Between 1966 and 1968 I was learning journalism from the bottom up; working part time as proof reader for Lissan Elhal, while writing articles under the supervision and guidance of Adonis and Said Akl who were part of the editorial team at the time.
In 68: Paris: First assignment for Annahar; living in the middle of the action, in a small hotel up rue Gay Lussac; I had the chance to witness and report on la revolution des etudiants field interviewing Aragon, Sartre, Bendit and others.
From Paris I flew to Chicago for two weeks where I reported on the drug soaked Beat generation, translating parts of Bob Dylan’s songs and Ginsberg’s poetry. I also wrote for Annahar’s weekly supplement about the Black Panthers, Martin Luther King, Elijah Mohammed, and Malcolm X.
At the end of 68 I began with Raymond Jbara the first direct talk show in Lebanon’s National Radio while still freelancing for Annahar.
Back on the road across Europe, I continued writing for both Annahar’s weekly supplement and Aljadid weekly magazine, mainly on theatre, books and the arts.
1973 Annahar began publishing Nahar Almanatek, a regional newspaper within the daily issue, it assigned me full time to roam the heartland, reporting and interviewing.
1975 Nahar Almanatek ceased publication due to the civil unrest. I took the position of feature editor at Addastour weekly magazine and traveled with it in 1977 first to Paris then to London where we remained an offshore publication until 1982, covering cultural events throughout Europe and the Arab world including cinema, theatre festivals, art exhibitions, and various conferences.
BBC Arab world Radio broadcasted my theatre coverage during that period.
In 1983 I became Senior Editor of Harlequin Arab World, in Athens. We published popular romantic and historic books for a trans-Arab readership translated from English. This venture marked the first and last advanced commercial book publishing in the Arab world, rotating 16 books every month and covering the entire map of the Arab world. It ended when Saudi censorship banned the books cutting 44% of the company’s sales in one blow.
End 1985, I immigrated with my family to Australia. From there I continued writing for various publications, mainly Annahar. But concentrated on finishing a novel, a selection of short stories, and a book of vernacular poetry and prose.
Back to London in 1991, I took Alhayat’s offer as features editor. Until 2000 I covered Asia, Africa, Europe living in a suitcase, concentrating on cultural events, especially in Iraq, Tunisia, Morocco, and Europe.
In 2001 Alhayat moved most of its staff to Beirut where I continued writing, reporting, and editing a weekly supplement, until February 2011.
First Articles in arabic about the cultural revolution in the US – Europe