March 27, 2019

Media coverage can help correct misconceptions about ancient civilizations

Media outlets have helped promote awareness about ancient civilizations and correct misconceptions about them, according to Iraqi researcher and scholar Dr. Rasheed Al Khayoun.

Speaking at a session titled ‘The Revival of Civilizations Through Media’ at the 18th edition of the Arab Media Forum, Dr. Al-Khayoun said that media has helped change perceptions about civilizations. He highlighted three magazines in the Arab region that have played an instrumental role in changing the way people understand ancient civilisations.  Dr. Al-Khayoun said that while there have been books about civilizations, awareness about them was raised only after media outlets started covering archaeological expeditions and publishing stories about them.

Dr. Al-Khayoun said that the media has helped change perceptions about old civilizations. He cited the example of the archaeological site of Madain Saleh, which in 2008 became Saudi Arabia's first UNESCO World Heritage Site. Visiting Madain Saleh has long been prohibited for religious reasons, because it belonged to the tribe of Thamud which is considered to have been punished by God for killing the sacred camel of Prophet Saleh. Coverage of the site by media created awareness about cave art and epigraphic inscriptions on sandstones at the site.

He also highlighted the role of media in preserving archeological sites and antiques, as well as highlighting the history of new regions. Al-Arabi magazine in 1960 talked about the ‘Ventilation Civilisation in Dubai’ and called Dubai the Venice of the Arabian Gulf.

Held under the theme ‘Arab Media: From Now to the Future’, the region’s leading annual event for the media industry has brought together more than 3,000 prominent regional and international media leaders, scholars, writers and experts, to share their views on the current state of the Arab media and the shifts that are shaping the future of the industry.