Al Jazeera English is the Middle East’s most influential media brand on twitter

Press release

Published June 13th, 2011 - 07:38 GMT

SociableMedia.me regional media results

Al Jazeera’s English-language television channel is the most followed Middle East media brand on twitter (@AJEnglish), according to a new website which tracks tweets from media, journalists and bloggers in the Middle East & North Africa.

The Qatar-based news organisation operates three of the four most-followed twitter handles according to www.SociableMedia.me, with Al Jazeera Arabic (@AJArabic) second and Al Jazeera English’s breaking news feed (@AJELive) fourth.

Dubai-based news channel Al Arabiya (@AlArabiya) is ranked third overall, while Egypt-based Rassd News Network (@RassdNews) is the most followed online brand, Egypt’s Al Masry Al Youm (@AlMasryAlYoum_A) the most followed newspaper, Time Out Dubai (@TimeOutDubai) the most followed magazine, and Kuwait-based Marina FM (@MarinaFM888) is the region’s most followed radio station.

Ben Smalley, managing director of MediaSource and editor of the Middle East & North Africa Media Guide, said the UAE-based media research company has launched www.SociableMedia.me as a free service for journalists, corporate communications professionals, and twitter users with an interest in the region.

“The site enables journalists to see what fellow media professionals are tweeting about,” he explained. “It enables PR practitioners to identify key influencers in different regional markets and media channels, while anyone can use the site to discover the media outlets, journalists and bloggers they want to follow on their own twitter accounts.”

SociableMedia.me currently tracks over 1,400 twitter handles belonging to media, journalists, broadcasters and bloggers across 18 countries in the Middle East & North Africa.

“We are adding dozens of new twitter handles each day, so the site is constantly evolving,” said MediaSource research manager, Hiba Rasheed. “There is also the option for any regional media, journalists or bloggers not currently listed to contact us through www.SociableMedia.me so we can add them.”

According to the recently published MediaSource/Insight Middle East Journalist Survey 2011, twitter is used by 22% of Arabic and 63% of English-language media outlets across the region, while the micro-blogging site is used individually by 43% of Arabic and 50% of English-language journalists.

Background Information

Al Jazeera Network

Al Jazeera started out more than fourteen years ago as the first independent Arabic news channel in the world dedicated to providing comprehensive television news and live debate for the Arab world. Al Jazeera was formally named the Al Jazeera Network in March 2006, transforming its operation into an international media corporation.

The Al Jazeera Network now consists of the flagship Al Jazeera Satellite (Arabic) channel, Al Jazeera English, Al Jazeera Documentary, Al Jazeera Sport, Al Jazeera.net (the English and Arabic web sites), the Al Jazeera Media Training and Development Center, the Al Jazeera Center for Studies, Al Jazeera Mubasher (Live), and Al Jazeera Mobile.

Al Jazeera English, the 24-hour English-language news and current affairs channel, is headquartered in Doha, the capital of Qatar. The organisation is the world's first global English language news channel to be headquartered in the Middle East. From this unique position, Al Jazeera English is destined to be the English-language channel of reference for Middle Eastern events, balancing the current typical information flow by reporting from the developing world back to the West and from the southern to the northern hemisphere. The channel aims to give voice to untold stories, promote debate, and challenge established perceptions.

With broadcasting centres in Doha, Kuala Lumpur, London and Washington DC and supporting bureaux worldwide, the channel will set the news agenda, bridging cultures and providing a unique grassroots perspective from under-reported regions around the world to a potential global audience of over one billion English speakers. The station broadcasts news, current affairs, features, analysis, documentaries, live debates, entertainment, business and sport.

Building on Al Jazeera Arabic channel's ground breaking developments in the Arab and Muslim world that have changed the face of news within the Middle East, Al Jazeera English is part of a growing network that is now extending this fresh perspective from regional to global through accurate, impartial and objective reporting.

Company Profile

MediaSource

MediaSource is the leading supplier of media intelligence in the Middle East & North Africa. Our research team updates our media contacts database on a daily basis, providing our clients with unrivalled access to the ever-changing media landscape. Whether you are looking to subscribe to the region's largest and most robust media database, or simply distribute a press release to the media in the Middle East and North Africa, we have the products and services you need to communicate your message in the most cost-effective and efficient way.