DUBAI, UAE — Unlike anything it has published before, Lebanese newspaper AnNahar brought back to life different Lebanese newspapers that had ceased to exist in the last two decades.
“Newspapers-Inside-The-Newspaper” saw AnNahar use each spread within its daily edition to bring back to life an extinct newspaper, inviting those publications’ journalists to write again and publish the news for that one day in celebration of press freedom. Timed to launch on the death anniversary of AnNahar Editor-in-Chief Gebran Tueni, who was assassinated for his voice, the campaign drew attention to the crisis that has affected Lebanese publishers and media houses that are struggling to survive in a country drowning in repetitive economic failures due to a corrupt political system.
To date, the crisis led to the closure of dozens of publications and the resignation of thousands of journalists who left to seek other jobs, while others like Gebran Tueni have lost their life for the sake of their cause.
Gebran Tueni’s fiery writing against occupation and ruling authorities became a rallying cry in 2005 that inspired thousands of Lebanese to take to the streets and demand freedom in what was called “The Cedar revolution.” With this activation, AnNahar has broken the silence imposed on these past publications, dedicating its space for the journalists who worked in them and are continuing their struggle to convey the voice of truth and establish a sense of democracy in Lebanon.
Nayla Tueni, current editor-in-chief of the newspaper, said, “For AnNahar it is not enough to just say that we support freedom of the press. We have to prove it. And what better way to do that than to bring back to life some of the publications that were silenced, and to give them one more chance to speak freely.”
AnNahar’s message is as usual courageous and liberating: those who oppose freedom might have silenced Gebran, but they will never be able to silence the voice of the free press.
The campaign was put together by creative agency IMPACT BBDO in Beirut and Dubai.
