Media Arabia

The announcement, last week, that Newsweek, the venerable American newsweekly magazine is up for sale because of economic difficulties, is another milestone in the agonizing struggle of print media to survive in a changing world. If the magazine finds a buyer, the new owner will almost certainly change much of the look and feel of the magazine, which for decades, along with Time, was a symbol of America’s opinionated and responsible journalism.

 It used to be said that if it’s printed in a newspaper, then it must be true. This is, of course, is a gross exaggeration. If anything newspapers are as fallible as the people who write in them and read them. But in the pre-internet era and when print was king, accuracy and credibility represented the two pillars on which journalism stood.

 If one is to pursue a dream, it had better be a bold one. But what if it is a Royal dream? In the case of the Red Sea Institute of Cinematic Arts (RSICA) in Aqaba the unimaginable has become a reality. And if it is still one of the best kept secrets in Jordan, it is because the patrons, founders, managers, faculty members and hand-picked students of this magnificent institute have been laboring for years to fulfill the Royal vision.