We have opened the horizon: Izvestia and Al Mayadeen have signed a cooperation agreement

On March 20, a memorandum of cooperation was signed in Beirut between Izvestia News Center and Al Mayadeen, one of the leading TV channels in the Middle East. The partnership will open up new opportunities for the exchange of news content, joint projects and internships. Vladimir Tyulin, General Director of Izvestia, said that cooperation between the two media outlets would allow building an infrastructure for journalists to work and create new standards for the industry. Ghassan ben Djiddo, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Al Mayadeen, invited Izvestia representatives to participate in the media alliance's conference, which is scheduled to be held in Beirut in the near future.

Cooperation Agreement

The Izvestia Multimedia Information Center strengthens its international presence by entering the information field of the Middle East. On March 20, a memorandum of cooperation was signed in Beirut between Izvestia and one of the leading media networks in the region, the Lebanese TV channel Al Mayadeen.

The document was signed by Vladimir Tyulin, General Director of Izvestia News Center, and Ghassan ben Djiddo, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Al Mayadeen. The ceremony was also attended by the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Russia to Lebanon, Alexander Rudakov.

The partnership between a Russian media holding and an influential Middle Eastern TV channel opens up new prospects for the exchange of news and analytical content, joint production of materials and the organization of internships for employees. In addition, events are planned that will help strengthen professional ties and expand the audience of the two media resources at the national and international levels.

— For us, this event is historic and very important. I am confident that our relationship with Al Mayadeen will continue to develop and prove to be strong," stressed Vladimir Tyulin. — We consider the TV channel to be our close partner, not only strategically, but also as a friend. Our cooperation will benefit the whole world and all journalism, because now world journalism, which has always been considered a benchmark, has shown its inconsistency, has shown itself to be an institution whose objectivity cannot be counted on for sure.

According to the General Director of Izvestia, the joint work of the two media will build a common infrastructure for the work of journalists from all over the world, will provide an opportunity to convey different points of view to everyone who wants to hear them, and over time will create new standards for the global media industry.

In turn, Ghassan ben Djiddo, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Al Mayadeen, expressed hope that the signed agreement would be the beginning of a new stage of cooperation.

— We appreciate Izvestia, because it is a truly historic brand and a historic company. Izvestia can share its experience with us, and we, in turn, will show them the Arab world's point of view on world events. In addition, we want to cooperate with the whole of Russia, with all its cultural, religious and historical diversity. Our comprehensive agreement includes not only the exchange of experience, but also internships and the creation of joint projects. Izvestia newspaper will also participate in the global peace conference to be held in Beirut in the near future," Ghassan ben Djiddo said.

Russian Ambassador to Lebanon Alexander Rudakov noted that the signed memorandum establishes common ground between Russian and Lebanese journalism.

"We hope that this will be fruitful for both sides and will help cooperation at the level not only of our governments and media groups, but also at the level of our peoples, which is so lacking today," said the Russian ambassador.

Al Mayadeen was launched in 2012 in Beirut and over the years has grown into one of the most reputable and influential TV channels in the region. He broadcasts around the clock, broadcasting 17 different programs: news, analytics, exclusive interviews. The channel has offices in Washington, Moscow, Tunis, Cairo, Tehran and Damascus, and its correspondents work throughout the Middle East. An important feature of Al Mayadeen is its multi—format: materials are published in three languages at once — Arabic, English and Spanish.

The channel also holds a strong position in the digital space: 1.45 million subscribers on YouTube, more than 500 million total video views, and over 2.2 million subscribers on the social network X (formerly Twitter).

Izvestia is also one of the largest Russian media holdings. It includes a news portal IZ.RU , the Izvestia TV channel and newspaper, the Delovoy Peterburg newspaper, the news services of the REN TV, Fifth Channel and 78 TV channels. The monthly audience of Izvestia's Internet resources exceeds 100 million people, and the TV audience exceeds 80 million. The holding is consistently included in the TOP 5 online news resources in Russia according to Liveinternet.

Izvestia's visit to Beirut

During their visit to Beirut, representatives of Izvestia not only discussed the prospects of cooperation with one of the largest media structures in the Middle East, but also saw with their own eyes how its employees work. The Izvestia delegation was shown through the offices of Al Mayadeen, the work of the editorial office, the news service and the television studios.

A visit to the "Studio of Martyrs" made a special impression. It is named after four Al Mayadeen employees who died as a result of Israeli strikes. The head of Al Mayadeen's office in Beirut told Izvestia the story of their deaths.

— Farah Omar and Rabi Al-Maamari died while preparing a live broadcast. They went to rest for a few minutes, and an Israeli drone with two missiles was aimed at them. They died in broad daylight. As for Muhammad Reda and Hassan Najjar, they died at three o'clock in the morning when two Israeli rockets hit them while they were sleeping. Four deaths a year apart. First, Farah and Rabi were killed, and the following year, Mohammed and Hassan were killed. This studio was named after them," said Maroun al-Sarf.

For Izvestia employees, this tour was a reminder that the journalistic profession requires not only high professionalism, but also courage.

Now the Russian media holding and the Lebanese TV channel intend to proceed to the practical implementation of their plans: the launch of joint projects, the exchange of experience, the creation of new communication channels between Moscow and Beirut, and the joint creation of information products that will help audiences in Russia and the Middle East better understand each other.