The pavilion of the CCME hosted on this fifth day of the Casablanca Book Fair, a symposium on “Moroccan Journalists of the world: the test of citizen communication” moderated by journalist Said Soulami with the participation of Mohammed Alami , Aljazeera correspondent in the United States Najib Benchrif, one of the founders of the satellite channel “Al Arabiya” Jamila Atif, Moroccan journalist in Russia and Mustapha Tossa journalist and specialist on the Arab World based in Paris.
The floor was given first to Jamila Atif who says she carries her citizenship “which is more than identity papers is a daily practice” within, she considers that the homeland is part of the entity of the Moroccan journalist abroad although the exercise of citizenship is difficult given the limited participatory role of the community in the kingdom’s affairs.
He also noted from experience there are lot of misconceptions about Morocco and its national causes and suggested that the role of the Moroccan journalist in the newsroom is to correct that image, especially in the Middle East channels.
For his part, M.Alami believes that the Moroccan government and diplomacy do not communicate effectively about national causes “Moroccan officials beat around the bush and have a troubled relationship with the media”
He also says the Moroccan journalist abroad can balance between his identity claims and independence and professionalism as a journalist
Meanwhile Najib Benchrif focused his speech on the relationship between the media and Moroccan officials, therefore, it is up to the officials to communicate on national causes and defend them and not to journalists who are related to the editorial line of the media in which they work.
He also criticized the superficial coverage of news agency MAP in relation to this issue especially since it has the means to convey the necessary information contrary to Moroccan journalists in the world
Mr. Benchrif castigates the lack of visibility of information on immigration in the national media
In his speech, Mustapha Tossa welcomed the initiative and how it was executed .For him this book demonstrates that Moroccan journalists are an excellent element and they managed to succeed in an environment known for its raging competition
Moreover, he believes that Morocco is lacking talented communicators who can convey the official position on national issues in a subtle way
He concluded the debate by advocating “the creation of such profiles to win the war of ideas and defending the national causes of the Country”.
