Mona Al Marri: At Mohammed bin Rashid’s School, we learned that the future is made, not waited for

Her Excellency Mona Ghanem Al Marri, Vice Chairperson and Managing Director of the Dubai Media Council and Chairperson of the Organising Committee of the Arab Media Summit, said Arab media is facing an exceptional moment. She noted that the world is witnessing shifting balances of power, while the region’s future is being reshaped. At the same time, the media landscape has changed dramatically. She said the most important question today is no longer how media will change, but what role Arab media will choose for itself in shaping the next phase.

She said the media landscape was completely different when His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, launched the Arab Media Forum. There were no digital platforms shaping public opinion. There were no smartphones carrying newsrooms directly to audiences. Nor was there artificial intelligence capable of writing news stories, creating images and producing videos within seconds. She stressed that a region that seeks to shape its future must have media that understands these changes, participates in creating that future and has the ability to tell its story to the world.

She added that this year carries special significance as it marks the silver jubilee of the Arab Media Award and the 25th anniversary of its launch under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum. She described it as a long journey dedicated to recognising excellence and celebrating Arab media talent. Al Marri noted that over the past quarter-century, newspapers, newsrooms and media tools have undergone profound transformation. Even the meaning of being a media professional has evolved. Yet one value has remained constant: “the truth”.

Al Marri stressed that rapid advances in technology and content creation tools increase the media’s responsibility to uphold truth and build trust. She said technology alone does not create effective media. Its true value lies in how it is used to serve society, create meaningful content and present the region’s story to the world.

“In Dubai, we learned at the school of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum that the future is not something we wait for, but something we make,” she said. She stressed that this vision applies to media just as it does to other sectors. She added that, just as the region is building its future with its own hands, it must also create its own narrative and not leave others to tell its story.

She stressed that the next phase places Arab media before a responsibility that goes beyond merely keeping pace with change. It must actively participate in shaping that change. This requires media that possesses the tools of the future, remains committed to the truth, reflects the aspirations of the region and presents its story to the world in its own voice and through its own vision.