The Community College of Qatar’s (CCQ’s) Library Department marked World Radio Day with a series of lectures and presentations by distinguished members of Qatar’s broadcasting community at the College’s Lusail Female Campus.

The event themed ‘Radio in a Changing World’ explored topics such as the ‘History and Influence of Radio in Qatar’, ‘Broadcasting and the Public’, as well as the future radio aspirations of CCQ’s students, among other topics. A number of Qatar’s most prominent and recognized journalists, producers, anchors and other media personalities also shared their broadcasting experiences with the CCQ community. A competition for students was also held at the event and drew a crowd of students, faculty and other members of CCQ.

Reflecting Qatar’s position as a thriving media hub, housing global media broadcasting powerhouses such as Al Jazeera and visionary and ambitious megaprojects, such as the Media City in Qatar’s sleek and futuristic Lusail city, over the past few years, several new radio stations in diverse languages were also launched in the country.

Commenting on the event, Reem Al-Ansari, Head, Library Department, CCQ, said: “Radio has been around for over 100 years. Despite all the latest technological developments, it remains an important and widely-accessed source of information. We are delighted to have had the opportunity to host some of Qatar’s most famous media personalities on our campus to share their broadcasting experience with CCQ’s students and hope that it inspires them to pursue careers in radio.”

A speaker at the event, Dr. Hassan Rasheed, a Qatari journalist, critic and Qatar’s very first radio announcer, stressed the importance of radio and the immense impact it has on people’s day-to-day lives, as well as the way in which it stimulates their intellect through thought, art, culture and entertainment.

Another prominent speaker at the event was Ahmad Al Sheikh, Media Advisor, Al Jazeera, who delivered a talk entitled ‘Radio and Audience’, in which he spoke about his very first encounter with radio as a child, the history of radio, his outlooks on the future of radio and his journey into the media field.

Among CCQ’s goals is to enrich its students’ academic experience through intellectual, personal and social development in a supportive and nurturing environment by exposing and connecting them to industry leaders and encouraging them to pursue careers in those fields.