Solutions Journalism and Sustainable Development: News Coverage in Arab Websites 2024

Abstract

This descriptive study aimed to identify the extent to which Arab news websites benefited from solutions journalism in news coverage of the issue of sustainable development during the first half of 2024, based on the methodology of content analysis and solutions journalism.

The research found that Arab websites were interested in news coverage of more than 25 sub-issues of sustainable development issues during this period, due to the interest in government policies in sustainability issues in both Egypt and the Emirates, which hosted two climate conferences for two consecutive years, the first Cop27 in Egypt and the second Cop28 in the Emirates.

The research revealed that the points of agreement between the Egyptian Al-Ahram website and the Emirati Al-Bayan website were more than the points of disagreement, whether in news coverage of sustainable development issues or in solutions journalism. The study also revealed an agreement between the two websites in arranging the priorities of the three areas of sustainable development studied by the research, which are (economic development, social development, climate issues, and the environment), but a difference emerged between them in the most important issue for each of them, as the Al-Ahram website was interested in the issue of climate change, while the Al-Bayan website was interested in the issue of energy.

The study recommended that Arab websites should focus on providing the possibility of audience interaction with news coverage of sustainable development issues that concern them.

Keywords: Sustainable development - solutions journalism - news coverage - Arab websites - Al-Ahram website - Al-Bayan website.

DOI: 10.7176/NMMC/106-10

Data of Publication: October 30th 2024