All Pakistan Newspapers Society (APNS) is an organization of major
Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
i
newspaper
A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background.
Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as politics, business, spor ...
s, their publishers, companies, and corporations. It includes the
Jang Group of Newspapers
Jang Media Group (), also known as Geo Group, is a Pakistani media conglomerate and a subsidiary of Dubai-based company Independent Media Corporation. Its headquarters is in Printing House, Karachi, Pakistan. It is Pakistan's largest group of new ...
,
Dawn Group of Newspapers
Pakistan Herald Limited, doing business as the Dawn Media Group, is a Pakistani media company based in Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan. It publishes the ''Dawn'' newspaper and operates a TV channel, radio stations and websites. It is a listed member ...
The Pakistan Newspapers Society was established in 1950. Later, All Pakistan Newspapers Society was established in 1953 and was headed by Hamid Nizami,
Mir Khalil-ur-Rahman
Mir Khalil-ur-Rahman (1927 – 25 January 1992) was the founder and editor of the Jang Group of Newspapers which currently publishes many Urdu and English newspapers in Pakistan. A self-made newspaper magnate, he ranks among the most successful ...
,
Mian Iftikharuddin
Mian Iftikharuddin (Punjabi, ur, میاں افتخارالدیں; 8 April 1907 – 6 June 1962) was a Pakistani politician, activist of the Indian National Congress, who later joined the All-India Muslim League and worked for the cause of Pakis ...
, ''Fakhre Matri'', Hamid Mahmood, Yusuf Haroon, Mahmud A. Haroon, A.G. Mirza, Kazi Mohammad Akber, Munawwar Hidayet Ullah, K. M. Hamid Ullah, Anwarul Islam of the newspaper ''
Pakistan Observer
The ''Pakistan Observer'' is one of the oldest and widely read English-language daily newspapers of Pakistan. It is published in six cities – Islamabad, Karachi, Lahore, Quetta, Peshawar, and Muzaffarabad. The newspaper was founded in 1988 ...
'',
Dacca
Dhaka ( or ; bn, ঢাকা, Ḍhākā, ), formerly known as Dacca, is the capital and largest city of Bangladesh, as well as the world's largest Bengali-speaking city. It is the eighth largest and sixth most densely populated city i ...
, Syed Hameed Hussain Naqvi, and Tanvir Tahir.
The older organization, Pakistan Newspapers Society was established primarily due to the efforts of
Hameed Nizami
Hameed Nizami or Hamid Nizami (Punjabi, ur, ; b. 3 October 1915 – 22 February 1962), was an eminent journalist, literary figure, Pakistan Movement activist, and the founder as well as the editor-in-chief of the Urdu-language newspaper, t ...
,
Altaf Husain
Altaf Husain ( bn, আলতাফ হোসেইন, ur, ; 26 January 1900 – 25 May 1968) was an educationist, journalist, and Pakistan Movement activist. He is noted as one of the pioneers of print journalism in Pakistan and was the fou ...
, and Hamid Mahmood. It functioned for a number of years but could not receive much support or recognition either from the publishers or the advertising agencies. Other smaller publishers' organizations also functioned, at the same time, in
East Pakistan
East Pakistan was a Pakistani province established in 1955 by the One Unit Policy, renaming the province as such from East Bengal, which, in modern times, is split between India and Bangladesh. Its land borders were with India and Myanmar, wit ...
and
Karachi
Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former c ...
.
In the year 1953, All Pakistan Newspapers Society was formed by merging the smaller existing groups of publishers. The headquarters were established in Karachi, from where it still continues to operate in 2018.
The APNS handles problems between its member publications and the provincial or federal governments relating to advertisements, clearance of dues, taxes and duties and newsprint. It sets rules of conduct for member publications and advertising agencies. This gives the Society a mechanism of streamlining advertisements and a clearance system protecting the collective interests of its member publications, advertising agencies, and advertisers.
The Society also works to develop the science and art of journalism and newspaper industry. In 1981, the APNS instituted advertising awards in various categories. Subsequently, the Journalist Awards were launched in 1982. The awards ceremonies have been held regularly since 1981.Profile of ''All Pakistan Newspapers Society'' on Civil Services of Pakistan Forum website Retrieved 4 April 2018
The APNS grew to include publications from small towns and newspapers in regional languages. Between 1971 and 2003, the number of member publications in the Society rose from 41 to 262. Along with organizations of editors and journalists, the Society worked against the Press and Publications Ordinance passed by
Ayub Khan
Ayub Khan is a compound masculine name; Ayub is the Arabic version of the name of the Biblical figure Job, while Khan or Khaan is taken from the title used first by the Mongol rulers and then, in particular, their Islamic and Persian-influenced s ...
in 1960 until it was finally repealed in 1988. In 1999, the APNS prepared a set of press laws including the Draft for the formation of Press Council in Pakistan, Registration of Printing Presses, Newspapers Ordinance and a draft for a Freedom of Information Act. After thorough discussions among the All Pakistan Newspapers Society (APNS) people,
Council of Pakistan Newspaper Editors
The Council of Pakistan Newspaper Editors (CPNE) has worked since its foundation in 1957 as the combined body of newspaper editors in Pakistan
Government of Pakistan
The Government of Pakistan ( ur, , translit=hakúmat-e pákistán) abbreviated as GoP, is a federal government established by the Constitution of Pakistan as a constituted governing authority of the four provinces, two autonomous territorie ...
, the drafts on the Press Council and the Registration of Presses and Newspapers were finalized and enacted in 2002.
After 2002, the member publications are trying to adopt modern techniques, facilities, and trained manpower in all fields.
In 2018, All Pakistan Newspapers Society (APNS) asked the
Supreme Court of Pakistan
The Supreme Court of Pakistan ( ur, ; ''Adālat-e-Uzma Pākistān'') is the apex court in the judicial hierarchy of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan.
Established in accordance to thePart VIIof the Constitution of Pakistan, it has ultimate a ...
to consider Pakistani print media's problems. This action was prompted by the recently expressed fear in the country and reports circulating in the news media that government advertisements in the print media might be stopped or limited. APNS pointed out that the print media in Pakistan, especially the small newspapers, significantly depend on the revenue that comes from these government advertisements.
Awards of the APNS
The Advertising Awards were initiated in 1981, with Journalist Awards following in 1982. Advertising Awards are given on a 1st position, 2nd position, 3rd position basis and include:
*Business Performance Awards
*Client Performance Awards
*Product Launch Award
*Best Copy Award (English and Urdu)
*Best Visual Design (colour and black and white)
*Public Service Campaign
*Lifetime Achievement Award
The Journalist Awards have only one winner in each category. The categories include:
*Best Scoop
*Best Column
*Best Feature (in
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ...
,
Urdu
Urdu (;"Urdu" '' office bearers of the All Pakistan Newspapers Society for the following year.