CEO of Media City Qatar Hamad Omar Al Mannai and CNN Group Senior Vice-President, General Manager for Asia-Pacific and Global Head of Productions Ellana Lee at the event yesterday.
Doha, Qatar: CNN will host the first Middle East edition of its Global Perspectives event series in Doha on October 29, bringing together international leaders, business executives, innovators and cultural figures to discuss the forces shaping the world.
Held under the theme “The Invisible World”, the event will explore the less visible factors influencing global affairs, including geopolitics, technology, cultural shifts and the changing balance of international influence.
Speaking at a press conference yesterday, CEO of Media City Qatar Hamad Omar Al Mannai said the event represented an important milestone in the partnership between CNN and Media City Qatar. “At a time when the region is increasingly at the center of global conversations, our hope is for this event to bring global voices to the region and actually contribute to elevating the region’s voices into these conversations through other CNN platforms.”
He added, “There is no better place to host it than in Qatar. As Qatar continues to play an important role as a trusted mediator on the international stage, it is also reinforcing its position as a center for dialogue between regions, cultures, and perspectives. Global Perspectives complements that role by creating a platform where regional perspectives can be heard and elevated alongside global voices.”
CNN Group Senior Vice-President, General Manager for Asia-Pacific and Global Head of Productions Ellana Lee said Doha was an ideal location for the inaugural regional edition, citing Qatar’s growing role in bringing together diverse perspectives and facilitating international dialogue. She said the initiative would extend CNN’s journalism beyond breaking news by creating opportunities for deeper discussions on issues affecting societies worldwide.
“Global Perspectives is a place where these types of ideas that are shaping our world can be discussed and create meaningful dialogues,” Lee said.
She added that culture would be a central component of the programme, alongside business and geopolitics, as it plays an important role in connecting people in an increasingly divided world. Lee announced several distinguished participants, including Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs H E Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani, Chairperson of Qatar Museums H E Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, Envision founder and chairman Lei Zhang, and African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretary-General
H E Wamkele Mene.
CNN’s award-winning anchors and correspondents, including Christiane Amanpour, Will Ripley, Becky Anderson, Richard Quest, Eleni Giokos and Bijan Hosseini, will guide discussions, alongside CNN Arabic Editor-in-Chief Caroline Faraj.
The event will bring CNN’s international reporting expertise to Doha, with the network aiming to create a platform for conversations that connect regional experiences with global perspectives.
