| Newspaper Name: |
عكاظ |
| Owner: |
Okaz Organization for Press and Publication |
| Country / Region: |
Saudi Arabia (Jeddah) |
| Language: |
Arabic |
| Format type: |
Newspaper |
| Category: |
Yellow press |
| Political alignment: |
Liberal |
| Frequency: |
Daily |
| Publication Years (print version): |
1960 — now (63 years) |
| Circulation: |
250,000 (2015) |
| Official Pages: |
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| Official Apps: |
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| Website: |
www.okaz.com.sa [read with translation] |
|
A national-level daily newspaper published in Western Saudi Arabia is considered a representative of the tabloid press. Published since 1960, it was conceived as a weekly social, cultural and literary magazine for writers, thinkers and intellectuals. After 4 years, the editorial office was transformed into a private institution, and «Okaz» became a daily newspaper (the format of the magazine was not appreciated by readers). Its main editorial office is located in Jeddah, and the second-in Riyadh, it is published in these two cities. «Okaz» is a fairly bold publication that publishes all the most interesting things about the life of Saudi Arabia, as far as censorship, ethical and other restrictions allow (politics, economics, incidents, investigations, sports, technology, city bulletin, fashion, travel). This newspaper means to Saudi Arabia what the «
New York Post» means to the United States.
The title of the publication reflects the connection with the largest historical open market (or fair), «سوق عكاظ», «Sook Okaz», near Taifa, which operated annually in the period 542-726. For two weeks in the 11th month of the Muslim calendar (Dhu'l-qada), merchants, representatives of the nobility, intellectuals, thinkers and poets, preachers came here from all over the Arabian Peninsula to buy the necessary goods, conclude important agreements, settle disputes, take part in sports and other competitions. Especially significant were the competitions of poets, during which the rules of the Arabic language and its syntax were unified. As the fair attracted the best representatives of the intellectual elite, so the magazine, according to the idea of the creator Ahmed Attar, was to become the same place.
