Dr. Sultan bin Ahmed Al Jaber, Minister of State and Chairman of the National Media Council, NMC, took part in a discussion with participants of the "3rd Young Arab Media Leaders Programme," organised by the Arab Youth Centre, under the patronage of H.H. Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs, who is the head of the centre.

The discussion explored key media issues, such as the use of social media by the youth and the importance of the media to society, along with achieving overall sustainable development.

"The UAE's leadership believes in the key role of the media in fulfilling its national goals. It is one of the pillars of society in achieving sustainable development and prosperity, and its role is not just to spread information and news. We must ensure, honesty and transparency. It is also the responsibility of the media to analyse and explain events and news in their proper contexts," Dr. Al Jaber said.

While explaining that the media supports other sectors, he also highlighted the importance of credibility and being aware of fake news, in light of the circumstances facing the region and the accuracy of news covering major events and developments.

Al Jaber stressed the importance of realism and logic, while noting that new media is attracting the attention of world leaders and the youth, especially as modern technology has greatly affected the work of the media, particularly social media. He then pointed out that there is no competition between new media and traditional media, but there is an integration, as traditional media has not disappeared and continues to have an important role.

During the discussion, Al Jaber and the other participants discussed the challenges facing the Arab media and how to address them, as well as the need for wisdom and reason to prevail, and the use of critical thinking and analysis.

Young media professionals from Oman, Morocco, Iraq, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, Syria, Comoros, Kuwait, Algeria, Sudan, Yemen, Bahrain, Mauritania, Egypt, Palestine, Lebanon, the UAE and Libya are participating in this year's programme.

The meeting was held at the Arab Youth Centre in Abu Dhabi, with the attendance of Shamma bint Suhail Faris Al Mazrui, Minister of State for Youth Affairs and Vice President of the Arab Youth Centre, Mansour Ibrahim Al Mansouri, Director-General of the NMC, Saeed Alnazari, Director-General of the Federal Foundation, and Dr. Rashid Al Nuaimi, Executive Director of the Media Affairs Sector at the NMC.

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