On the twentieth anniversary of his passing, Badih Serbey still fills the heart and memory
On such days, the twentieth anniversary of the passing of the great late journalist Badih Serbey passes, who enriched the Arab press with masterpieces of writing, whether through the magazines “Al-Mawed” or “Nura” or through his political magazine “Kol Shay,” which, through his journalistic victories, was able to achieve Lebanese and Arab circulation.
One of his most prominent journalistic blunders that was reported by news agencies was his interview with the late leader Gamal Abdel Nasser after he had been absent from the media for a period of time, and rumors at the time talked about many reasons for his absence, including illness. His first media appearance was with Badih Serbey to refute all the rumours... Badih Serbey had a school in journalism that aimed to educate the reader and bring joy to his soul, and to urge him to appreciate high art without its tools being gossip, scandals and vulgarity. He defined the journalistic “blunder” with sweet words, with the event image and with the summit meeting, and in many cases in finding the event that is considered an unavoidable station as we chronicle the history of Arab art and culture. Renewal was his approach, as he was an innovator of journalistic sections that have become essential in our current journalism.
For example, in “Al-Mawed”, he did not limit himself to talking about stars or artists, but rather “Al-Mawed” was the window that he opened for the reader every week to learn about what was happening in the Arab and Western worlds. He was the first to invent the style of series in dealing with the life story of an artist or celebrity. He was the first to write series about the Egyptian royal family and the symbols of that period, as well as series about the British royal family, the Tsars and Princes of Monaco, Empress Eugenie, Jacqueline Kennedy, Onassis, Ronald Reagan, Hillary Clinton, Baron Empain, Aga Khan, Rasputin, Imelda Marcos, Donald Trump. There were series that dealt with the story of the fall of royal thrones in Europe, as well as the secrets of magic and magicians, and about sports stars, even about Oprah Winfrey, whom the Arab public had not yet become acquainted with, in addition, of course, to series about the stars of the East and the West.
There is not enough space here to mention all the series. Badih Serbey wanted “Al-Mawed” to be like a “satellite channel” that opens the reader’s eyes to the world at a time when there is no “internet” or Arab satellite channels, and the facilities that are available to the reader now are not available.
This year we wanted to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the passing of Badih Serbey via Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, and the response and interaction with the audience and readers was wonderful.
I thank everyone who wrote a nice word, a special comment, or even a simple word, “May God have mercy on him.”
On the anniversary of the passing of Badih Serbey, I say to him: You are still in the hearts of your fans, friends and readers, and you still fill the heart, mind and memory. We miss you very much, we miss your smile, your optimism, your values and your journalistic school.
One of his most prominent journalistic blunders that was reported by news agencies was his interview with the late leader Gamal Abdel Nasser after he had been absent from the media for a period of time, and rumors at the time talked about many reasons for his absence, including illness. His first media appearance was with Badih Serbey to refute all the rumours... Badih Serbey had a school in journalism that aimed to educate the reader and bring joy to his soul, and to urge him to appreciate high art without its tools being gossip, scandals and vulgarity. He defined the journalistic “blunder” with sweet words, with the event image and with the summit meeting, and in many cases in finding the event that is considered an unavoidable station as we chronicle the history of Arab art and culture. Renewal was his approach, as he was an innovator of journalistic sections that have become essential in our current journalism.
For example, in “Al-Mawed”, he did not limit himself to talking about stars or artists, but rather “Al-Mawed” was the window that he opened for the reader every week to learn about what was happening in the Arab and Western worlds. He was the first to invent the style of series in dealing with the life story of an artist or celebrity. He was the first to write series about the Egyptian royal family and the symbols of that period, as well as series about the British royal family, the Tsars and Princes of Monaco, Empress Eugenie, Jacqueline Kennedy, Onassis, Ronald Reagan, Hillary Clinton, Baron Empain, Aga Khan, Rasputin, Imelda Marcos, Donald Trump. There were series that dealt with the story of the fall of royal thrones in Europe, as well as the secrets of magic and magicians, and about sports stars, even about Oprah Winfrey, whom the Arab public had not yet become acquainted with, in addition, of course, to series about the stars of the East and the West.
There is not enough space here to mention all the series. Badih Serbey wanted “Al-Mawed” to be like a “satellite channel” that opens the reader’s eyes to the world at a time when there is no “internet” or Arab satellite channels, and the facilities that are available to the reader now are not available.
This year we wanted to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the passing of Badih Serbey via Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, and the response and interaction with the audience and readers was wonderful.
I thank everyone who wrote a nice word, a special comment, or even a simple word, “May God have mercy on him.”
On the anniversary of the passing of Badih Serbey, I say to him: You are still in the hearts of your fans, friends and readers, and you still fill the heart, mind and memory. We miss you very much, we miss your smile, your optimism, your values and your journalistic school.