Saudi Gazette

Saudi Gazette

Type	Daily newspaper
Publisher	Okaz Organization for Press and Publication
Editor-in-chief	Dr. Khaled Almaeena
Managing editors	Shams Ahsan and Mahmoud Ahmad (for local and Gulf affairs)
Founded	1976
Language	English
Circulation	50,000
Sister newspapers	Okaz
ISSN	1319-0326
Official website	saudigazette.com.sa

Saudi Gazette is a leading English-language daily newspaper published in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. It is available both in print and online.

As of April 2, 2012, Khaled Almaeena is the Saudi Gazette Editor-in-Chief, replacing Dr. Omar S. Elmershedi who took over on July 1, 2011. Khaled Almaeena is joined by some of his most trusted staff from Arab News, led by Deputy Editor-in-Chief Somayya A. Jabarti.

Policy changes

Following the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in the United States, the Saudi government loosened its visa requirements to attract more Western journalists to report from Saudi Arabia in an effort to open the country to media scrutiny. These new policies also allowed Western journalists to work in the Saudi newspaper industry. Up until 2003, the Gazette's editorial staff consisted largely of Indian and Pakistani expatriate journalists. Since the early 1980s the day-to-day operations were led by editor Ramesh Balan, an expatriate Indian who retired in 2009.^{[citation needed]}

There were early missteps in efforts to open Saudi journalism to Westerners. Journalist Lawrence Wright, on assignment for New Yorker magazine, spent several months observing Gazette journalists before penning “Kingdom of Silence” in 2004. It was a scathing portrait of Saudi journalists’ ethics and journalism skills, and Saudi Arabia’s gender segregation rules and customs. Wright’s visit and subsequent article were an embarrassment to the Gazette and almost derailed the newspaper’s plans to hire Western journalists.^{[citation needed]}

Western influences

The Gazette’s management, however, survived. In 2003, Ahmed Al-Yousef, then the Saudi Gazette’s editor-in-chief, began bringing in experienced Western-trained journalists, which had been absent for many years, to help run the newsroom. He first hired Rhamzi Khoury, an American citizen of Palestinian descent.^{[citation needed]}

Khoury established a journalism training program for Saudi men and women to learn Western-style news reporting, newspaper design and editing. Among the program's students were Saudis Sabria Jawhar, who now writes for the Huffington Post and is a columnist for the Arab News.

Tabloid experimentation

In 2003, the Gazette, which was a traditional broadsheet, was redesigned as a tabloid under the direction of Khoury and American journalist Ron Raposa. In 2004, American newspaper editor Rob L. Wagner joined the staff and remained as managing editor until 2007. Four years after the launch of the tabloid, the newspaper reverted to a broadsheet. The newspaper’s editors attempted to give the Gazette a tabloid-style sensibility, but the effort failed in Saudi’s conservative society.

Acting Editor-in-Chief Mohammed Al-Shoukany brought in the new format on April 14, 2007. He also brought in international newspaper consultant Peter Ong from Sydney, Australia, to redesign the paper. It launched that same year, with two weekly magazines, one for children and young readers: Fun Times and Fun Times for Teens.

During its progressive period, the Gazette covered a range of social issues once considered taboo in Saudi journalism. It covered Saudi education reform, young runaway girls, forced marriages, women’s right to drive, abortion, drug addition and gender mixing.

Editorial team

The Gazette editorial team is now led by Editor-in-Chief Khaled Almaeena (Saudi) and Deputy Editor-in-Chief Somayya Jabarti (Saudi). Its managing editors are Mahmoud Ahmad (Saudi) and Shams Ahsan Saifi (Indian). Senior editors include Dennis Danchik (American), Athar H. Rizvie (Indian), Querubin Miñas (Filipino), K.O. Paulson (Indian) and Mehmood Hassan (Pakistani).

The Saudi Gazette is part of the Okaz Organization, which publishes the Arabic sister newspaper Okaz.

History

The newspaper started in 1978, with a western editorial staff under the leadership of Dr. Saud Islam, a Saudi native and business studies graduate (London). Key western staff worked at the newspaper in the old 'Thumb statue' street Building and overseeing its move to new purpose-built offices and press just a few kilometers away at the edge of Northwest Jeddah in 1981.

While the newspaper was based in Jeddah, on the Red Sea coast, it had two bureaus: Riyadh, the kingdom's capital, and Al-Khobar on the Persian Gulf in the Eastern Province. Prior to computerization, bureau reporters telexed their stories to Jeddah where Jaffar Khan (India) and his staff typeset the transmission for press runs. Photos and related visuals for publication with stories from bureaus were pouched to Jeddah via air. The publication process was slow and precarious.

From 1981 to 1983, Western journalists serving on the Gazette's staff included David Therough (U.K.), Rick Thompson (U.S.) and Kevin Muehring (U.S.). Jeddah-based Randall Palmer (U.S.) would later serve as a reporter in the newspaper's Riyadh bureau alongside Peter Theroux (U.S.). Theroux, while serving as a Gazette reporter, also was a correspondent for United Press International. Brad Heller (U.S) would later join the reporting staff in Riyadh. Gazette reporter Rick Snedeker (U.S.) was based in Jeddah until he was assigned to the newspaper's Al-Khobar bureau, where he joined James Wright Domnick (U.S.). Domnick was a Gazette reporter who also served as a correspondent for The Associated Press. Jenny Cook (U.S.) was based in Jeddah and served as features editor. Sales to expatriates grew slowly.

A chief photographer was appointed in 1981, Chris Wheatley (U.K.), who rebuilt and taught the local photographers to use modern film tanks and timed film development. Until that point, Okaz photographers used a tray, dipped the film into it in darkness, hearing the film scrape on the tray bottom and timing it with a popular song, sung by the photographer. The published photos were often too dark and off-kilter, with Towers leaning at 35 degrees, etc. Doug was appointed junior staff photographer in 1982 and Jamal was the Sudanese photographer on the street. Armed with Western-style practices, Jamal soon became the star among the native-speaking photographers. With the addition of an English sports editor, the publication figures soared and overtook the Arab News for the first time in its history.

The paper had two female staff journalists during 1981-1983, and three or four female stringers, including Saudi nationals. The quality of the paper surged dramatically and a Friday (weekend) family pictorial publication was launched.

The photography department got the first photos of King Fahd's inauguration and David Therough the first interview with the new king. Some investigative journalism was attempted, a first for Saudi Arabia; the under-staffing, lack of pharmaceuticals and funding of Baha Hospital resulted in the termination of American Hospitals Management (AMI) and the building collapse of the National Commercial Bank building (substandard construction) in Jeddah were major coups for the paper. These stories were held back and inspected by the Ministry of Information, but eventually allowed a new freedom to start to emerge in the Kingdom. Unfortunately, the rise of local militants and internal bombings put an end to this new freedom.

In 1982, Saud Islam left his post and most Western journalists went with him. Pakistani and Indian staff were brought in to save money. Thereafter, the quality of the paper plummeted dramatically, sales went down and the paper virtually disappeared for the next decade and a half.

During this period, it was perhaps the most anti-US paper in the Kingdom. A Saudi citizen of Persian origin, Ridah Lary became its editor. The Saudi Gazette's chief cartoonist Abdel Rahim Alireza had a particularly strong anti-US streak to his cartoons. At the beginning of 1990s, it was second largest English paper and then, lost this characteristic.

External links

• Official website

"The Kingdom of Silence" by Lawrence Wright, January 5, 2004, The New Yorker[1]

Saudi Gazette terrorism coverage and editorials (2004–2007) by Rob L. Wagner [2]