opening of a digital studio, social media hall and camera museum in cooperation with “kemet boutros ghali”
Mamdouh Abbas: "Al-Ahram" will always remain in the forefront.. and we will continue to support its future development projects.
With a strategy that combines its long history, its national responsibility in enlightenment and awareness, and under the slogan "We live for the truth", and keeping pace with the rapid modern developments in the world of journalism, and with the opening of the "Boutros Ghali" digital studio, the Imam Muhammad Abdo Hall for social media, and the first photography museum, "Al-Ahram" has begun a new phase of smart journalism, to complete its pioneering role and express with confident steps the changes that have occurred in the media scene in general, and the journalistic scene in particular, in a blend of authenticity and modernization that preserves the identity of "Al-Ahram" and its national role.
The openings, which took place at the newspaper’s headquarters for smart press units, were crowned by the success partners of this boom, from the Board of Trustees of the Kemet Boutros Ghali Foundation for Peace and Knowledge, headed by Mamdouh Abbas, and Amr Moussa, former Minister of Foreign Affairs and former Secretary-General of the Arab League, Dr. Ali El-Din Hilal, former Minister of Youth, thinker Dr. Mustafa El-Feki, Ambassador Raouf Saad, Dr. Noha Bakr, Dr. Ahmed Youssef, Ambassador Laila Bahaa El-Din, and Magda Abdel Aziz, Vice President of the Board of Trustees of the Al-Joud Charitable Foundation, in celebration of the development partnership between “Al-Ahram”, which is distinguished by its legacy, history and leadership, and the Kemet Boutros Ghali Foundation, which bears the name of a national Egyptian figure, the late Dr. Boutros Ghali, former Secretary-General of the United Nations, with its societal responsibility and its mission based on spreading peace and knowledge, and intensive cooperation between the two sides in order to contribute to completing the process of building and developing the nation in light of challenges that require strong journalism armed with the tools of the age and confronting the dangers of social media. For his part, journalist Alaa Thabet, editor-in-chief of Al-Ahram, praised the effective development partnership between Al-Ahram newspaper and the Kemet Boutros Ghali Foundation, and said that it expresses a consensus in vision and goal to enhance national awareness, and reliance on modern means imposed by successive technological developments, to produce journalistic content that enhances the role of the national press and its efforts to be a soft power supporting the policies of the Egyptian state, its achievements and ambitions for a future worthy of this country, in an important period and unprecedented challenges witnessed by the entire world. In his speech during the reception of the Kemet Board of Trustees, Thabet touched on Al-Ahram's long history, and said that Al-Ahram's recent celebration of the issuance of its 50,000th issue makes it a unique newspaper that occupies its place among the largest international newspapers, noting that only a few newspapers have been able to reach the 50,000th issue. He added: Al-Ahram adopts the slogan “We live for the truth” because it works within the framework of a historical responsibility and decades of trust that the Egyptian and Arab reader has given it throughout its pioneering journey that extends to about a century and a half. The editor-in-chief of Al-Ahram provided the attendees with an explanation of the work mechanisms and techniques used over the decades in developing journalistic work. The attendees also viewed the “Camera Museum” of the newspaper’s photography department, which displays a variety of cameras that document the development of the art of photojournalism. They expressed their admiration for the many photos of stars and symbols of thought, culture and art in Egypt and the Arab world. These photos were taken by senior Al-Ahram photographers over the decades and are considered an artistic treasure of Al-Ahram’s treasures. The attendees also inspected the studio equipped with the latest cameras and photography equipment, where Thabet confirmed that it will be available to train Al-Ahram journalists, students of the Faculty of Media at the Canadian University of Al-Ahram, as well as fellow journalists who are members of the union, after coordination in this regard with the head of the Journalists’ Syndicate. "Thabet" stressed that the interest in introducing new technologies and paying attention to digital journalism is a continuation of the development and modernization process in the newspaper, noting that Al-Ahram has always been a pioneer in this direction.
Al-Ahram.. Keeping up with the times
For his part, Mamdouh Abbas, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Kemet Boutros Ghali Foundation for Peace and Knowledge, stressed the importance of the efforts made by Al-Ahram newspaper to keep up with the times and provide the latest technical technologies to its employees, which contributes to maintaining the venerable newspaper, which was founded in 1875 and was the most widely circulated Egyptian and Arab newspaper, in its leading position.
"Abbas" expressed his gratitude for being invited to see the smart newsroom that the Kemet Boutros Ghali Foundation for Peace and Knowledge equipped and developed with the latest computers, as well as to inspect the Boutros Ghali Studio for video production and the Camera Museum. He expressed the happiness of Kemet and its Board of Trustees to contribute to the efforts made by Al-Ahram newspaper in order to keep up with the developments witnessed by journalism, stressing the continued participation of the development foundation in supporting future development projects for Al-Ahram newspaper.
Abbas added that Dr. Boutros Ghali's interest in Al-Ahram is known to everyone, as Dr. Boutros Ghali moved from the academic field to public work through his articles in Al-Ahram newspaper. He did not stop there, but he succeeded, as an avid follower of all developments, new intellectual trends and modern technologies, in issuing two specialized modern magazines that are in line with modern formats and topics and their appropriate coverage, namely "International Politics" and "Al-Ahram Al-Iqtisadi" magazines. Dr. Boutros Ghali was also very proud of his work in Al-Ahram newspaper and his achievements in it, saluting journalist Alaa Thabet for his great effort in modernizing Al-Ahram's work mechanisms and developing its technical capabilities and for giving the Kemet Foundation the opportunity to participate in this important work, stressing that Al-Ahram will always remain at the forefront of Egyptian newspapers. For their part, the Board of Trustees and members of the Advisory Board of the Kemet Foundation praised the important enlightening role that Al-Ahram newspaper has played throughout its history, and those present discussed their memories of working in
A number of the foundation's publications, especially those who studied under Dr. Boutros Ghali, and the attendees agreed that a large part of their political awareness was formed through Al-Ahram and its senior writers, because it is a newspaper that represents the diwan of contemporary life.
The members of the advisory board confirmed that this recent boom witnessed by Al-Ahram will enable it to continue its pioneering role in confronting the rumors that are currently spreading on various social media platforms, especially among the younger generations, who are in dire need of knowing the facts. They stressed that the competition facing the press now is not limited to Egypt only, but has become a global phenomenon, which requires more effort from those working in this field to confront rumors and fake news.
Giving back to society
Regarding the developmental role of the Kemet Foundation, Magda Abdel Aziz, Vice President of the Board of Trustees of the Al-Joud Charitable Foundation, said that this role revolves around giving back to society, and she said that they are doing everything in their power to provide a helping hand and assistance to everyone, which is a principle that the foundation has been committed to since its inception, whether in its various charitable projects or through its interest in young researchers.
The upgraded units inaugurated by Al-Ahram include an advanced digital studio, equipped with advanced means to produce high-quality videos specifically designed for social media platforms, ensuring that Al-Ahram continues to interact with its audience in the evolving media landscape with a full grant from the Boutros Ghali Foundation. This comes in addition to the Imam Muhammad Abdo Hall for Social Media, and the Camera Museum, which displays a variety of cameras that document the development of photography and its pivotal role in journalism. The museum aims not only to celebrate the art and science of photography, but also to pay tribute to the pioneers of journalism who captured history through their lenses, in addition to the knights of the pen.