Latest news with #Damascene
Irish Examiner
21 hours ago
- Politics
- Irish Examiner
Murdoch v Trump: Why the flawed media titan could be the final protector of press freedom
Years before Rupert Murdoch bought the Wall Street Journal, the writer John Lanchester suggested that his primary motivation – more than ideology or even money – was a 'love of crises, of the point when everything seems about to be lost'. More than two decades later, is the crisis in the US media, one in which everything seems about to be lost, motivating Murdoch to take on the most powerful man in the world? It is as good a reason as many of those given over the past week for the fact that the billionaire whose Fox News channel has acted as a Trump cheerleader throughout is now, alone among US media titans, preparing to do battle in the courts. Trump's onslaught on the US media – withdrawing federal funds, banning reporters and launching multi-billion-dollar lawsuits – has led once-renowned defenders of media freedom such as the Washington Post, ABC News and CBS to crumple, either changing their editorial policies or agreeing to apparently frivolous settlements. Yet ranting calls to both the WSJ editor, Emma Tucker, and his old frenemy Rupert failed to prevent the publication of a story suggesting he had sent a hand-drawn picture of a naked woman to the sex offender Jeffrey Epstein with the words: 'Happy Birthday – and may every day be another wonderful secret.' Last week, he launched a bn lawsuit over this 'fake'. After the WSJ doubled down with stories saying Trump had been told he was in the Epstein files, sources close to Murdoch report that, at 94, he refuses to be 'intimidated'. Damascene conversion? He is also enhancing his reputation as the most mercurial media titan. Media veteran Tina Brown asked how the world had come to depend on 'the Darth Vader of media' to stand up for press freedom, while a thoughtful friend asked: 'Suppose Murdoch had a Damascene conversion and sought to atone for his many sins – would we welcome him as an ally?' Can a man whose companies have paid out more than a billion pounds for either knowingly broadcasting lies or for hacking phones be preparing to die as the Severus Snape of the media world, the final protector of press freedom? Two years ago, when Murdoch announced he was standing down (sort of), he told staff to 'make the most of this great opportunity to improve the world we live in', a line that seemed ridiculous to me at the time. Is his battle with this madman in the White House really his final chance at leaving the world a better place? President Donald Trump's (pictured) ranting calls to both the WSJ editor, Emma Tucker, and his old frenemy Rupert Murdoch failed to prevent the publication of a story suggesting he had sent a hand-drawn picture of a naked woman to the sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. File photo: AP/Alex Brandon Before Murdoch watchers get carried away, there are of course a number of rational and personal reasons for Murdoch's decision not to kowtow to Trump. Throughout his long career at the nexus of media and power, one thing that has been consistent is Murdoch's desire to pick the winning side. Trump's friendship with Epstein is the only issue currently close to dividing him from a Maga power base that also forms the heart of the Fox News audience. And Murdoch's enthusiasm for the former real estate mogul has never been wholehearted. After the January 6 attack on the US Capitol in 2021 he sent an email to a former executive, saying: 'We want to make Trump a nonperson.' Spreading his bets Despite this, the support of his Fox News channel helped elect a man he has little respect for. Not only is he spreading his bets on the Epstein fallout, Murdoch is also riding two horses by allowing his respected financial news organisation to defend its reporting, while Fox continues to downplay the story over Trump's card. A newsman at his core, Murdoch is just as likely to give his editors stories as ask for them to be spiked. But Murdoch is also known to have kept a particularly respectful distance from the Journal's editorials since buying it in 2007; one called Trump's tariff plans 'the dumbest trade war in history'. Besides, defending its journalism is good for business in a landscape in which the owners of CBS cancel a hit show critical of Trump and pay millions to his presidential library just days before receiving a government blessing for a huge deal. As always with Murdoch, there is also the psychodrama of an old man whose life is closer to Shakespearean than most. Michael Wolff, responsible for several of the many books on both men, tells me that Murdoch's support for his journalists is an 'old man's revenge' after the Fox fallout divided his family and prompted an inheritance battle still playing out in the family courts. Besides, says Wolff, Murdoch wants revenge on Trump simply for winning when Murdoch did 'everything to make sure [he] didn't'. Trump's behaviour in his second term – using his powers to further any whim or grievance, and approaching absolutism – could also have revealed to Murdoch the end result of a truly free market. What is to stop Emperor Trump from stripping his commercial empire of the protection of the rule of law once the old man is gone, for example? Murdoch is undoubtedly a flawed hero. And there is a chance after all that the drawing is a hoax, as Trump insists, despite the Journal's robust defence. Murdoch's papers have been tricked before. But for now, he is the closest thing journalism has to a Trojan horse, invited into the inner sanctum yet still apparently ready to do battle. Jane Martinson is professor of financial journalism at City St George's and a member of the board of the Scott Trust, which owns the Guardian Media Group. Syndicated from the Guardian Read More Donald Trump's name reported to feature in US justice department files about Jeffrey Epstein
Shafaq News
a day ago
- Business
- Shafaq News
Damascus's Asruniyeh market fights for survival
Shafaq News – Damascus Damascus' historic Asruniyeh Market is fighting to survive amid rising costs, dwindling tourism, and repeated fires, as restoration efforts continue to preserve one of the city's oldest and most iconic commercial landmarks. The market is home to around 120 shops, many of which are operated by craftsmen and merchants who have inherited the trade across generations. Trade peaks during key seasons, most notably the holy month of Ramadan, when demand for lanterns, copper lamps, and traditional decorative items surges. The market also sees increased activity during festive periods, when residents shop for household items and heritage-themed gifts. Earlier, the bazaar was a magnet for Arab and foreign tourists who sought souvenirs reflecting the soul of Old Damascus, but declining tourist numbers have affected overall business. Challenges and Decline Shopkeepers in Asruniyeh face mounting challenges, including a decline in purchasing power and rising costs of raw materials used by artisans, which have driven up product prices. Fires in recent years have also damaged many workshops and stores, forcing some to shut down temporarily before restoration, adding pressure on traders already struggling under deteriorating economic conditions. Hassan al-Shawa, Director of the Consumer Protection Directorate in Damascus, told Shafaq News that the government is working to provide essential production inputs, including energy sources and materials for crafts and small-scale manufacturing. He confirmed that authorities are also striving to reduce fees and taxes on raw materials and to protect local production—particularly the artisan sector. Syrian economic analyst Samer Halabi highlighted the market's value beyond daily profits. 'This market supports entire families and represents a balance between commerce and tradition,' he noted. Amid its stone alleyways and the sounds of hammers and chisels, Asruniyeh Market remains a living symbol of Damascene heritage. Preserving it is not only essential to supporting Syria's artisan economy but also to safeguarding the cultural legacy that defines the capital.
Irish Examiner
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Examiner
Joe McNamee: Is it time to subsidise Irish hospitality?
Our shared and serious passion for music and film led my daughter and I to The Bear, a truly magnificent TV series (TV being the new 'film') set in a Chicago restaurant with Michelin star aspirations. As a recovering chef, I can confirm its authenticity, at times almost as stressful as actually being back in a slammed kitchen, slaving under a sociopathic bully — it is why some chefs I know can't watch it. Flush with marvellously written characters, we struggle to pick our favourite. We adore transcendently serene pastry chef Marcus and the sweetly naive Fak brothers; we flat out venerate jittery, driven head chef Sydney. Jamie Lee Curtis's monstrous matriarch is nitro-glycerine plonked next to an open furnace; her children, Michael, Natalie and Carmen Berzatto, three differing studies of the impact of her dysfunctional parenting. Every single character, even minor, is fully realised. And then there is 'Cousin' Richie Jerimovich (Ebon Moss-Bachrach), who runs front of house. A loud, boorish and deeply obnoxious character, we spent the first few episodes wishing him serious harm until, gradually, tiny slivers of his humanity and vulnerability began to slip through. But he utterly transformed in our eyes when sent on a training internship to the fictional Ever, 'the world's best restaurant', site of his Damascene culinary conversion. Breaking through his innate cynicism, he comes to understand why high-end restaurants operate as they do and, most of all, learns to appreciate the complexities of service and its fundamental importance in a good restaurant. After that, he could do little wrong in our eyes, even when he does — regularly — do wrong. Over a decade ago, after a major food awards in Dublin, two of Ireland's finest restaurant managers and I wound up in deep conversation about service, the lack of awards for service, wondering whether it related to the marked decline in service standards, from what was always a wildly varying benchmark. Irish restaurant service has only worsened since; good service — the exception rather than rule — is an unexpected pleasure rather than automatic entitlement when dining out. When Patrick Guilbaud first opened his now Michelin two-starred Dublin restaurant, it took him a while to realise most of his non-French waiters, many of them students, viewed their role as a mere staging post en route to a 'real' career. Indeed, working as a waiter/server has rarely been viewed as a profession in this country even though innate Irish sociability makes for a natural-born host. Service is about so much more than ferrying plates to and from the table and it takes time and effort to train even the good ones. Imagine the frustration when they then leave for a 'real job'! For all the advance 'engagement' — online, reviews and so on — a diner's first human interaction with a restaurant is through service. A good first impression is vital; sustaining it throughout the course of an entire meal, equally so. (Take note, all servers who seem to ghost a table once desserts are served.) More worryingly, I see the decline in standards of Irish restaurant service as a canary in the coalmine for the Irish hospitality sector overall. Many businesses operate on a fiscal model that wouldn't last kissing time in other industries, while a dining public, ignorant of the harsh realities of hospitality, only ever registers the rising prices of eating out. When the minimum wage was raised to €13.50 an hour last January, the best restaurateurs acknowledged the additional financial stress on their business models, yet never begrudged their employees the extra 80c an hour. In Dublin, for example, many of the lowest-paid hospitality workers have to commute from far outside the city to afford accommodation — if they can find it. There is one question that gauges the real viability of Irish hospitality like no other: as a waiter/server, will I qualify for a mortgage? (It applies equally to lower-paid kitchen jobs.) The answer is almost inevitably, no. Which begs another question — is it time we start a conversation about subsidising the Irish restaurant sector, as we do with the farming sector? TABLE TALK A recent soiree at The Metropole Hotel to launch its newly designed reception/lobby area and a casual all-day menu sees a venerable old aristocrat of Cork hospitality substantially sharpening its offering in tune with the overall energy sense of energy that has imbued its home, MacCurtain St, in recent times, reminding that it is about so much more than just an annual venue for 'The Jazz'. In further reference to today's main theme, belated congrats to the Market Lane group for their ongoing achievements at the Fáilte Ireland Employer Excellence Awards, voted on anonymously by employees, and, yes, the ML group does number more than a few well-supported professional waiters/servers in their ranks. Vada café in Dublin's Stoneybatter, may cleave to a very familiar formula for what is currently cool in casual dining but more than gets away with it on the back of some tasty food and a genuine commitment to sustainability and zero waste so, additional opening hours to serve dinner on Friday and Saturday evenings could be well worth checking out. TODAY'S SPECIAL Make Hummus, Not War print from Bia Blasta This week's choice is more about food for the mind and soul than the belly, a handsome print from Blasta Books inspired by their latest authors, Izzeddeen Alkarajeh and Eman Aburabi, and the original version of the Free Palestine mural painted next to their Izz Café in Cork City. Available in A4 (€25) and A3 (€38) sizes and shipped anywhere in the world, all profits will be donated to World Central Kitchen. Read More Ireland's best food trucks and street food stalls to try this summer
CairoScene
20-07-2025
- Business
- CairoScene
Sleeping in History: Heritage Hotels of the Middle East
Restored buildings across the Middle East preserve their old-world charm, blending rich cultural heritage with timeless architectural beauty and layered histories. In a region steeped in rich and layered history, conservation is more than preserving buildings - it's about breathing new life into their stories. This approach is reshaping architecture across the Middle East, but nowhere is it clearer and more celebrated than in hospitality, where guests and travellers from across the globe can experience the styles and fashions of the past directly. These five projects - each shaped by a distinct climate and culture - demonstrate how reusing existing structures offers renewed life while honouring their heritage... Beit Al Mamlouka, Damascus, Syria In the heart of Old Damascus, behind high pink walls and a heavy wooden door, Beit Al Mamlouka brings new life to a 17th-century Damascene house. Restored over three years by Syrian architect May Mamarbashi as part of her PhD, the building opened in 2004 as the city's first five-star boutique hotel. The house features architectural layers spanning centuries, including an 18th-century layout and a preserved mid-16th-century archway. The hotel offers eight rooms set around a central courtyard filled with citrus trees and the scent of jasmine. In 2007, a new owner with family roots in Syrian silk brocade took over the hotel, introducing authentic textile elements to the interiors. A former bayka (stable) has been adapted as a gallery, restaurant and bar, extending the site's original footprint while preserving its character. Manouchehri House, Kashan, Iran In Kashan's historic quarter, a neglected 19th-century merchant home has been restored by Akbar Helli and Shahnaz Nader. Now a boutique hotel and textile centre, Manouchehri House anchors a broader architectural and cultural revival in the city. The project aimed to revive endangered textile traditions - such as brocade, silk and velvet weaving - while reinhabiting a residential structure indicative of Kashan's heritage. The restored complex includes workshops, a fine dining venue, an art gallery, a handicraft shop, and a cinema adapted from the original cistern. Since its opening, the project has attracted global visitors and inspired similar initiatives across Kashan. Dar Tantora The House Hotel, AlUla, Saudi Arabia Tucked within the historic fabric of AlUla's Old Town, Dar Tantora The House Hotel transforms a cluster of traditional mud-brick homes into a low-impact, candlelit eco-retreat. Architect Shahira Fahmy led the restoration using hand-moulded bricks and original techniques, working closely with local artisans, archaeologists, and craftspeople. The project brings back traditional cooling methods, minimal electrical use, and the tantora sundial, which guides the layout and rhythm of the site. Interior surfaces are adorned with hand-painted murals - revived in collaboration with local students - that draw from the historic visual language of AlUla. The Ned Hotel, Doha, Qatar In Doha, a landmark of the city's early modern era has been carefully transformed. Originally designed in the 1970s by Lebanese architect William Sednaoui, the former Ministry of Interior building is now a 90-room boutique hotel that preserves a rare example of Middle Eastern brutalist architecture. The project is sensitively refurbished and extended with a new rooftop level housing a spa, fitness centre and club lounge overlooking the Persian Sea and city skyline. At podium level, a brise soleil canopy of slender concrete ribs provides shade to gardens, water basins and gathering spaces that draw on traditional passive cooling strategies. Inside, robust concrete is balanced by refined materials such as travertine, Iroko wood and marble. At its centre, a courtyard hosts restaurants and bars, creating a lively social core within the historic fabric. The Chedi Al Bait, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates Set within Sharjah's historic district, The Chedi Al Bait reimagines four coral stone heritage homes - once belonging to prominent local figures - into a seamless luxury retreat. The site's most significant structure, the residence of Ibrahim Bin Mohammed Al Midfa (Sharjah's first journalist), now houses a library and museum framed by original hand-painted doors and domes. Traditional Emirati elements such as wind towers, internal courtyards, and gypsum plaster have been preserved or revived, while new additions maintain a light footprint. A hidden passage links the hotel to Souq Al Arsah - one of the UAE's oldest marketplaces - allowing the past to remain present in daily experience.
Borneo Post
17-06-2025
- General
- Borneo Post
Syria's Damask rose wilts under climate stress, farmers cling to heritage
A farmer harvests Damascene rose petals in the town of Al-Marah, Syria, June 14, 2025.(Photo by Monsef Memari/Xinhua) AL-MARAH, Syria (June 18): In the hillside town of Al-Marah, nestled in the Qalamoun mountains north of Damascus, the legendary Damascene rose is facing one of its most difficult seasons in recent memory. A symbol of Syria's cultural and botanical heritage, the Damask rose has bloomed for centuries in this rugged landscape. Once the village's economic backbone and a source of global pride, the delicate flower now struggles to survive amid shifting climate patterns. 'This year has been one of the worst,' said Mohammad Jamal Abbas, a local farmer also known as Abu Qusai. 'Rainfall was only about 20 millimeters, around 25 percent of the average. We used to get 125 or 150 millimeters. Add to that a wave of heat, then another of severe cold. All of it affected production.' Speaking to Xinhua, Abbas explained that they began irrigating the bushes solely to preserve their survival, not for any specific production or other purposes. Their primary objective was to ensure that the bushes did not perish. Syria is currently experiencing a severe drought, potentially the worst in 36 years. The drought has led to a significant drop in wheat production and widespread water scarcity. UN humanitarian office has warned that the drought could push 60 percent of the population closer to hunger. But Abbas, like many others in Al-Marah, refuses to abandon the rose that has shaped their identity. 'This is our labor, our work through all these years. It is impossible to give up. We are here every day.' The practices and craftsmanship associated with the Damask Rose were inscribed in 2019 on the UNESCO List of Intangible Cultural Heritage. The annual harvest starts in May. Families venture into the fields at dawn to handpick the roses, then gather in the afternoon to sort the buds for drying into tea and prepare the rest for distillation. Women come together to make rose syrup, jam, and pastries, singing traditional songs as they work. Diaa al-Khatib, farmer and school principal, recounted to Xinhua how farming was the main business in their town before bad weather forced many farmers to change jobs. 'In the past, this was the main income for most of the village's farmers. Now, due to drought, it's become secondary. Very few still depend solely on the Damask rose. Production is down, profits are down, so people have turned to other work.' The link to the Damascene rose, however, is deeper than economics. 'We can't let go of it. It's an inheritance from our ancestors,' al-Khatib said. 'There's a spiritual connection. When you give something your effort, you grow attached.' Over the past four to five years, Al-Marah has not seen snow, which the rose depends on for nourishment. Farmers now use supplementary irrigation to compensate, though not enough to transform the fields into fully irrigated land. 'We're not trying to switch from rain-fed to irrigated farming,' al-Khatib said, explaining that it would change the characteristics of the Damask rose. The farmers say the rose, which is renowned for its special flagrance, and heady-scented oil, is their heritage. Despite setbacks, the rose continues to attract attention. 'We've seen more foreign delegations visit than in previous years,' said al-Khatib. 'They came, took reports on how the rose is grown and irrigated. But whether this interest will turn into something tangible for us, we still don't know,' he said. – Xinhua climate change cultural heritage ROSE Syria
