The Majalla
Editor-in-chiefGhassan Charbel
CategoriesOnline news magazine
FrequencyWeekly
Circulation86.961 (2009)
PublisherSaudi Research Publishing Company
Founded1980
Final issueApril 2009 (print)
CompanySaudi Research and Marketing Group (SRMG)
CountryUnited Kingdom, Saudi Arabia
LanguageArabic, English and Persian
WebsiteThe Majalla
ISSN0261-0876

The Majalla, often directly transliterated as Al Majalla (Arabic:المجلة, "the magazine") is a Saudi-owned, London-based political news journal published in Arabic, English and Persian.[1] The magazine's headquarters in Saudi Arabia is in Jeddah.[2]

From 1980 to 2009 a print edition was issued weekly, every Sunday. In April 2009 the magazine moved to an all-online format.[3][4] The online version continues to be published weekly.[5]

History and profile

The Majalla was launched by Hisham Hafiz in London in 1980.[6][7] The magazine is owned by Saudi Research and Marketing Group (SRMG),[8] and was reestablished in 1987 by Ahmed bin Salman, then chairman of the SRMG.[9] The former chairman of the SRMG is Turki bin Salman Al Saud.[10]

The SRMG owns many other newspapers such as Arab News, Al Eqtisadiah, Urdu News and Asharq Al Awsat and magazines, including Sayidaty, Al Jamila, Arrajol, Bassim and Heya.[11]

The Majalla, along with Sayidaty and Al Yamamah, is among popular magazines in Saudi Arabia.[12]

Editors

Abdul Karim Abou-Nasr was the first chief editor of the magazine. He created the concept and managed it from April 1, 1979 to October 22, 1983. The first issue was published on February 16, 1980. During this period, Elias Mansour was the managing editor and Gaby G. Tabarani[13] was the secretary of the editorial staff. From 1983 to 1987 the chief editor of the magazine was Othman Al Omeir who owns news portal Elaph.[14] Then Abdel Rahman Al Rashid served as the editor-in-chief of the magazine from 1987 to 1998.[15] Adel Al Toraifi was appointed editor-in-chief of the Majalla in 2010,[1] and the chief editor of the magazine.[16] In July 2012, Toraifi was also appointed deputy chief editor of Asharq Al Awsat, a daily published by SRMG.[17] Toraifi's term as the editor-in-chief of the magazine ended in July 2014 when Salman bin Yousuf Al Dossary was appointed to the post.[18][19] His term ended in 2016 when Ghassan Charbel was appointed to the post.[20]

The Majalla offers the readers an overview of the main weekly news, analysis and exclusive reports with a focus on political affairs.[21] The magazine also provides news from USA Today, Time Magazine, World Monitor and MEED.[21]

Because of its close connection with the Arab world, The Majalla has often broken stories from sources close to militant groups like the PLO,[22] Hamas,[23] and Al-Qaeda.[24][25][26] It also publishes articles written by senior Saudi princes like Prince Turki Al Faisal.

The magazine is also well known for its political cartoons, particularly those by the late Mahmoud Kahil.[27] These were often critical of Israel and the United States.[28][29] The Majalla sponsored London's first Festival for Arab Caricature in 1989.

Circulation

In 1994 The Majalla sold 116,000 copies.[30] The audited circulation of the magazine at the end of the 1990s is stated to be just under 100,000 copies.[7] Its 2009 circulation was 86,961 copies.[21]

References

  1. ^ a b "Al Toraifi New Editor-in-chief of Asharq Al Awsat". Asharq Al Awsat. 11 December 2012. Archived from the original on 11 December 2012. Retrieved 14 December 2012.
  2. ^ Toby Jones (Fall 2003). "Seeking a "Social Contract" for Saudi Arabia" (PDF). Middle East Report (228): 46. doi:10.2307/1559380. JSTOR 1559380.
  3. ^ Jeffrey Ghannam (3 February 2011). "Social Media in the Arab World: Leading up to the Uprisings of 2011" (PDF). The Center for International Media Assistance. Retrieved 25 September 2013.
  4. ^ Gabriel Chahine; Christopher Vollmer. "The Advent of Digital News in the GCC" (PDF). Booz & Company. Retrieved 2 October 2014.
  5. ^ "Arab Media Outlook 2009-2013" (PDF). Dubai Press Club and Value Partners. Retrieved 15 September 2013.
  6. ^ "Biography". Hisham Hafiz. Archived from the original on 11 July 2011. Retrieved 4 June 2012.
  7. ^ a b Jon B. Alterman (1998). "New Media New Politics?" (PDF). The Washington Institute. 48.
  8. ^ "Saudi Research and Marketing Group" (PDF). Money Expert Club. November 2009. Retrieved 4 June 2012.
  9. ^ "SRMG" (PDF). The Majalla. September 2011. Retrieved 14 December 2012.
  10. ^ "Saudi Research and Marketing Group appoints new chairman". Al Arabiya. 10 February 2013. Retrieved 12 February 2013.
  11. ^ "Media personality of the year; AMF honours Saudi Prince Faısal" (PDF). MEPA Monthly Bulletin. 31 (31). March 2009.
  12. ^ "Saudi Arabia - Marketing and Sales Strategy". The Saudi Network. Retrieved 6 June 2012.
  13. ^ Gabriel G. Tabarani (16 May 2011). Jihad's New Heartlands: Why the West has Failed to Contain Islamic Fundamentalism. Author House. p. 7. ISBN 978-1-4678-9180-6.
  14. ^ "The Murdoch of the Middle East". The Majalla. 21 May 2010. Retrieved 2 June 2012.
  15. ^ "Abdel Rahman Al Rashid". The Emirates Center for Strategic Studies and Research. Retrieved 26 February 2013.
  16. ^ "About The Majalla". SUSRIS. Retrieved 10 November 2014.
  17. ^ "Adel Al-Toraifi appointed Deputy Editor-in-Chief of Asharq Al Awsat". The Majalla. 4 July 2012. Archived from the original on 6 October 2012. Retrieved 14 December 2012.
  18. ^ "Adel Al Toraifi". Arabian Business. Retrieved 26 June 2014.
  19. ^ Salman Al Dossary appointed Asharq Al Awsat editor in chief. Asharq Al Awsat. 2 July 2014. Retrieved 19 October 2015.
  20. ^ "Ghassan Charbel appointed editor-in-chief of Asharq Al-Awsat". Arab News. 24 November 2016. Retrieved 10 April 2021.
  21. ^ a b c "Saudi Research and Marketing Group" (PDF). Global Investment House. November 2009. Retrieved 28 May 2012.
  22. ^ David Remnick (6 May 2002). "Rage and Reason". The New Yorker.
  23. ^ Shaul Mishal. "The Pragmatic Dimension of the Palestinian Hamas: A Network Perspective" (PDF). p. 583.
  24. ^ Miyazaki, Jamie (22 November 2003). "Japan, Korea new terror fronts". Asia Times. Archived from the original on 23 November 2003.((cite web)): CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  25. ^ "Al Qaeda vows back-breaking strike". Reuters. 27 December 2003.
  26. ^ Lis, Jonathan (15 November 2003). "Report: Al-Qaida claims responsibility for attacks". Haaretz.
  27. ^ "Welcome". Mahmoud Kahil. Retrieved 4 April 2013.
  28. ^ Andrew Hammond (2007). Popular Culture in the Arab World: Arts, politics, and the media. American University in Cairo Press. p. 260. ISBN 978-977-416-054-7.
  29. ^ Long, Jerry M (2004). Saddam's war of words: politics, religion, and the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. University of Texas Press. p. 165. ISBN 0-292-70264-7.
  30. ^ Kuldip R. Rampal (1994). "Saudi Arabia". In Yahya R.Kamalipour; Hamid Mowlana (eds.). Mass Media in the Middle East: A Comprehensive Handbook. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press. p. 247. ISBN 978-0-3132-8535-6.

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