LONDON: The former head of Sky News Arabia has ridiculed The Guardian’s reporting on the termination of the TV news joint venture between Sky UK and its regional partner IMI, accusing the British newspaper of “lazy journalism” and of misrepresenting the reasons behind the decision.
IMI and Sky UK announced on Sunday the dissolution of their joint venture, under which Sky News Arabia had operated since 2010.
Under a new multi-year brand licensing agreement, the channel will retain the Sky name despite Sky relinquishing its operational and editorial role.
In a post on X, Nadim Koteich, the network’s former general manager, challenged The Guardian’s framing, which presented the split as a direct consequence of Sky News Arabia’s coverage of Sudan’s civil war - coverage that critics have alleged downplayed atrocities committed by the UAE-backed Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
“If it were about editorial integrity, why was a licensing agreement signed allowing ‘Sky News Arabia’ to retain the brand for several years, as the report itself states?,” Koteich wrote, adding that the decision was “simply not an editorial punishment.”
Wrong. False. Lazy journalism.@guardian
If this is about editorial integrity, why the multi-year brand licensing deal allowing Sky News Arabia to keep its name — as the report itself says?
Why not an immediate cutoff, or simply letting the JV to strictly expire in May 2027?…
— Nadim Koteich (@NadimKoteich) May 31, 2026
Koteich, who left his role later last year shortly after the Sudan coverage story broke, had previously rejected reports linking the renewal negotiations to the Sudan coverage row, describing the process as a “standard, ongoing commercial negotiation” and insisting that “IMI newsrooms operate independently.” Mr Kotaish is yet to be replaced as GM of the Abu Dhabi based entity.
IMI similarly denied those characterisations at the time, calling the reports “false” and stressing that discussions were purely commercial.
The Guardian, however, stood by its framing in its Sunday report, citing growing internal concern at Sky over Sky News Arabia’s editorial stance on regional news.
The newspaper pointed to Sudan’s decision in November to ban the broadcaster, following accusations that it had dispatched a reporter - Tsabih Mubarak Khatir, who is married to a senior RSF official - to cover the RSF’s seizure of El Fasher in Darfur, and that the channel had consistently downplayed RSF atrocities.
Sky News Arabia has not publicly responded to those specific allegations.
Koteich also took issue with the editorial emphasis of The Guardian’s piece, accusing the outlet of “mislead reporting” for failing to foreground the commercial dimension of the story.
“Exiting some of Sky’s owners’ international joint ventures in parallel with expansion in the core UK market is a business development plan, not an editorial audit process.”
Former Sky News Arabia general manager Nadim Koteich. (Supplied)
In a statement on Sunday, IMI described the new agreement as reflecting “the maturity of Sky News Arabia as a regional media leader and the readiness of IMI to take the business into its next phase of growth and innovation.”
David Rhodes, the executive chair of Sky News Group, also commented on the deal saying: “We are proud of what has been built through our partnership with IMI over the years and the significant presence built throughout the region. The time is right for this change and we look forward to continuing our relationship in the next phase of Sky News Arabia.”
The deal concludes 16 years of joint operation.
IMI is a privately owned global media company with operations across 15 countries, overseeing brands including The National, Al Ain News, CNN Business Arabic and a minority stake in Euronews.
The company is a subsidiary of Abu Dhabi Media Investment Corp.
