02/03/2016
MidEast Christian News to Suspend Operations
Washington, D.C. (March 1, 2016)—Mideast Christian News (MCN) will halt operations today, four years after its launch on March 11, 2012. William Weessa, MCN founder and editor-in-chief made the announcement, saying that financial losses had taken their toll, with MCN struggling to amass a sufficient number of paying subscribers. Most interested readers, he said, expected the highly specialized service to be free and that, Weessa said, “was not realistic.”
For four years, MCN—publishing in English and Arabic—produced original news coverage that put the spotlight on the suffering of Christian minorities throughout the Middle East; MCN offered insider’s coverage of stories nearly impossible to understand or access by Western journalists.
Weessa said: “When I was working as Editor-in-Chief of the Arabic service of Radio France International (RFI), and as the head of the Arabic Version of European broadcaster EuroNews, I had a dream: to put my professional experience in the service of religious minorities in the Middle East, particularly Christians, and especially Copts in Egypt.
“Local media hides and distort reality, while the international media fails to report on critical issues consistently, as they are focusing on the regional conflicts. MCN was designed to fill this gap.”
The news service marked the first time in history that Copts and Christians in the Middle East were able to enjoy a high-level professional news service whose standards matched that of international news agencies; MCN operated both in Arabic, MCNArabic.com, and English, MCNdirect.com.
The agency depended on a large team of journalists and correspondents in Egypt and the Middle East, “whom I was honored to lead,” Weessa said. Moreover, the agency provided an independent news service that was not affiliated with any religious or political entities, whether local or international. Its editorial independence earned MCN significant credibility.
“We will all be saddened by the absence of this unique and distinctive service,” said Weessa, adding, however, that “we aim for re-launching in future once strong financial support can be secured.”
Dr. William Weessa
Founder and Editor in Chief of MCN
[email protected]
