Enab Baladi
- Added
- The Type Of The Organisation : Establishment
- Year Of Incorporation :2011
Mission
Enab Baladi (EB) is an independent Syrian media organization that was founded in 2011. EB offers 24-hour news coverage through its multilingual interactive websites, and it publishes a weekly newspaper that covers Syrian political, social, and miscellaneous affairs. EB has intensive social media presence as well and offers a set of other media products as well.
Enab Baladi seeks to play a role in providing knowledge to Syrian citizens by broadcasting news and publishing in-depth reports about public affairs, documenting human rights violations in Syria through media, and conducting survey investigations and opinion polls that shed light on important internal social issues. Enab Baladi aims to support building a democratic society in Syria by consolidating the independence of the press, reinforcing its professionalism and raising its credibility.
Ever since it was founded during the first year of the Syrian uprising, Enab Baladi has focused on promoting peaceful resistance and combating sectarianism and the discourse of violence. Enab Baladi has been able to provide consistent information to the Syrian people about the events in Syria through its weekly newspaper, its perpetual coverage of human rights violations in Syria, together with its media coverage of the emerging Syrian civil society activities, news and various other matters that relate to politics, economy and social affairs.
Establishment, the beginnings
“After some exhaustive brainstorming and debates, Enab (grapes) was chosen as a name for the newspaper, because of its direct connection to our city (Daraya in Damascus suburbs), historically known for growing grapes and because it symbolizes authenticity and attachment to the land and comes in so many different types and varieties, hence the reference to the diversity of our affiliations and schools of thought. This “Enab” is Baladi (local), because it is a distinct product of the people of Daraya, of their own labor and effort.”
The above are excerpts from the front page of the issue number #0 of Enab Baladi weekly newspaper, published on January 29, 2012, which was then launched by an “amateur” group with no experience in the journalism, “but they wanted to make an effort to present the view of the Syrian uprising and participate in one of the free spaces it has created to be an arena for their ideas and pens and express their opinions freely,” the front page states.
Since then, the weekly newspaper has been published on a regular basis, except for two weeks in which it did not appear following Daraya Massacre in August 2012 committed by the Assad forces against civilians in the city. Since then, every week, the newspaper is published and thousands of copies of each edition are distributed in the Syrian northern region and to Syrian refugees in a number of major Turkish cities.
The newspaper is printed in southern Turkey and then shipped to Syria, via border crossings, to be distributed by the Syrian Network for Printed Media in more than 300 vital points in Aleppo and its countryside, Idlib and its countryside, Hama and Latakia country sides, and the predominantly Kurdish city of Afrin, since August 2014.
At the beginning of 2012, Enab Baladi began to distribute printed copies of its weekly newspaper in Damascus and suburbs before the Syrian regime forces invaded Daraya and destroyed EB’s headquarters office. In early 2013, EB moved to distribute in the northern cities and villages that are not under the control of the Syrian regime. The PDF version of the newspaper reaches hundreds of thousands of subscribers and readers, through electronic distribution lists, Enab Baladi’s website and social media pages with more than 1,000,000 followers.
Less than a year after it was launched, Enab Baladi expanded its geographic focus to move from publishing on the events in Daraya city to news coverage of major Syrian provinces. It also began to strengthen its internal systems and administrative structure and benefit from the academic expertise that was available among its cadres. EB established its editorial policy and developed its rules of procedures at an early stage.
The first basic journalism training EB’s team received took place in Beirut in the summer of 2012, and its beneficiaries were the “amateur” journalists of Enab Baladi. The training was carried out under the supervision of local, Arab and international trainers. After that, Enab Baladi participated in many training workshops provided by specialized international media development organizations. EB teams received dozens of training workshops, benefiting about 60 journalists who have worked with Enab Baladi (as journalists, reporters or administrators).
When founded, Enab Baladi did not need more than twenty thousand Syrian pounds a month (~$400 at that time), which were donated by one of the local activists on monthly basis. The money was used to buy paper and ink to print the newspaper. The newspaper remained for the first year without financial support, except for “occasional” donations from supporters and people who are close to the project. After that, Enab Baladi received professional and financial support from Syrian and international media development organizations.
- Enab Baladi Weekly Newspaper
Every week, a new issue of Enab Baladi newspaper is published. The publishing process takes two forms: print and digital. EB currently prints around 6,000 copies every week and distributes them in northern parts of Syria (Aleppo and suburbs, Latakia and suburbs, and Idlib and suburbs), and in Turkey to Syrian refugees. Since January 2012, EB has printed and distributed around a million copies of the weekly newspaper. The printing takes place in Turkey and then the copies are shipped to Syria. EB used to print and distribute in the southern and middle regions of Syria but after Assad forces destroyed its office and equipment in Daraya, the team was forced to start printing and distributing in northern Syria where Assad forces have no control. The interactive PDF version of the newspaper reaches hundreds of thousands of subscribers and fans, whether through electronic distribution lists, EB websites and social media channels including around a million Facebook fans.
- Enab Baladi Arabic News Website
Launched in September, 2014, Enab Baladi Arabic news website covers Syria news on the ground through a network of reporters and journalists. The website had a modest start and grew to publish over forty pieces of news and reports on daily basis on average. The news covers social, political, and economic issues of importance to the Syrian public. Since it started, the website received over 12 million page views and now it receives about a million page views every month. The website global rank jumped from 3,000,000 to ~52,000 competing with well-established Syrian news websites that have been operating for over ten years.
- Enab Baladi English News Website
This is the English version of the Arabic news website. EB’s team translates and publishes selected news, articles, op-eds, and reports into English. In almost complete absence of credible foreign media inside Syria, this website serves the role of reporting on the news from inside the country and presenting it to foreign audience interested in knowing what is really happening on the ground in Syria. The website was launched in January 2016 and has its own social media interfaces: Facebook page and Twitter.
- Enab Baladi Video Channel
The Enab Video website and Facebook page are dedicated to EB’s video production which has increased massively over the past months. The videos types vary, some are in-depth reports from inside Syria, informative videos about the daily news, and sarcastic entertaining commentary videos that shed light on the news, in addition to other online live podcasts through Facebook live feature. The channel produced two social online TV shows, one is called “Wherever you are” shot in Turkey and aired on EB video channel every Thursday, and the other one “Over the Rooftop” is shot in Damascus Eastern Ghotta, aired three times a month. Both programs episodes have received millions of views since they started early 2017.
- Enab Baladi Investigative Journalism Unit
EB established an Investigative Journalism Unit (EBIJU) with the aim of developing the skills of its senior journalists, editors, and reporters, to be able to produce investigative reports on Syrian affairs and train other Syrian journalists on investigative journalism. The unit is a step towards developing a Syrian network for investigative journalism. Such network would include a wide range of Syrian institutions and independent journalists and will benefit from the skills of local, regional and international journalists and trainers. EBIJU has already produced several in-depth reports supported by multimedia materials especially about the opposition forces covering important topics such as Judiciary Sector, Education, Local Governance, Services, in liberated areas in Syria. EBIJU is currently producing two investigative reports two topics: inter-trade relations with Syrian Regime and Opposition and recruitment of fighters in Syria.
- Enab Baladi Facebook Page
The Arabic news website Facebook page has around 900,000 fans who rely on it as a main source of news. The page posts reach millions of Syrians around the world, especially inside Syria.
- Enab Baladi Arabic News Android App
The app is targeted at the growing number of mobile users who access Enab Baladi news Arabic website and to give the audience another avenue to reach Enab Baladi. Launched in 2015, the app has been used by hundreds of thousands of users and received over 14 million screen views.
- Enab Baladi Google News
Enab Baladi Arabic news website is one of the Arabic news sources on Google news.
- The Syrian National Newspapers Archive
In 2013, in an effort to preserve the history of the Syrian conflict and provide easy access to information for Syrians, EB started a national archiving project to preserve the Syrian memory by archiving Syrian print-media (newspapers and magazines) and present them for free to all Syrians, current and future generations. As of November 2016, the Syrian Newspapers Archive had over 6,855 issues of around 296 different newspapers, including pro-Syrian-regime newspapers, that adds up to over 100,000 pages of Syrian print media. The project website not only archives and presents newspapers, but it also provides other services, such as:
- The search inside PDF text and advanced search features
- Research papers that examine one topic and how the Syrian newspapers covered it; and
- Monthly newsletters that provide brief overview of what the Syrian newspapers focused on in a certain month.
About the Organization
- Syria
- Turkey
- Media
The Website : www.enabbaladi.net