Lawrence Pintak and guests, Azhar Abbas, managing director of GEO TV, and Osama Bin Javaid, chief editor of Dawn News, discuss the complex relationship between media, government, and the insurgency in Pakistan as the Afghan conflict spills across the border and relations between Islamabad and Washington deteriorate. They spoke on October 4, 2011, before a live audience at the City University of New York.
Azhar Abbas is the managing director at GEO TV, a leading Pakistani television network. GEO TV has been praised by Western leaders, along with many across the Muslim world, for its coverage of Pakistani government and politics. Abbas' three brothers have also achieved success in the profession. They include Mazhar Abbas, a Pakistani journalist who was honored with an International Press Freedom Award in 2007 in New York, and Maj. General Athar Abbas, military spokesman for the Pakistani Defence Forces.
Osama Bin Javaid is a television anchor and reporter for Dawn News, a leading television news channel in Pakistan. His professional journey in broadcast news includes coverage of courts, social issues, and natural disasters such as floods and earthquakes. Javaid developed the ability to report and analyze public affairs through his extensive experience with government agencies and non-government organizations along with previous stints in journalism at BBC and Reuters. In 2006 he represented Pakistan during a course on international leadership that was organized by the United Nations University International Leadership Institute. Javaid is also a part of Agahi, an initiative which aims to increase the the capacity of investigative journalism and responsible reporting in Pakistan.
