Mohammed Fahad Al-Harthi, is a Saudi writer, journalist and media expert, with more than 20 years of experience in the field of traditional and new media. Al-Harthi is the chairman of the first Saudi Media Forum and chairman of the Saudi Media Award, 2019 . Also, he is a member of the board of directors at the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (

WAN-IFRA The World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA) is a non-profit, non-governmental organization made up of 76 national newspaper associations, 12 news agencies, 10 regional press organisations, and many individual newspaper ex ...

), and a member of the board of directors of the Saudi Journalists Association. Al-Harthi is the group

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 ...

of big titles such as

Arrajol ''Arrajol'' ( ar, الرَجُل, lit=The Man) is a monthly men's lifestyle magazine published in Saudi Arabia. The magazine is one of the publications of the Saudi Research and Marketing Group (SRMG). History and profile ''Arrajol'' was launch ...

Sayidaty ''Sayidaty'' (Arabic سيدتي ''Sayyidatī'', meaning ''My Lady'' in English) is a weekly Arabic and a monthly English women's magazine published in both Riyadh and Beirut and distributed throughout the Middle East, North Africa, Europe and Am ...

and AboutHer, owned by the

Saudi Research and Marketing Group Saudi Research and Media Group (SRMG) (also known as the Saudi Media Group) is a Saudi joint stock company registered in Riyadh. The group mainly publishes, prints and distributes various publications. The company operates in Saudi Arabia where t ...

. Al-Harthi holds a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

in international journalism from

City, University of London City, University of London, is a public research university in London, United Kingdom, and a member institution of the federal University of London. It was founded in 1894 as the Northampton Institute, and became a university when The City Univ ...

and a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing building ...

Work experience

Al-Harthi began his career with the London-based ''Asharq al-Awsat'' newspaper before joining the English-language newspaper ''

Arab News ''Arab News'' is an English-language daily newspaper published in Saudi Arabia. It is published from Riyadh. The target audiences of the paper, which is published in broadsheet format, are businessmen, executives and diplomats. At least as of ...

'' as a reporter, in addition to being a visiting journalist for the London-based ''

Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and published digitally that focuses on business and economic current affairs. Based in London, England, the paper is owned by a Japanese holding company, Nik ...

''. He was then transferred to the Saudi-published newspaper ''

Al Eqtisadiah Al Eqtisadiah ( ar, الاقتصادية, 'The Economy') is a Saudi daily business newspaper, published by Saudi Research and Publishing Company. It has been in circulation since 1962. History ''Al Eqtisadiah'' was first launched as an economic ...

'', where he went from being a journalist to becoming a front-page official, climbing up the ranks until he became editor-in-chief of the publication. In 1997, Al-Harthi has been the editor-in-chief of ''

'' magazine, a

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 ...

-based publication by the Saudi Research and Marketing Group. In 2002, Al-Harthi was presented with the Gulf Excellence Award in recognition of the magazine's success and wide circulation. In 2004, Al-Harthi was appointed as editor-in-chief of the London-based ''

'' and '' Al-Jamila'' magazines, both publications for the same Group. A year following his appointment as

, he relocated the headquarters of both magazines to

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 ...

, in

Dubai Media City Dubai Media City (DMC), part of Dubai Holding, is a tax-free zone within Dubai, United Arab Emirates. History and profile The Dubai Media City was established and built in 2000 and inaugurated in January 2001 by the government of Dubai to boos ...

. Al-Harthi played a major role in transforming ''

'' into a leading model in the world of Arab journalism and digital media, as the publication’s name today represents a wide range of specialized magazines, websites, and platforms in various fields such as: ''Sayidaty Décor''; ''Sayidaty Mother & Child''; ''Sayidaty Fashion''; ''Sayidaty Magazine'' in English;
Sayidaty.netAl-Jamila.comArrajol’s websiteSayidy.netSayidaty KitchenSayidaty TV
';
Sayidaty Award for Excellence
'; ''ALMALL'', which is the first digital shopping platform launched by an Arab publication; and
AboutHer.com
', an English-language site dedicated to highlighting the achievements of Saudi Arabian and

Arab women The roles of women in the Arab world have changed throughout history, as the culture and society in which they live has undergone significant transformations. Historically, as well as presently, the situation of women differs greatly between A ...

. From 2013 to 2016, Al-Harthi was also the editor-in-chief of ''

'', which is printed in Saudi Arabia in English for the Saudi Research and Marketing Group. Through the newspaper, he launched the ''Arab News Dialogue Forum'' project, which hosts seminars designed to facilitate the discussion of current issues by officials and diplomats.

TV shows

In 2015, Al-Harthi launched his talk show “Bidoun Shak” (Without Doubt) on MBC, taking on the role of presenter and

of one of the region’s most noticeable weekly programs that boldly addresses various social issues (in the style of reality television). The program had a significant impact, becoming a positive debate platform, in addition to being highly viewed. To this day, episodes and segments of the program still garner a high number of views on

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

Corporate Social Responsibility Initiatives

Mohammed Fahad Al-Harthi launched numerous

corporate social responsibility Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is a form of international private business self-regulation which aims to contribute to societal goals of a philanthropic, activist, or charitable nature by engaging in or supporting volunteering or ethicall ...

initiatives that dealt with social and humanitarian issues, amongst which were: * La Lizawaj Al Kaserat (against child brides): A campaign against child and underage girls’ marriage 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 ...

. The initiative gained region-wide buzz, with top public figures, politicians, ministers and celebrities voluntarily promoting the campaign. Signatures of more than ten thousand people were collected for petitions that helped stop five marriages of minors, in partnership with charity organizations in

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...

and

Yemen Yemen (; ar, ٱلْيَمَن, al-Yaman), officially the Republic of Yemen,, ) is a country in Western Asia. It is situated on the southern end of the Arabian Peninsula, and borders Saudi Arabia to the Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, north and ...

. * Baader bel Khair (initiate goodness): A campaign recognizing other community and humanitarian initiatives, while creating awareness of volunteerism in society. *Khali Soutek Masmou Mish Makmou (let your voice be heard not taken away from you): A campaign against domestic violence encouraging abused women to speak up, under the slogan: Let Your Voice Be Heard, Not Suppressed.

Achievements

* In November 2016, Al Harthi was elected to the Board of Directors of the Saudi Journalists Association. * In June 2019, World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (

) in the UK elected Al-Harthi as a member of the board. * In July 2019, he was appointed as the Chairman of the first Saudi Media Forum, held in November 2019, under the slogan ‘Media Industry: Opportunities and Challenges. He is also the Chairman of the Saudi Media Awards, which includes categories:

Journalism Journalism is the production and distribution of reports on the interaction of events, facts, ideas, and people that are the "news of the day" and that informs society to at least some degree. The word, a noun, applies to the occupation (profes ...

, Visual Production,

Audio Production Sound design is the art and practice of creating sound tracks for a variety of needs. It involves specifying, acquiring or creating auditory elements using audio production techniques and tools. It is employed in a variety of disciplines including ...

, and Personality of the Year.

Awards

In 2002, Al-Harthi was awarded with the Gulf Excellence Award 2002 in recognition of his achievements and success in journalism and in the fields of online and print media. In 2014, Al-Harthi won the Media Innovation Award 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 ...

for his achievements in the field of printed, visual, and digital media, achievements which have created success stories and innovative concepts for the media industry in the Arab region. He is also a founding member of the Young Arab Leaders Forum in Davos Middle East, a member of the Gulf / 2000 project at

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

, and a former member of the

National Union of Journalists The National Union of Journalists (NUJ) is a trade union for journalists in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It was founded in 1907 and has 38,000 members. It is a member of the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ). Structure There i ...

(UK &

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

), in addition to being a key participant in several Arab and international media conferences and meetings. He also regularly publishes political articles in ''

Al-Sharq Al-Awsat ''Asharq Al-Awsat'' ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, Aš-Šarq al-ʾAwsaṭ, meaning "The Middle East") is an Arabic international newspaper headquartered in London. A pioneer of the "off-shore" model in the Arabic press, the paper is often noted f ...

'' and '' Al-Bayan'' Newspapers, and he has a weekly column in ''

'' magazine and a monthly in ''

'' magazine.

References