George Kordahi ( ar, جورج قرداحي; born 1 May 1950) is a Lebanese

TV presenter A television presenter (or television host, some become a "television personality") is a person who introduces, hosts television programs, often serving as a mediator for the program and the audience. Nowadays, it is common for people who garner ...

and former host of the Arabic version of ''

Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? ''Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?'' (often informally called ''Millionaire'') is an international television game show franchise of British origin, created by David Briggs, Mike Whitehill and Steven Knight. In its format, currently owned and ...

''.

Education

Kordahi was educated at the Notre Dame de Louayzeh College ( Keserwan). He studied

Political Science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...

and Law in Lebanon.

Career

Kordahi started his career with the newspaper ''

Lisan al Hal ''Lisan al-Hal'' or ''Lissan ul-Hal'' ( ar, لسان الحال / ALA-LC: ''Lisān al-Ḥāl'') was a Lebanese Arabic language daily newspaper established by Khalil Sarkis in 1877 Télé Liban Télé Liban (also known as TL, ar, تلفزيون لبنان) is the first Lebanese public television network, owned by the Lebanese government. It was a result of a merger of the privately run Compagnie Libanaise de Télévision (CLT) (channe ...

in 1973 until the start of 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 ...

, when he immigrated to France. In 1979, he joined

Radio Monte Carlo Radio Monte Carlo (RMC) is the name of radio stations owned and managed by several different entities: * RMC (France) is a French-speaking station, broadcasting in France and Monaco owned by NextRadioTV. **RMC Sport, a French bouquet of paid T ...

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

, where he was appointed

editor-in-chief An editor-in-chief (EIC), also known as lead editor or chief editor, is a publication's editorial leader who has final responsibility for its operations and policies. The highest-ranking editor of a publication may also be titled editor, managing ...

. In 1992, Kordahi moved on to run Sharq Radio Station in Paris and remained there for around two years. In 1994, he was recruited to head MBC FM in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

In 2004, Kordahi moved to the Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation for one year, before being asked by MBC to return as the presenter of his old program and several other programs. In his move to

LBC LBC (originally the London Broadcasting Company) is a British phone-in and talk radio station owned and operated by Global and based in its headquarters in London. It was the UK's first licensed commercial radio station, and began to broadcast ...

to present ''Iftah Albak'', Kurdahi became one of the prominent TV presenters in the

Arab world The Arab world ( ar, اَلْعَالَمُ الْعَرَبِيُّ '), formally the Arab homeland ( '), also known as the Arab nation ( '), the Arabsphere, or the Arab states, refers to a vast group of countries, mainly located in Western A ...

. Advertising spots on his shows reached record numbers, both in popularity as well as ratings. Throughout his career, Kordahi used his stardom to support charities in advancing their efforts for the public good. He notably partnered with "Tamkeen" which operates under the umbrella of the Knowledge and Human Development Authority in

Dubai Dubai (, ; ar, دبي, translit=Dubayy, , ) is the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, the most populated of the 7 emirates of the United Arab Emirates.The Government and Politics of ...

. He provided Tamkeen's visually impaired students with new educational tools. Kurdahi was chosen as a UN

Goodwill Ambassador Goodwill ambassador is a post-nominal honorific title, a professional occupation and/or authoritative designation that is assigned to a person who advocates for a specific cause or global issue on the basis of their notability such as a public ...

. In 2011, he departed MBC after making a statement in which he supported the

Syrian government Government of the Syrian Arab Republic is the union government created by the constitution of Syria where by the president is the head of state and the prime minister is the head of government. Executive power is exercised by the government. Syr ...

during the Syrian civil war, and stated that "there was a conspiracy against the Syrian government from Arab TV station." Subsequently, his shows were canceled from MBC and he eventually joined

Al Mayadeen Al Mayadeen (Arabic: الميادين; The Plazas) is a pan-Arabist satellite news television channel launched on 11 June 2012 in Beirut, Lebanon. Its programming is predominantly news. It has news reporters in most Arab countries. In the pan-Ara ...

TV station. In 2012, Kurdahi joined

Al Hayat TV Alhayat TV, also known as Life TV ( ar, قناة الحياة), is an evangelical Christian Arabic-language television channel that airs in countries in North Africa, West Asia, the Middle East, America, Canada, Australia and some of Europe.

to present the TV shows ''Who Wants to be A Millionaire'', ''Al-Mosameh Karim'' and ''Hafez wala Fahem''. Kurdahi has also launched his own brand of perfume, called G.K. On 10 September 2021, he was selected by the

Marada Movement The Marada Movement ( ar, تيار المردة, translit=Tayyār Al-Marada) is a Lebanese political party and a former militia active during the Lebanese Civil War named after the legendary Marada (also called Mardaites) warriors of the early M ...

as their pick for the

Minister of Information An information minister (also called minister of information) is a position in the governments of some countries responsible for dealing with information matters; it is often linked with censorship and propaganda. Sometimes the position is given to ...

of Lebanon. On 2 December 2021, Kordahi announced to local TV stations that he planned to step down as Information Minister following a diplomatic crisis with Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states. The crisis was triggered by comments Kordahi made in a TV interview with

Al Jazeera Al Jazeera ( ar, الجزيرة, translit-std=DIN, translit=al-jazīrah, , "The Island") is a state-owned Arabic-language international radio and TV broadcaster of Qatar. It is based in Doha and operated by the media conglomerate Al Jazeera ...

Online about the war in Yemen. He resigned the following day.

Personal life

Kurdahi is married to Ida Kassar, with whom he has three children. After living in Europe and other Arab countries for many years, he currently resides in his home town of Feitroun. He speaks Arabic, French, English, and Italian.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kurdahi, George Living people Lebanese game show hosts Lebanese television presenters Lebanese television talk show hosts Lebanese television personalities 1950 births Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? People from Keserwan District Notre Dame University–Louaize alumni Government ministers of Lebanon Marada Movement politicians Lebanese Maronites Information ministers of Lebanon