aims to spur collaboration in space sector

Chelsea, Lyon top Women’s Champions League groups with perfect records

Recommended

How a new Saudi initiative aims to spur collaboration in space sector

How Security Council veto power politics has eroded UN’s credibility

Why chemical weapons remain post-Assad Syria’s unfinished nightmare

Search form

Print Edition

Search form

Search form

You are here

Dubai to allocate more than $40m for content creators’ support fund

Dubai to allocate more than $40m for content creators’ support fund

Related

Mother of missing US journalist urges Netanyahu to pause strikes on Syria to aid search for her son

Related

Media watchdog condemns Israel over killing of 4 Gaza journalists, demands accountability

Related

TikTok turns to US Supreme Court in last-ditch bid to avert ban

Related

Netanyahu enforces media blackout on potential prisoner swap negotiations

Related

CNN says “continuing to investigate” identity of alleged Syrian detainee in controversial report

Related

Latest updates

Recommended

Search form

Print Edition