Despite the statements issued by Ahmed Al-Ghandour, presenter of the Al-Duhayh program, and the Emirati platform on which the program is broadcast, in which the two sides denied any connection with normalization with the Zionist entity;
However, the attack on Al-Duhaih and the "New Media Academy" did not stop on social media.
While a number of activists refuted the statements of Al-Duhaih and the Numedia platform, stressing the company's continued cooperation with the controversial "Nas Daily", others welcomed the "Al-Duhaih" statement, in which he affirmed his permanent solidarity with the Palestinian cause, and refused to participate in any normalization with Israeli occupation.
Activists had launched, earlier this week, the hashtag “Al-Dahih Al-Dahih”, following the publication of the first episodes of the new season of the program, which is presented in cooperation with the Emirati “New Media Academy”, after the “Palestinian Boycott National Committee” (BDS) condemned the activities of the former Emirati platform. Which it considered to represent "explicit collusion with the Israeli efforts to invade the minds of the Arab peoples and polish Israel's crimes." . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The National Committee of the province warns against dealing with the "Nas Daily" program and demands the participants in its academy to withdraw https://t.co/xwipoeJI45 pic.twitter.com/TaoWoG9eND
- BDS Movement (@BDS_Arabic) September 14, 2020
Dear Al-Duhaih, excuse me, Palestine first
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vcvcxTwww …
— Osama Gaweesh (@osgaweesh) June 13, 2021
Rule your conscience and boycott everything Zionist..# boycott_al-Dahih #boycott_al-Dahih pic.twitter.com/qFM9640avN
— Omar (@Omarabujaber6) June 13, 2021
What begins with “depoliticized” science today will result in tomorrow to pass poisonous messages that want to penetrate our consciousness as youth and falsify the reality of “Israel” as a state that is hostile to us and based on our blood
After #Al-Duhaih returned via the Emirati New Media Academy, the main partner and first supporter of Nass Daily, the printing press, Naseer Yassin #Qata' Al-Duhaih
— Ahmed Khattab Alternative (@AhmedKh76776735) June 14, 2021
Denial of normalization and disavowal from "Nas Daily"
The presenter of the “Al-Daheeh” program, Ahmed Al-Ghandour, issued a statement on his personal page on “Facebook”, in which he affirmed his position in support of the Palestinian cause, and stressed that he had no intention to participate in any normalization activity or support for normalization, and denied the continuation of the relationship between the Nass Daily Academy and the New Academy Emirati media producer for the new season of his program.
In his statement, Al-Ghandour expressed his understanding of the public's fears that his program would turn into an area of "putting poison in honey", facilitating the promotion of normalization, and reassuring them that the content and nature of his program would not change, before re-emphasizing that he would not participate in any activity aimed at normalization.
The company "New Media Academy", which produced the new season of the "Al-Daha" program, also issued a statement regarding what was raised about its relationship with the "Nas Daily" company, in which it said that the latter - based in Singapore - cooperated with the New Media Academy "for several months" with the aim of providing training programs. The relationship between the two entities ended a year ago.
"New Media" expressed its regret at what it described as "the campaign launched by tweets and some Arab media outlets to politicize scientific content and place it within political issues that did not happen from near or far to the Academy."
Note that the UAE Academy did not refer in its statement to the accusations against the platform of promoting normalization, which was behind the launch of the boycott campaign against the programme.
Clarification from the New Media Academy about the launch of the Al Duha program across its platforms.
# Al-Daheeh # New Media_Academy pic.twitter.com/GCBGxQSwI0
— New Media Academy (@NewMediaACDMY) June 14, 2021
data refutation
A number of activists refuted the data of "Al-Duhaih" and "New Media", and claimed that the company had deleted pages from its website that talked about "Nas Daily", and pointed out that "New Media Academy" said in its statement that the headquarters of the "Nas Daily" company in Singapore, Although it has an official headquarters in the Emirates.
Some also claimed that the company announced a new cycle of the "open program for content innovation", presented by Israeli lecturers from Nass Daily earlier this year, before it deleted the advertisement, confirming that the cooperation between the two entities did not end a year ago, as claimed by Al-Ghandour and "New Media".
A number of activists monitored that the views of the first episode of the “Al-Duha” program alone approached a third of the views that the platform gained during a whole year, and they also monitored the doubling of the number of its followers, in reference to the indirect benefit that the platform achieves from Al-Ghandour, which can be used in Publish their normal content.
Between supporters and opponents
After Al-Duhaih published his statement, the pioneers of social networking sites were divided between supporters and opponents, as some of them considered that Ghandour's statement represented a sufficient response to the boycott campaign that targeted him, and that declaring his support for the Palestinian people with such strength is enough to deny any accusation of normalization.
While a number of them denounced Al-Duhayh's insistence on cooperating with "New Media Academy", despite his lack of an intermediary platform between him and the public, stressing that he realizes that the benefit of cooperation with him will not end at the end of the contract between them.
Some pointed out that "Nas Daily" is not the only problem of "New Media Academy", and that the activity of the UAE and its companies in normalization is not hidden from anyone, and that Al-Ghandour's words about his lack of specialization in politics and his understanding of it is an underestimation of the minds of his followers, and that the policy of the producing company "the printing press" Do not detach from the content offered on their platforms.
Al-Duhaih’s statement is respected and he came out and clarified his position on the issue and that he is against normalization and this is the most important thing. Your problem now is with the channel that produces the Al-Duhayh program. I mean, you can follow Al-Duhayh without subscribing to the channel itself. In relation to the topic, it is easy, you can look for the unsubscribe campaign to the channel.
— BLUR.
(@Bluurr11) June 14, 2021
"My age, in any way, will not be printed, nor will the content that I present be normal. I present scientific content and I would prefer to do that. I do not intend to change this, because I cannot do anything else."
🌹 #support_al-dahih 🌹 pic.twitter.com/EHBJkRRgTm
— ḾĀDṒṓ Ⓜ️ 👼🐼💙 (@bent_men_shobra) June 15, 2021
An important clarification from Al-Ghandour.. Al-Ghandour offers targeted scientific content without competition from anyone, and I think this explanation is sufficient.
https://t.co/qufM2jUDZA
— Ahmed Yamany (@AhmedYamany) June 14, 2021
It is the only feature of the campaign that came out on the surface is that it is the first experience of youth awareness after the events of Gaza and Sheikh Jarrah - which is still ongoing until now - and the results were good,
other than that, a campaign that ended yesterday, this is wrong, ah, people are right, they are upset that he went to a platform that has nothing to do with them I just got to this point
— Mohamed 🇵🇸 (@MOHUS15_) June 14, 2021
Question:
Why is this Al-Duhaih not making a channel for an independent case in it and its content? Why does he go to contract with suspicious companies?
I mean, God willing, he has followers and he will support him.
Why does he not avoid suspicion and headaches?
I don't understand it, I mean, why is everything against Palestine causing people to go round it?
#boycott_the_dhaih
— Yasmine 🇵🇸 (@jaass9i) June 14, 2021
We brought back to me, “This is scientific content that is not a call to politics.” Well, sir, if you were offered funding from a Zionist channel * that you present the Al-Daheeh program with the same content, would you accept and say then that my position is clear and the content is consistent?
No, of course, you will refuse, the same thing here on New Media is that it is suspicious, so do not lose your audience and see another platform https://t.co/q14dKSVcTP
— 𝙼𝙾𝙷𝙰𝙼𝙴𝙳 𝙼𝙴𝚃𝚆𝙰𝙻𝙴𝚈 🇵🇸 (@Mohamed_metwly_) June 14, 2021
Assuming that the New Media Academy that I work with is not supported by Nas Daily, the content maker is sponsored by the UAE, not easy.
— Hassan Obeidat (@Hassan_obt) June 14, 2021
It is noteworthy that the “Al-Daheeh” program is a YouTube program presented by the Egyptian youth Ahmed Al-Ghandour, who studied at the Faculty of Science at the American University in Cairo, and the program appeared for the first time in 2014, during which it presents scientific content in a simple popular language that is understood by non-specialists in the public.
With the increasing popularity of his program, Al-Ghandour contracted with the platform "AG Plus" (AJ+), which is affiliated with the "Al-Jazeera network", to broadcast "Al-Duhaih" through it, before it announced in early 2020 that the contract with Al-Ghandour had ended, after which he began broadcasting his program "Al-Duhaih Museum". On the “Shahid” platform, which is affiliated with the Saudi MBC channel group.
Recently, "Al-Duhaih" announced the broadcast of the new season of the program via the Emirati "New Media Academy" platform, which cooperates with the "Nas Daily" platform that promotes Israeli normalization, according to the Palestinian National Committee for Boycott (BDS).