Wednesday, 24th of February, Ambassador Rolf Willy Hansen met with editor-in-chief of Tishreen newspaper, Mrs. Samira al-Masalmeh. The purpose of the visit was to learn more about the state of printed media in Syria, and the editor-in-chief briefed Hansen on the important role of information and media in regards to the ongoing economic opening.
Hansen expressed his admiration on the fact that a woman held the position of editor-in-chief in one of Syria’s most read dailies. Masalmeh saw this as a sign of the openness of Syrian society under the current Syrian leadership. Her job was challenging, but she regarded this as an opportunity to test her abilities.
Printed media was in need of financial support due to the hard competition it faced from television and internet, the editor-in-chief stated. The survival of this media was important because of the significant amount of readers worldwide, its enlightening role and its power to form and influence public opinion.
Masalmeh is Syria’s first female editor-in-chief and has a background from al-Watan and al-Iqtisadiya, both private newspapers. Last year she successfully launched Tishreen’s economic weekly al-Iqtisady.
Despite the appointment of Masalmeh as editor-in-chief, female Syrian journalists claim to be stigmatized for being women. Problems mentioned are the difficulty of being promoted, the attitude of male colleagues, and the fact that many female journalists end up writing about “women-related issues” such as fashion and art.
Tishreen is a state-owned daily newspaper, and Masalmeh was appointed last January.
Read Syria Today’s interview with Samira al-Masalmeh here:
http://www.syria-today.com/index.php/april-2009/273-focus/681-taking-on-the-old-boys-club
For further information on women in Syrian journalism, read this report by Institute for War and Peace Reporting:
http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/topic,4565c2252f,4565c25f3c5,4a4dbb62c,0.html