Adham Center News

Khaled Dawoud Appointed Al-Ahram Washington Bureau Chief

Adham Center alumni Khaled Dawoud (graduated 1990) has been appointed to the plum position of Washington bureau chief for Al-Ahram newspaper. Since 1988, Dawoud has reported for such international news agencies as the Associated Press, Reuters, and the German News Agency (DPA) and has worked as a regional editor at Al-Ahram Weekly. In the latter capacity, Dawoud visited Ramallah and covered the April-March 2002 incursion by Israeli forces into Palestinian territory.

Despite his focus on TV journalism at Adham Center, Dawoud's career to date has been largely in print journalism. He claims, however, that his Adham Center studies were of great help to him in facing difficult situations, as when he appeared recently as a guest on MSNBC's popular talk show, Hard Ball, in a segment that dealt with Faris Bila Gawad, the controversial T.V. series that appeared to give credence to the anti-Jewish propaganda tract the "Protocols of Zion." The two other, adamantly pro-Israel, guests, one a congressman, lashed out at the series, accusing Arabs and Muslims of anti-Semitism and Arab governments' of doing nothing to stop anti-Jewish propaganda.

Dawoud, however, remained composed and managed to get over the Arab and Muslim point of view, saying that scenes on T.V. screens of Palestinian children getting killed everyday by Israeli soldiers turn many people against Israel, rather than against Jews. After the show, the producer praised Dawoud for his aplomb, prompting Dawoud to reflect on how much he owes the Adham Center for giving him practical experience in such situations. Dawoud hopes that his role as an Arab journalist in Washington DC will give him opportunities not only to cover stories related to the Middle East, but also to establish links with US media, think tanks, and intellectuals in order to explain the Arab point of view on critical issues such as Palestine and Iraq.

"The United States is biased in favor of Israel. This is not a statement of condemnation but rather of fact, based on the words of U.S officials, who define the protection of Israel as an integral part of American foreign policy," says Dawoud, who also highlighted the role played by US newspapers and major TV networks in current US preparations for war against Iraq.

Dawoud believes that public opinion in the United States opposed to unilateralism is growing, as the latest US polls reflect an increasing awareness amongst Americans that US plans to wage a war against Iraq without imminent threat or justification can only lead to further distortion of the image of the US abroad. Additionally, many Americans are afraid that an unjustified war in Iraq could lead to more acts of terrorism at home and against US interests abroad. "The anti-war movement strongly condemns terrorism and the Iraqi regime. But they are also aware that there must be reasons why so many people in the Middle East are angry towards United States foreign policy," says Dawoud. Dawoud believes that most countries of the world recognize that a US war against Iraq, especially at a time when the situation is so volatile in Palestine, will only create more instability in the Middle East region and probably the entire world.

Dawoud looks forward keenly to observing developments affecting his own region from the capital of the world's only superpower.

By Badiaa Abou Khadra