INTERVIEW: The social, cultural impact of the Abraham Accords is beautiful, says Ariella Steinreich
Steinreich Communications’ regional head talks about the growth of the group’s UAE-Bahrain-Israel specialty group one year into the historic agreement
Updated 08 October 2021
Zaira Lakhpatwala
DUBAI: Following the historic deal between the UAE and Israel on Aug. 13 2020 known as the Abraham Accords, Steinreich Communications Group launched a specialty group to help UAE and Israeli businesses strengthen relationships in the two countries. Shortly after, the firm added Bahrain to the new outfit.
A year later, Steinreich Communications — which already worked with clients in the Middle East region — reported almost 50 percent growth in regional business.
“The last year has been absolutely exciting,” Ariella Steinreich, the company’s senior vice president who heads up the regional business, told Arab News.
“The bulk of our work is media relations. And then we found that there was another column, which was explaining the business culture because it is really different, so that’s what we have been focusing on for the last year,” she added.
The jump in new business came from clients in the travel and tourism, fintech, professional services, government, and NGO sectors in its Dubai and Tel Aviv operations. Almost all of the new clients were won through word-of-mouth, Steinreich said.
The growth in businesses has also led to the company expanding its staff and operations. At launch, the company did not have any physical offices in the region but has now opened an office in Dubai, UAE. When they opened the office, “we had a goal of what we thought the size of the office was and now it has doubled and we are looking at tripling it by the end of the year,” Steinreich said.
The UAE-Bahrain-Israel specialty group has a support staff in the US too. Steinreich said that many people do not realize that the American Jewish community plays an important role in the new business relationships between the Gulf and Israel. “There are dozens of Jewish newspapers in America,” she added.
The American and foreign Jewish community is also important for tourism. “The Abraham Accords did not just impact Israelis, Bahrainis and Emiratis, but also the American Jewish community, many of whom had the ability to come to this part of the world before but maybe didn’t always feel it was the safest or most comfortable place to be,” she said.
Because of the agreement, tourists and businesses feel more relaxed about being in the region, which explains the firm’s travel-focussed clients. The company also works on creating cultural experiences such as Sabbath and Sukkot dinners for everyone from officials and businesses to influencers and media professionals.
In just the last few weeks, the regional team has placed over 100 op-eds, arranged more than 210 interviews and secured more than 900 pieces of coverage for its clients around the first anniversary of the accords. But, beyond the business side, the most rewarding part of the firm’s efforts is the social and cultural impact.
“There is so much happening on the business side, but when we talk business, a lot of people think we’re just talking about financial or professional services,” said Steinreich. “Personally, what I find incredibly gratifying is when we work with groups and organizations who are doing things that also impact the social and cultural side, which is so impactful and beautiful.”
A look back at how Arab News marked its 50th anniversary
In a year crowded with news, the paper still managed to innovate and leverage AI to become available in 50 languages
Golden Jubilee Gala, held at the Diplomatic Quarter in Riyadh, now available to watch on YouTube
Updated 31 December 2025
Arab News
RIYADH: In 2025, the global news agenda was crowded with headlines concerning wars, elections and rapid technological change.
Inside the newsroom of Arab News, the year carried additional weight: Saudi Arabia’s first English-language daily marked its 50th anniversary.
And with an industry going through turmoil worldwide, the challenge inside the newsroom was how to turn a midlife crisis into a midlife opportunity.
For the newspaper’s team members, the milestone was less about nostalgia than about ensuring the publication could thrive in a rapidly changing and evolving media landscape.
“We did not want just to celebrate our past,” said Faisal J. Abbas, editor-in-chief of Arab News. “But more importantly, we were constantly thinking of how we can keep Arab News relevant for the next five decades.”
Faisal J. Abbas, editor-in-chief of Arab News. (Supplied)
The solution, he added, came down to two words: “Artificial intelligence.”
For the Arab News newsroom, AI was not a replacement for journalism but as a tool to extend it.
“It was like having three eyes at once: one on the past, one on the present, and one on the future,” said Noor Nugali, the newspaper’s deputy editor-in-chief.
Noor Nugali, deputy editor-in-chief of Arab News. (Supplied)
One of the first initiatives was the 50th anniversary commemorative edition, designed as a compact historical record of the region told through Arab News’ own reporting.
“It was meant to be like a mini history book, telling the history of the region using Arab News’ archive with a story from each year,” said Siraj Wahab, acting executive editor of the newspaper.
The issue, he added, traced events ranging from the outbreak of the Lebanese civil war in 1975 to the swearing-in of Donald Trump, while also paying homage to former editors-in-chief who shaped the newspaper’s direction over five decades.
The anniversary edition, however, was only one part of a broader strategy to signal Arab News’ focus on the future.
To that end, the paper partnered with Google to launch the region’s first AI-produced podcast using NotebookLM, an experimental tool that synthesizes reporting and archival material into audio storytelling.
The project marked a regional first in newsroom-led AI audio production.
The podcast was unveiled during a special 50th anniversary ceremony in mid-November, held on the sidelines of the Arab Media Forum, hosted by the Dubai Future Foundation. The event in the UAE’s commercial hub drew regional media leaders and officials.
Remarks at the event highlighted the project as an example of innovation in legacy media, positioning Arab News as a case study in digital reinvention rather than preservation alone.
“This is a great initiative, and I’m happy that it came from Arab News as a leading media platform, and I hope to see more such initiatives in the Arab world especially,” said Mona Al-Marri, director-general of the Government of Dubai Media Office, on the sidelines of the event.
“AI is the future, and no one should deny this. It will take over so many sectors. We have to be ready for it and be part of it and be ahead of anyone else in this interesting field.”
Behind the scenes, another long-form project was taking shape: a documentary chronicling Arab News’ origins and its transformation into a global, digital-first newsroom.
“While all this was happening, we were also working in-house on a documentary telling the origin story of Arab News and how it transformed under the current editor into a more global, more digital operation,” said Nugali.
The result was “Rewriting Arab News,” a documentary examining the paper’s digital transformation and its navigation of Saudi Arabia’s reforms between 2016 and 2018. The film charted editorial shifts, newsroom restructuring and the challenges of reporting during a period of rapid national change.
The documentary was screened at the Frontline Club in London, the European Union Embassy, Westminster University, and the World Media Congress in Bahrain. It later became available on the streaming platform Shahid and onboard Saudi Arabian Airlines.
The grand slam of the anniversary year was the Golden Jubilee of Arab News gala, held in late September in Riyadh’s Diplomatic Quarter. (AN photo)
It was also nominated for an Association for International Broadcasting award.
In early July, a special screening of the documentary took place at the EU Embassy in Riyadh. During the event, EU Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Christophe Farnaud described the film as an “embodiment” of the “incredible changes” that the Kingdom is undergoing.
“I particularly appreciate … the historical dimension, when (Arab News) was created in 1975 — that was also a project corresponding to the new role of the Kingdom,” Farnaud said. “Now the Kingdom has entered a new phase, a spectacular phase of transformation.”
Part of the documentary is narrated by Prince Turki Al-Faisal, the former Saudi ambassador to the US, who in the film delves into the paper’s origins.
Prince Turki Al-Faisal, the former Saudi ambassador to the US. (AN photo)
The grand slam of the anniversary year was the Golden Jubilee of Arab News gala, held in late September in Riyadh’s Diplomatic Quarter.
Hosted by the Dean of Diplomatic Corps in Saudi Arabia and Ambassador of Djibouti to Riyadh Dya-Eddine Said Bamakhrama, the evening featured a keynote address by Prince Turki, who spoke about Arab News’ founding under his father, the late King Faisal, and its original mission to present the Kingdom to the English-speaking world.
The Dean of Diplomatic Corps in Saudi Arabia and Ambassador of Djibouti to Riyadh Dya-Eddine Said Bamakhrama (far left). (AN photo)
Arab News was established in Jeddah in 1975 by brothers Hisham and Mohammed Ali Hafiz under the slogan to give Arabs a voice in English while documenting the major transformations taking place across the Middle East.
The two founders were honored with a special trophy presented by Prince Turki, Assistant Media Minister Abdullah Maghlouth, Editor-in-Chief Abbas, and family member and renowned columnist Talat Hafiz on behalf of the founders.
During the gala, Abbas announced Arab News’ most ambitious expansion yet: the launch of the publication in 50 languages, unveiled later at the World Media Congress in Madrid in cooperation with Camb.AI.
The grand slam of the anniversary year was the Golden Jubilee of Arab News gala, held in late September in Riyadh’s Diplomatic Quarter. (AN photo)
The Madrid launch in October underscored Arab News’ aim to reposition itself not simply as a regional paper, but as a global platform for Saudi and Middle Eastern perspectives.
The event was attended by Princess Haifa bint Abdulaziz Al-Mogrin, the Saudi ambassador to Spain; Arab and Spanish diplomats; and senior editors and executives.
As the anniversary year concluded, Arab News released the full video of the Golden Jubilee Gala to the public for the first time, making the event accessible beyond the room in which it was held.
For a newspaper founded in an era of typewriters and wire copy, the message of its 50th year was clear: longevity alone is not enough. Relevance, the newsroom concluded, now depends on how well journalism adapts without losing sight of its past.
