Doha, Qatar: The Qatar Media Corporation (QMC) yesterday formally launched “Media Encyclopedia,” a project considered the first of its kind in the Arab world, aimed at advancing media literacy and enriching libraries with reliable and easily accessible scientific content, at Sanad-Doha in Msheireb.
Designed as a transformative reference for Arabic-language media studies, the encyclopedia marks a major step toward unifying media concepts, mapping the rapid shifts of the digital age, and strengthening the scientific foundations of media practice across the region.
The ceremony was attended by CEO of Qatar Media Corporation H E Sheikh Khalid bin Abdulaziz bin Jassim Al-Thani, Media Advisor at QMC and Editor-in-Chief of The Peninsula Prof. Khalid Mubarak Al-Shafi, and several senior figures from the local media sector.
The new encyclopedia as an essential tool for advancing media knowledge in Arabic and meeting the needs of academics, students, and professionals. The project is also designed to keep pace with the accelerating transformations of today’s digital communication environment and to establish a unified, authoritative reference for media concepts, theories, and institutions.
Available in both written and audio formats, the encyclopedia is hosted on a dedicated digital platform that enables around-the-clock access. Its content spans four major areas: traditional and digital media terminology, media theories and their applications, prominent Arab and international media figures, and leading media institutions. A policy of continuous updates will ensure the encyclopedia evolves with developments in the media field.
In a post on X, H E Sheikh Khalid bin Abdulaziz bin Jassim Al-Thani said that the launch of the ‘Media Encyclopedia’ as a pioneering Arab knowledge project that enhances the presence of Arab media and provides a reliable reference for researchers and those interested.
Addressing the event, General Supervisor of the Encyclopedia Project, Mohammed Slaan Al-Marri, said the launch builds on the Corporation’s longstanding efforts to establish a scientifically rigorous reference grounded in both academic and professional media traditions.
“This launch completes the Corporation’s efforts to build a media encyclopedia based on a scientific methodology for the practices of media professions,” Al-Marri said. He noted that the encyclopedia rests on a clear academic foundation linking conceptual understanding to real-world media work across all formats. He added: “The encyclopedia is flexible, renewed, and evolving until it becomes a solid, fully structured pillar.”
Al-Marri underscored that the project represents not only a technical or institutional achievement but also the beginning of a new intellectual approach to media thinking.
“This is not merely a celebration of an institutional achievement,” he said. “It is the announcement of a new path in media thought—one that aspires to elevate the understanding of concepts, restore clarity to media discourse, give awareness its rightful cycle, and return knowledge to its proper standing among nations.”
Highlighting the platform’s role in public knowledge, Al-Marri described the encyclopedia as “a living window through which new generations can look out onto the media world—its concepts, tools, and visions.” He expressed hope that it would serve as a bridge between learners and experts, bringing “knowledge closer to practice and ideas closer to reality.” Al-Marri emphasized that the platform was built to be simple, accessible, and rich in content, allowing users everywhere to benefit from its continually updated knowledge base.
The event also included a panel discussion titled “Toward a New Reading of the Structure of Media Concepts,” moderated by journalist Abdulrahman Al-Shammari. Panelists included Prof. Dr. Hanan Ahmed Al-Fayadh, faculty member at Qatar University; Prof. Dr. Mohammed Al-Khateeb, Professor of Linguistics at Al-Azhar University and member of the scientific committee of the Doha Historical Dictionary of Arabic; and media professional Ahmed Al-Sheikh.
Prof. Dr. Hanan Ahmed Al-Fayadh stressed that the project is a ‘cognitive engineering project’ that reshapes the scientific mind by unifying concepts within their linguistic and historical contexts, defining terms within a precise scientific framework, constructing a reliable knowledge system that protects readers from confusion, and safeguarding audiences from distorted information.
Prof. Dr. Mohammed Al-Khateeb highlighted the project’s timeliness, arguing that it answers urgent intellectual needs at a time marked by an overwhelming flood of information. The encyclopedia, he noted, fulfills both the “necessity of the moment” and the broader cultural obligation to produce knowledge rather than depend on others.
Media professional Ahmed Al-Sheikh described the encyclopedia as a crucial tool for reorganizing today’s complex media landscape. He stressed the importance of media terminology so journalists can understand its history and dimensions and use it accurately. Misinterpreting key terms, he noted, often leads to significant miscommunication.
