Raied T Shuqum - Jordan Times
Michael Thompson
Raied T Shuqum. Photograph by Juliette Strangio
“I think it’s okay for a while, “ says the Jordan Times’ Lifestyle and Sports editor, Raied T Shuqum.
He’s talking about the future of the paper he loves working at. “For the next five years I think it will survive, somehow,” he says.
Media organisations around the world are struggling to retain staff. The media in Jordan is experiencing the same issues.
Shuqum says newspapers in Jordan are declining. “Our sister companies are stressed. Hopefully they get back on their feet.”
He says more people are sourcing their news from smartphones and tablets, and fewer people are picking up the daily newspaper.
“People are switching to their mobiles. Print media is slowly dying out, it could die out completely.”
He says people are beginning to move with the times. “Some people still use the newspaper as a source of news, but they need to start looking for news on their mobiles.”
The marketing graduate from California didn’t study any form of journalism in college, but decided to move into the field after his parents asked him to come home to Jordan.
Shuqum’s job is to edit both the lifestyle and sports pages for The Jordan Times, which caters for tourists, embassy officials and people who don’t speak Arabic.