The House of Wisdom workshop, organized in partnership with Sky News Arabia, focused on editorial rigor, verification techniques, and automation tools across fast-paced newsrooms.
SHARJAH —The Sharjah Press Club convened a specialized media training workshop on Monday at the House of Wisdom to train journalists in advanced fact-checking methods, narrative storytelling, and the practical use of artificial intelligence in newsrooms.
Organized under the aegis of the Sharjah Government Media Bureau (SGMB) in collaboration with Sky News Arabia, the programme, titled “Modern Journalism: Fact-Checking, Storytelling, and Artificial Intelligence,” drew reporters and SPC members seeking practical skills to handle high-velocity digital reporting.
The curriculum covered the full editorial cycle, addressing information gathering, digital verification, narrative structuring, breaking news management, and newsroom automation. Practical sessions focused on identifying manipulated media, cross-referencing multi-source datasets, debunking digital disinformation, and determining contextually relevant editorial angles.
Tariq Saeed Allay, Director General of SGMB, emphasized that technological acceleration demands sharper journalistic fundamentals rather than weaker ones.
“The rapid changes in the media industry are creating new responsibilities for journalists,” Allay said. “They need advanced research, editorial, and technical skills to manage the increasing flow of information from multiple sources and integrate the latest technologies, including AI, into their work within clear professional standards.”
Allay noted that training media personnel in practical technologies ensures that verification, accuracy, and institutional credibility remain intact even as reader consumption habits shift toward instant digital delivery.
The storytelling segment walked reporters through the anatomy of structured reporting: refining story pitches, drafting direct and descriptive leads, writing impact-driven headlines, and structuring body paragraphs without rhetorical excess or unsubstantiated conclusions.
During the breaking news simulation, trainers examined how to handle developing stories when information is scarce or conflicting. Journalists practiced verifying real-time posts from social platforms, vetting primary sources, and exercising editorial discipline to avoid circulating unvetted claims during early reporting phases.
The technology component explored how generative tools assist news gathering, interview preparation, research syntheses, and content planning. While demonstrating tools that reduce repetitive newsroom tasks, trainers cautioned that automation presents real risks of factual distortion and hallucination. Instructors reiterated that automated systems serve only as editorial aids; journalists and human editors retain ultimate legal and ethical accountability for every published line.
The workshop concluded with a hands-on exercise titled “From News to Stories,” in which participants verified raw field dispatches, extracted credible story angles, and filed concise news copies under strict deadlines. The initiative forms part of SPC’s annual professional development series designed to upskill regional media personnel.
