''Alwatan'' ( ar, الوطن, ''The Homeland'') is a daily
Arabic
Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic languages, Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C ...
newspaper published in
Oman
Oman ( ; ar, عُمَان ' ), officially the Sultanate of Oman ( ar, سلْطنةُ عُمان ), is an Arabian country located in southwestern Asia. It is situated on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula, and spans the mouth of t ...
and distributed internationally. It was founded in 1971 and was first published on January 28, 1971. It is the first and oldest Omani newspaper.
''Alwatan'' has a daily circulation of 40,000.
History
''Alwatan'' was founded in 1971 to be the first Omani newspaper. It was first published on January 28, 1971. Alwatan was planned to be a daily newspaper but due to problems in printing it was published on a weekly basis in
Beirut
Beirut, french: Beyrouth is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint o ...
, Lebanon.
[ The newspaper's editor-in-chief at the time was Nasr Ibn Mohammed al-Taei. It ceased its publication and moved to ]Cairo
Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world and the Middle East: The Greater Cairo metro ...
, Egypt after the Lebanese Civil War
The Lebanese Civil War ( ar, الحرب الأهلية اللبنانية, translit=Al-Ḥarb al-Ahliyyah al-Libnāniyyah) was a multifaceted armed conflict that took place from 1975 to 1990. It resulted in an estimated 120,000 fatalities a ...
; it later moved to Kuwait City
Kuwait City ( ar, مدينة الكويت) is the capital and largest city of Kuwait. Located at the heart of the country on the south shore of Kuwait Bay on the Persian Gulf, it is the political, cultural and economical centre of the emirate, ...
, Kuwait.[
When Mohammed Ibn Suleiman al-Taei became editor-in-chief, he immediately started planning to expand and make ''Alwatan'' a daily newspaper. He employed new employees and journalists, and changed the newspaper's display and organization. On January 28, 1984, ''Alwatan'' became a daily newspaper.][ In August 1988, ''Alwatan'' founded their own publishing establishment in Oman, where the newspaper is still being published. ''Alwatan'' published its first issue from Oman on August 26, 1988.][
In 1996, ''Alwatan'' switched to the ]Broadsheet
A broadsheet is the largest newspaper format and is characterized by long Vertical and horizontal, vertical pages, typically of . Other common newspaper formats include the smaller Berliner (format), Berliner and Tabloid (newspaper format), ta ...
format and set its slogan. On July 18, 1997, ''Alwatan'' launched its Internet website and service, providing readers access to its articles.[ In 1999, ''Alwatan'' changed to glossy paper, and became the first newspaper to use this type of paper in Oman. In 2001, ''Alwatan'' increased the number of the newspaper's pages and added new sections to celebrate the newspaper's 30th anniversary.][
''Alwatan'' has been credited with the improvement of Omani arts and sports and is considered the only reliable source for the history of sports in Oman.][ ''Alwatan'' has deployed journalists in the capital cities of all the major Arab and Western countries.][ As of 2007, ''Alwatan'' has 187 employees and is the best-selling newspaper in Oman.][
]
Sections
The ''Alwatan'' newspaper currently has 20 pages. It started out with 12 pages, and the number of pages has increased steadily until it reached 20 in 2001. Below is information on the content of every page.
*Page 1 is the front page of the newspaper and includes the main news headlines of the day, both local and international.
*Pages 2 to 4 include news stories on Oman, major local news and current affairs. Page 4 also includes weather forecasts.
*Pages 5 and 6 include business news.
*Pages 7 to 10 include sports news, both local and international.
*Pages 11 and 12 are considered to be the varieties sections. Page 11's content differs from day to day; for example it is usual that on Saturdays readers' poems are posted, while on Thursdays the page includes information on a touristic location. Readers' opinions and advertisements are published on page 12.
*Page 13 usually includes literature-related columns. Page 14 includes celebrity, television and cinema news.
*Pages 15 to 16 comprise the "Opinions" section and contain editorials on current affairs and Omani and international politics. It also includes a daily caricature. On some days, page 16 will include advertisements.
*Pages 17 to 19 contain local and international news. The pages also contains regular columns written by well-known Arab writers.
*Page 20 includes light and trivial news.
Management
''Alwatan'''s editor-in-chief manages the policy of the newspaper and supervises its preparation. He is helped by a managing editor and a deputy managing editor. The newspaper's departments include:
*Local news department
*Political news department
*Sports news department
*Features department
*Secretary of editing
*Revision department
*Production department
*Archiving department
*Photography department
See also
* List of newspapers in Oman
This is a list of newspapers in Oman.
*''Al-Shabiba''
*'' Alwatan''
*Azamn
*'' Oman Daily Observer'' - English
*''Oman Tribune'' - English
*''Muscat Daily'' - English
*''TheWeek'' - published Wednesdays, English
*''Times of Oman'' - English
*The ...
Notes and references
Published sources
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Watan, Al
Arabic-language newspapers
Daily newspapers published in Oman
Newspapers established in 1971
1971 establishments in Oman