UAE: Social media 'moves' people, not a 'journalistic institution', expert says
Social media — and more recently Artificial Intelligence — have changed the way most people consume news. The rapidly changing media landscape has brought one question to the fore: what does the future look like?
Ali Jaber, a prominent Lebanese TV personality, said in session of the Arab Media Forum that although the media will be led by humans, AI will eliminate menial tasks. This, in turn, will allow humans to invest more time into creative and intellectual work.
Jaber, who is also dean of the Mohammed Bin Rashid School of Communication at the American University of Dubai and the group director of Saudi media conglomerate MBC TV, added, 'AI is essential in our work. We have to learn how to interact with it.'
The Arab Media Forum is part of the Arab Media Summit, a three-day event which brings in media professionals from around the Arab region. It is organised by the Dubai Press Club, and this edition's summit is focused on discourse surrounding the future of Arab media.
Fall of traditional media
Jaber added that the shift of receiving news from social media, citing the ongoing Gaza crisis. He said that traditional media, especially in the West, was a 'significant fall for the moral system that was ruling the international media when we faced the Gaza issue.'
He added, 'Social media moved people — a new generation. What we saw on the streets of Europe and America was, of course, the victory of social media over traditional media.'
However, he said that social media is not a 'journalistic institution.'
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