Queen Rania Speaks To Topic of 'Fake News' + 'Truth' At Arab Social Media Awards In Dubai

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HM Queen Rania Al Abdullah of Jordan was honored in Dubai on Monday, presented with the Influential Personality of the Year Award at this year’s Arab Social Media Influencers Summit. by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.

Queen Rania seized the moment to deliver a stirring keynote address during the third annual summit, urging attendees to use digital platforms for the good of humanity, in an era of “fake news”.

“Online, the plain truth is not appealing enough to be circulated and liked or to command power in the virtual world, despite the fact that it has never been more accessible than today. The truth is losing ground to emotional rhetoric and sensational rumors,” Queen Rania stated. “We owe it to the truth to seek it out and distribute it. It might not be the most appealing or fascinating, but not all that glitters is gold. Let us aim to give truth the final word.”

Queen Rania launched her first official social media pages back in 2009, and AOC celebrated it. The royal reminded her audience that it is estimated that the average person will spend over five years of his or her life on social media. “Social media has achieved much of what we had expected from it, but unfortunately, we still managed to transfer our human barriers to this world,” HM added, exploring the ways in which digital platforms have changed from spreading hope and connecting humans in a barrier-free landscape. “We now listen not to communicate, but to respond, closing ranks and isolating ourselves among those who resemble us and confirm our own convictions.”

Moving from the downside to the positive opportunity of social media, Queen Rania urged influencers to maintain a steady focus on positive change.

Amal Clooney Critiques Trump At UN Correspondents Dinner, Unveils New TrialWatch Initiative To Monitor Global Judicial Systems

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Alright. First things first. Amal Clooney made a stunning appearance at wednesday night’s United Nations Correspondents Associations (UNCA) Awards dinner in New York City. Ignoring frigid temperatures, the human rights lawyer, accompanied by husband George Clooney, wore a “breezy, blue and white warm weather frock by J. Mendel, writes ELLE UK. As always, Amal looked ravishing.

Amal Clooney was honored as Global Citizen of the Year by UNCA for her human rights work generally and her willingness to take on high-profile cases involving persecuted journalists, often putting her at odds with the world’s repressive regimes.

Clooney seized the opportunity to address not only the global risks for journalists, but US president Donald Trump for his own attacks on the press. She referenced the mistreatment of journalists in countries like North Korea, Turkey, Brazil, and the Philippines, saying that Trumps’ actions legitimized aggression against the press.

In the words of Emirates Woman, Amal Clooney “put US president Donald Trump on blast.”

"The U.S. president has given such regimes a green light, and labeled the press in this country an enemy of the people," Clooney said, according to a video of her speech. " She continued, "In many of the cases that I have worked on too, I have seen journalists and opposition figures ruthlessly targeted so that they can no longer criticize leaders." In March, it was reported that Clooney joined the legal team representing two Reuters reporters imprisoned in Myanmar. 

Amal also paid tribute to her client Nadia Murad, an Iraqi Yazidi refugee who survived sexual abuse by ISIS and will be honored Monday in Stockholm, as a co-winner of this year’s Nobel Peace Price. Clooney and Murad have worked together in trying to make ISIS legally accountable for the genocide of the Yazidi people.

On Wednesday. the Clooneys revealed their latest initiative, TrialWatch, which will monitor court trials where there is a risk of abuse, and rank countries’ judicial systems. The project is part of the Clooney Foundation for Justice. Amal released a statement regarding their latest endeavor saying, “Today, courts all over the world are used as tools of oppression. Governments get away too easily with imprisoning opposition figures, silencing critics and persecuting vulnerable groups through the courts. Trial monitoring will shine a light on these abuses.”