By Hani Hazaimeh AMMAN – Lack of finance and support from media outlets are among the main challenges preventing Arab journalists from embarking into investigative reporting, experts said on Sunday. The comments came during a three-day regional conference organised by the Arab Reporters for Investigative Journalism (ARIJ), an Arab media network supporting reporters in Jordan, Syria, Lebanon and Egypt. According to experts at the conference, which highlighted challenges and the potential for Arab investigative journalism, proper support is crucial for journalists to undertake investigative reporting. “Adequate funds, proper time allotment and lots of money are crucial assets towards ensuring successful investigative reports,” media activist Yousri Foudeh said at the conference. He added that although there are several social issues in the Arab world that are extremely sensitive, journalists can broach subjects in a professional manner. Speaking about potential risks involved in such reporting, American journalist Mark Hunter noted that good reporters trust their instincts when approaching a subject. “Investigative reporters should listen to their fear as a loyal friend. It will tell him what to be afraid of,” Hunter said, stressing that journalists should not risk their lives over a story. Former BBC foreign correspondent David Leigh pointed out that governments should not stand in the way of journalism. “Investigative reporting is needed in this part of the world. Public officials must know that they are accountable and are appointed to serve the public and not the opposite,” Leigh told participants. On the sidelines of the event, three winners of the ARIJ prize for best investigative report of the year in print media were announced on Saturday. The first- and the second-place awards went to Syrian reporters who wrote on the transplant of human organs taken from patients who had been declared clinically dead, while the third prize went to a Jordanian journalist for his story on prostitution in the Kingdom. The conference, which came as part of ARIJ’s initiative to improve both the standards of investigative reporting in the region and to foster cross-border networking, will be held on an annual basis starting next year. 1 December 2008