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For
the
love of
journalism
have always been terrified at the prospect of interviewing a prominent journalist. Would he grasp my lack of profound expertise in world politics, pick
on my seemingly deficient journalistic
traits, or dismiss my years of work as
inconsequential? Armed with all these reservations and some others, due to the lack
of time allocated for the interview, I meet
the man who changed the course of Arab
journalism: Wadah Khanfar, the ex-Director General of Al Jazeera network.
I shouldnt have worried as here was a
man who loved his vocation with a passion
and telling stories, his included, comes naturally to him all he needed was someone
to ask the right questions.
After a highly-volatile and successful
eight-year tenure as the Director General
of Al Jazeera, Khanfar, voluntarily resigned and speculations have been rife to
this day, some insisting that he was asked
to leave by the owners of the channel, the
ruling family. From war correspondent to
Baghdad Bureau Chief to Director General
from 2003 until he stepped down in 2011,
Khanfar has worked through the closure
and bombing of Al Jazeeras bureaus during
the Arab Spring, the murder of its journalists and propaganda smears.
On reasons why he quit, he has been
quoted thus: People have created a lot of
discussions about this issue, but I really
feel that eight years is enough for any business leader to accomplish his mission. After
that, it is going to be difficult to continue.
This was the right time for me to move on
and start thinking about new issues to get
involved in.
Whatever the motives, here is someone
who does miss being in the limelight, the
thrill of being in the news room, the excitement of being at the centre of events as they
evolve, the adrenaline rush, but who
does not pine much for the administrative
part of the job. He says, News, which is the
core of what Al Jazeera is about, is what I
essentially miss; of getting news, of interacting with journalists and experts.
So how does he feel when he looks at
news as it unfolds on the screen? Does his
brain react as instinctively as it used to
when he was at AJ, or has he really moved
away from it all?
You cannot undo the journalistic instinct, it comes with the territory, he says.
Listening to a news bulletin is not relaxing
anymore because your mind is constantly
looking at probabilities, at the complexities
behind it, the context, the superficiality of it
all, the anecdotes and sometimes the depth
of the issue discussed. You are not only listening to a news bulletin but also judging
the way it was done.
My worry resurfaces yet again but I go
back to questioning with the adeptness that
would shame even the most expert journo.
Three years after he has left the channel,
Khanfar retains the perspective of a journalist even as he heads the Sharq Forum,
which its website states is an independent
international network whose mission is to
develop long-term strategies to ensure the
political development, social justice and
economic prosperity of the Arab world.
Khanfar looks back at his career and
QATAR TODAY > JANUARY 2015 > 35
room, according to Khanfar, from experienced editors who did not want to use the
inexperienced, uncouth form of journalism
from the field, saying it would dilute the seriousness of the matter.
But eventually with time, they realised
that we had no alternative but to use these
citizen journalists found through social media, especially in areas where our bureaus
were banned and where getting reporters
was next to impossible. Slowly this interaction became much more comfortable; the
young guys became more professional and
the seasoned journos started opening their
mind to the new ways of journalism.
This led AJ to be open-minded, dynamic
and the most valued network in the region,
according to Khanfar. But how tough was
maintaining a network with the purest of
news value without being influenced by
The euphoria that is part of the newsroom was exulted when the Mubarak regime was overthrown and is one such unforgettable moment that will go down in
history. Khanfar had instructed his editors
to keep the camera on Tahrir Square and
not move it, nor add any comments, just to
let the sound from the Square come loud
and clear to the viewers. That was a beautiful scene on the TV, the voice of the people
without any interference.
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