The rise of so-called fake news on social media platforms means that, more than ever, the public should turn to reliable sources for accurate information, experts said at a media forum in Fujairah on Tuesday.
Untrue stories were widely cited as being influential to voters in last year’s US presidential election and false information is circulated on Facebook news feeds on all manner of subjects, such as the recent mass shooting in Las Vegas, prompting the social media giant and Twitter to take measures to counter the tide of misinformation.
Earlier this month, Facebook released a statement to say it was working on a tool so users have more information on what they choose to read, as part of its Facebook Journalism Project.
“This new feature is designed to provide people some of the tools they need to make an informed decision about which stories to read, share and trust. It reflects feedback from our community, including many publishers who collaborated on its development,” they said.
Rasheed Al Khayoun, an Iraqi researcher and lecturer attending the eighth Fujairah Media Forum, said that, when there is so much false information available online, it is important for people to find reliable sources for news.
“News should be taken from reliable, professional sources, not from anywhere, and social media users should be aware of that,” he said.
He was one of about 20 journalists and scholars taking part in the forum, where many said that further government regulation was required to solve the problem, in addition to a greater awareness among the general public.
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Fighting fake news cannot be trivialised - it is the scourge of our times
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Othman Al Umair, publisher and editor-in-chief of Elaf e-Newspaper, said that fake news was hard to control.
“We can’t control what people write on social media but we can find a way to provide reliable sources, which require financial resources and strong media institutions that can be authentic sources of news on social media platforms,” he said.
“I believe that many social media users are aware and can identify fake news, but having a penal code and a system to control such platforms and punish those who misuse it is something very important to have in each country.”
Mansour Al Mansouri, director general of the National Media Council, said that social media has taken over among younger generations.
“According to a study done by the National Media Council, 42 per cent of the young generations consider social media platforms to be their number one and preferable media and news source; second came the TV with 23 per cent; while newspapers ranked fifth with 8 per cent,” said Mr Al Mansouri.
“The direct interaction between the publisher and reader introduced us to a new era of media. Everyone is a journalist today and the information is no longer an exclusive possession of one provider - speed and the power of influence have become essential elements of the media today.
“This will definitely form new challenges for the traditional media, especially for print media, as it affects its viability and continuity.”
Mr Al Mansouri added that the sheer numbers of people using social media now mean that traditional media ignore the platforms at their peril.
“About four billion people are connected to the internet today, 2.7 billion are using social media; such huge numbers prove the ability of these sites to have a radical impact on the media sector,” he said.
The two-day media forum is under the patronage of Sheikh Mohammed bin Hamad Al Sharqi, Crown Prince of Fujairah, and is organised by the Fujairah Culture and Media Authority.
Water waste
In the UAE’s arid climate, small shrubs, bushes and flower beds usually require about six litres of water per square metre, daily. That increases to 12 litres per square metre a day for small trees, and 300 litres for palm trees.
Horticulturists suggest the best time for watering is before 8am or after 6pm, when water won't be dried up by the sun.
A global report published by the Water Resources Institute in August, ranked the UAE 10th out of 164 nations where water supplies are most stretched.
The Emirates is the world’s third largest per capita water consumer after the US and Canada.
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
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Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
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Opening Rugby Championship fixtures: Games can be watched on OSN Sports
Saturday: Australia v New Zealand, Sydney, 1pm (UAE)
Sunday: South Africa v Argentina, Port Elizabeth, 11pm (UAE)
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