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Saudi Media Forum Focuses on Keeping Pace with the Sector’s Transformations

The Saudi Media Forum kicked off on Monday in Riyadh, with the participation of local and international experts and stakeholders. (Photo: Bashir Saleh)
The Saudi Media Forum kicked off on Monday in Riyadh, with the participation of local and international experts and stakeholders. (Photo: Bashir Saleh)
    Riyadh - Mohammed Helal and Omar al-Badwi
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Saudi Media Forum Focuses on Keeping Pace with the Sector’s Transformations

The Saudi Media Forum kicked off on Monday in Riyadh, with the participation of local and international experts and stakeholders. (Photo: Bashir Saleh)
The Saudi Media Forum kicked off on Monday in Riyadh, with the participation of local and international experts and stakeholders. (Photo: Bashir Saleh)

Experts and participants in the Saudi Media Forum have emphasized the need to consciously keep pace with the transformations of the media environment.

They also identified means to develop media discourse and the performance of institutions and individuals working in the sector, to meet the expectations of the public, which they said was an influential and active element in the media industry.

Mohammed bin Fahd Al Harthi, CEO of the Saudi Radio and Television Corporation, stressed that progress was the inevitable language of our era. He noted that the essence of the Saudi Vision 2030 was human development, adding that the media was an integral part in this process.

The Saudi Media Forum kicked off on Monday in Riyadh, in the presence of local and international industry leaders, experts and analysts.

The two-day forum features more than 100 working papers and brainstorming sessions and workshops, with the participation of international experts to formulate recommendations on improving media content and suggesting solutions to challenges facing the sector.

Topics discussed at the event include, among other, “The New Media Generation and the Culture of Rapid Changes”, “Digital Influencers: Media or Advertising” and “Media... and the Ethical and Practical Implications of Using Artificial Intelligence”.

In his opening speech, Al Harthi said that the forum was being held at an important development stage for Saudi Arabia, stressing that media freedoms should not tolerate hate speech and insulting religions and religious symbols.

During the first day of the forum, participants reviewed the pillars of developing the media sector and keeping pace with the changes. Saudi officials underlined the need to promote a skillful and balanced media discourse that relies on facts and objectivity.

Saudi Minister of Energy Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman pointed to the importance of accepting criticism, different opinions, and the diverging viewpoints.

He noted that an official must be in a state of sustainable disclosure, to enhance the public opinion’s trust, while maintaining pragmatism and openness.

“Criticism is a process of evaluating an activity or an official. If criticism is taken with this positive view… public benefit will be achieved,” he told the attendees.

The Saudi media sector

For his part, Majid Al-Qasabi, the designated Saudi Minister of Information, said that the world has become inter-connected through instant communication, which has eliminated geographic barriers.

He added that the media sector in Saudi Arabia was promising and full of opportunities.

The sector’s integrated system, which consists of four entities, is working to achieve a quantum leap, keeping pace with the deep and wide transformations in Saudi Arabia, the minister remarked.

Al-Qasabi also stressed that the media sector in the Kingdom offered wide investment and development opportunities for creativity and content industry.

He said that work was underway to address the main obstacles facing the industry, by building the appropriate infrastructure, enacting the adequate regulations and laws, and developing training programs for emerging competencies, as well as supporting creativity and innovation capabilities.

Moreover, Al-Qasabi pointed to the importance of enabling the sectors that operate in the media and promoting qualitative investments in this field.

The Information minister unveiled the objectives set by the Saudi media bodies, which he said were focused on building leading media companies, developing distinguished local cadres, raising the quality of local content, and empowering entrepreneurs.

In addition, he highlighted the necessity to develop the soft media, which reaches the global public opinion without the need for translation, and to increase the level of the media mix that covers all audience interests, including areas that were not previously explored.

Saudi Arabia, the biggest untold story

Saudi Minister of Investment Khalid Al-Falih said that the Kingdom was “the biggest untold story.”

He explained that the country was an “undiscovered treasure” for the world’s public opinion, except for elite politicians and companies.

The media has a major role in unveiling the real story and showing the Kingdom for what it really is, Al-Falih told the forum.

As for the specialized economic media, the minister pointed to the need for a large number of cadres and specialists to publish accurate economic news and analyze information, in order to keep pace with the increasing volume of demand, opportunities and investments.

He added: “We also need channels and platforms to compete with international media institutions in the economic field, with all the influential analytical, scientific and media capabilities.”

Al-Falih stressed that the Kingdom sought to provide an integrated platform for multiple economic sectors, offering profitability, competitiveness and integration between all components of the Saudi, regional and international economy.

In this context, he stressed that the Saudi economy was linked to its regional and global environment, which should be reflected in the media performance.

Saudi Vision 2030 addresses the economic aspect with an international dimension, and supports leadership in technology, innovation and other sectors, the minister remarked.

He added that the Saudi strategy relied on attracting the decision-making centers of major regional companies, in order to exchange interest and achieve integration with the Kingdom’s market and investment opportunities.

Al-Falih noted that 44 global companies were moving their regional head offices to the capital, stressing the need for specialized and conscious media support that rises to the level of this challenge.

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Varieties

Elusive Wild Cat Feared Extinct Rediscovered in Thailand

This handout picture taken with a camera trap and released on December 26, 2025, by Thailand's Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation (DNP) and Panthera Thailand shows a recently rediscovered flat-headed cat in southern Thailand's Princess Sirindhorn Wildlife Sanctuary. (AFP / Thailand's Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation (DNP) / Panthera Thailand)
This handout picture taken with a camera trap and released on December 26, 2025, by Thailand's Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation (DNP) and Panthera Thailand shows a recently rediscovered flat-headed cat in southern Thailand's Princess Sirindhorn Wildlife Sanctuary. (AFP / Thailand's Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation (DNP) / Panthera Thailand)
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Elusive Wild Cat Feared Extinct Rediscovered in Thailand

This handout picture taken with a camera trap and released on December 26, 2025, by Thailand's Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation (DNP) and Panthera Thailand shows a recently rediscovered flat-headed cat in southern Thailand's Princess Sirindhorn Wildlife Sanctuary. (AFP / Thailand's Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation (DNP) / Panthera Thailand)
This handout picture taken with a camera trap and released on December 26, 2025, by Thailand's Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation (DNP) and Panthera Thailand shows a recently rediscovered flat-headed cat in southern Thailand's Princess Sirindhorn Wildlife Sanctuary. (AFP / Thailand's Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation (DNP) / Panthera Thailand)

An elusive wild cat long feared extinct in Thailand has been rediscovered three decades after the last recorded sighting, conservation authorities and an NGO said Friday.

Flat-headed cats are among the world's rarest and most threatened wild felines. Their range is limited to Southeast Asia and they are endangered because of dwindling habitat.

The domestic cat-sized feline with its distinctive round and close-set eyes was last spotted in a documented sighting in Thailand in 1995.

But an ecological survey that began last year, using camera traps in southern Thailand's Princess Sirindhorn Wildlife Sanctuary, recorded 29 detections, according to the country's Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation and wild cat conservation organization Panthera.

"The rediscovery is exciting, yet concerning at the same time," veterinarian and researcher Kaset Sutasha of Kasetsart University told AFP, noting that habitat fragmentation has left the species increasingly "isolated".

It was not immediately clear how many individuals the detections represent, as the species lacks distinctive markings so counting is tricky.

But the findings suggest a relatively high concentration of the species, Panthera conservation program manager Rattapan Pattanarangsan told AFP.

The footage included a female flat-headed cat with her cub -- a rare and encouraging sign for a species that typically produces only one offspring at a time.

Nocturnal and elusive, the flat-headed cat typically lives in dense wetland ecosystems such as peat swamps and freshwater mangroves, environments that are extremely difficult for researchers to access, Rattapan said.

Globally, the International Union for Conservation of Nature estimates that around 2,500 adult flat-headed cats remain in the wild, classifying the species as endangered.

In Thailand, it has long been listed as "possibly extinct".

Thailand's peat swamp forests have been heavily fragmented, largely due to land conversion and agricultural expansion, said Kaset, who was not involved in the ecological survey but has researched wild cats for years.

The animals also face mounting threats from disease spread by domestic animals, and they struggle to reproduce across isolated areas.

While the rediscovery offers hope, it is only a "starting point" for future conservation efforts, he said.

"What comes after this is more important -- how to enable them to live alongside us sustainably, without being threatened."

Varieties

Hooked on the Claw: How Crane Games Conquered Japan’s Arcades

This picture taken on June 6, 2024 shows a claw crane game shop in Akihabara district of Tokyo. (AFP)
This picture taken on June 6, 2024 shows a claw crane game shop in Akihabara district of Tokyo. (AFP)
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Hooked on the Claw: How Crane Games Conquered Japan’s Arcades

This picture taken on June 6, 2024 shows a claw crane game shop in Akihabara district of Tokyo. (AFP)
This picture taken on June 6, 2024 shows a claw crane game shop in Akihabara district of Tokyo. (AFP)

As school and work wrap up, crowds fill Tokyo's many bustling arcade halls -- not to battle it out in fighting games, but to snag plush toys from claw machines.

In one of these gaming hubs in the Japanese capital's Ikebukuro district, aisles of crane games stretch as far as the eye can see.

The crown jewels of the arcade industry, they occupy the building's first two floors, relegating video games to the basement and upper levels.

"Crane games are keeping the sector afloat," said Morihiro Shigihara, an industry expert and former arcade manager.

"Arcade operators, machine manufacturers, and even prize suppliers depend on this business," he told AFP.

Some 80 percent of the 22,000 arcades Japan had in 1989 have shut down, but revenues have held up thanks to claw machines, according to the Japan Amusement Industry Association.

Their share of revenue has climbed since 1993 from 20 percent to more than 60 percent, the association said.

Suzuna Nogi, a 20-year-old student, visits these arcades at least twice a week in search of "big plushies" on which she can spend up to 3,000 yen ($19) at 100 yen per try.

"What I like best is the sense of accomplishment," she said, even though there is no guarantee of success.

Nogi added that she enjoys "the thrill of not knowing whether you'll manage to grab something or not".

The sensitivity of the claw arms is adjusted by operators "based on the cost of the prizes and revenue targets", Shigihara said.

"You can also make the game easier to compete with a nearby arcade."

- From cigarettes to candy -

This year, the industry is officially celebrating the 60th anniversary of these construction crane-inspired machines in Japan.

But they have actually been around since before World War II, said Benoit Bottos, who wrote his doctoral dissertation on the subject at Japan's Chuo University.

Older models, installed in cafes or bowling alleys, sometimes offered lighters and cigarettes, but those prizes quickly gave way to children's candy.

In the late 1980s, the machines began to gain traction, notably with game company Sega's 1985 invention of the "UFO Catcher", which switched up the older version that forced players to lean in and look down.

"The old ones were a bit dark. So we opted for a brighter, showcase-like style where you can see the prizes right in front of you," said Takashi Sasaya, a Sega executive.

But the real stroke of genius "was putting plush toys in the claw games", said Bottos.

Manufacturing giants like Sega or Bandai, involved in both video games and toys, then began negotiating licenses for anime and manga characters, with Sega notably securing Disney rights.

"That largely explains the success of these machines," said Bottos, who describes them as "somewhere between a vending machine, a game of chance and a game of skill".

- 'Transformation' -

The success of claw games also feeds on Japan's booming fan culture of "oshikatsu", with many people devoting more and more time and money to supporting their favorite idol.

Part of asserting their fan identity involves collecting character merchandise.

"I love Pokemon, so I often come looking for plush toys and merch from the franchise," said professional Pokemon card player Akira Kurasaki, showing off nails decorated with his most beloved characters.

Arcade operators have taken this enthusiasm to heart, tailoring their prize selections to the demographics of their neighborhood and organizing events around certain characters.

"New prizes are introduced almost every day," said Sasaya, the Sega executive.

The hegemony of claw machines has also gone hand in hand with a gradual transformation of urban hangouts.

Arcades -- seen in the 1970s and 1980s as dark, male-dominated places linked to crime -- "tried to attract a new audience" of women and families, Bottos said.

"The crane game is emblematic of that transformation."

Varieties

Hawaii’s Big Island Bans Feeding Feral Cats in an Effort to Help Endangered Native Species

Liz Swan sets up food and a trap for stray cats near the Kealakehe Transfer Station and Recycling Center, Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2025, in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. (AP)
Liz Swan sets up food and a trap for stray cats near the Kealakehe Transfer Station and Recycling Center, Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2025, in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. (AP)
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Hawaii’s Big Island Bans Feeding Feral Cats in an Effort to Help Endangered Native Species

Liz Swan sets up food and a trap for stray cats near the Kealakehe Transfer Station and Recycling Center, Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2025, in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. (AP)
Liz Swan sets up food and a trap for stray cats near the Kealakehe Transfer Station and Recycling Center, Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2025, in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. (AP)

Throngs of feral cats emerge from the shade of parked trucks and bushes as soon as the familiar Subaru Forester pulls into a dump on Hawaii's Big Island. They run after the vehicle to a certain meal — a gravy train that might not be around much longer.

A Hawaii County law set to take effect at the start of the new year bans feeding feral animals on county property. It's an effort to protect native species, such as an endangered goose called the nene, from a super predator introduced to the islands by Europeans in the 18th century.

But the measure doesn't sit well with many cat lovers, including the driver of the Subaru, Liz Swan, who has been feeding feral felines on the Big Island for 33 years.

“I don’t believe the cats should be exterminated at the expense of the nene,” Swan said. “They’re both living creatures.”

It's unclear how many feral cats — abandoned pets and their descendants — live on the Big Island. Estimates range well into the tens of thousands, with pockets of dense colonies supported by people. Opponents of the ban say it will hamper their efforts to contain the population by trapping and neutering the animals and that hungry cats will then have to hunt for food.

A variety of threats

About 200 cats live at the Kealakehe Transfer Station and Recycling Center, not far from the bustling tourist district of Kona.

Swan shows up every late afternoon with water and kibble, and says she's never seen a nene anywhere near the dump. Despite living amid trash, the cats there generally appear robust, most of them missing the tip of an ear, indicating they’ve been spayed or neutered.

The cats threaten the native species directly — by killing them — and indirectly, biologists say. Food left out for the cats can attract native animals, bringing them into closer contact with humans. Cat feces can also spread a parasite that causes toxoplasmosis, a disease that has killed endangered Hawaiian monk seals and native birds.

Last year, a male nene — pronounced “neh-neh” — was struck and killed by a car as it crossed a road in Hilo, on the eastern side of the island, to reach a cat feeding station. The goose's surviving mate, which also had a gosling die of toxoplasmosis in 2024, has recently taken on another partner and is nesting in a Hilo park, the state Department of Land and Natural Resources announced this month.

A nene stands near a sign reading "DO NOT FEED NENE" at Hapuna Beach, Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2025, in Kamuela, Hawaii. (AP)

The county's feeding ban will help protect them, the department said.

A Hawaiian biologist's view State wildlife biologist Raymond McGuire recently checked for nene nesting sites among the barren black-rock fields near a shopping center at the Waikoloa resort. It's not their traditional habitat, but he has seen the geese fly in to grab food — risking getting hit by cars — and last year some nested there.

As he approached, a pair of feline eyes peered out of a crack in the lava rock. Cats emerged from their nooks, perhaps mistaking him for someone who might offer food.

McGuire was relieved to see there were no nene nearby, but frustrated with evidence the cats are being fed: empty water bowls and aluminum pans.

He's a cat owner — "my favorite animal is a cat" — but as a Hawaiian whose love of nature inspired him to pursue conservation work, he believes there is no room for them where native species are struggling to survive.

“There's so many birds that my kids will never see, that I got to see,” he said, referring to native forest birds. “I think about my ancestors and I do wonder: Are we honoring them well in what we do? Because they did take steps to protect them.”

Feral cats are a problem in many places, but Hawaii's sensitive ecosystem is full of species that evolved without mammalian predators, making them especially vulnerable, McGuire said.

'I felt bad for the cats'

Hawaiian culture is closely tied to Hawaii’s animals; aumakua, or ancestral spirit guides, can take animal form, noted Big Island Mayor Kimo Alameda. His family's aumakua is the shark, he said.

After the county council passed the measure with a veto-proof 6-2 vote, Alameda decided to let it take effect without his signature. Opponents persuaded him it would harm the cats.

“I had a soft spot for that,” he said. “I felt bad for the cats.”

The debate was so contentious that some opponents sent him hate messages, Alameda said.

The mayor said he hopes police consider enforcement a low priority. Violations carry fines of up to $50 for a first offense and up to $500 for subsequent offenses.

Will the ban prompt feeders to work in secret? The answer is simple to Makaʻala Kaʻaumoana, a cultural practitioner — someone who works to preserve Hawaiian cultural traditions — on the island of Kauai.

Trapping, neutering and releasing cats makes no difference because they can still hunt, she said.

“The cats have to be removed," she said.

Debbie Cravatta, who feeds cats in her West Hawaii neighborhood, questioned why.

“It’s a native species — why does that reign over a domestic cat that somebody dumped out pregnant and that had six kittens out in the wild?" Cravatta said. "Why is that life more valuable than this life?”

Opponents also argue the ban might only push feeding efforts underground.

“I'm not going to let them starve,” Swan said.