23 November 2015•Update: 23 November 2015
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia
Turkey's official news agency Anadolu Agency has agreed to renew a cooperation agreement with Malaysian counterpart Bernama during a two-day trip to the Malaysian capital, Kuala Lumpur.
The exchange will see cooperation in the fields of text, photo and video -- areas in which both agencies excel.
The trip saw Anadolu Agency Deputy Director General Metin Mutanoglu lead a delegation to the Malaysian wire service's headquarters Monday, during which he highlighted his agency's "Centennial Vision" and underlined its readiness to help Bernama in its coverage of Turkey.
The Anadolu Agency centennial vision is to see it become one of the "five most important news agencies in the world" by 2020 -- the 100th anniversary of its foundation.
Mutanoglu said Bernama could also benefit from Anadolu Agency's "War Journalism Certificate Program" -- training which Bernama General Manager Datuk Zulkefli bin Salleh said would be of great hep.
The program is aimed at training correspondents and preparing them to face any dangers they may encounter while working in war zones or areas of natural disaster.
After the meeting, the Anadolu Agency delegation visited the headquarters of state-owned Alhijrah TV, where it underlined the importance of its coverage of Middle East, Africa and Asia-Pacific regions.
A major point of discussion was how Western media bias taints coverage of events in the Middle East, and -- as Alhijrah executive Wan Allas Abdullah noted -- "changes the concept of Islam in people's minds."
The delegation then embarked on a trip to see Turkey's Ambassador to Malaysia, Basak Turkoglu, during which Mutanoglu discussed Anadolu Agency projects in the Asia-Pacific region and outlined how it is planning to expand.
Later Monday afternoon, Mutanoglu and his fellow travelers headed to Malaysia's International Islamic University for a meeting with Turkish and Malaysian students, where he also outlined Anadolu Agency's principals and vision.
An international education, Mutanoglu stressed, is important for "a qualified work force."
The delegation was joined by the press atache for the Embassy, Bora Er, for the visit
"You have to learn the local language and know every aspect of the country that you live in," advised Mutanoglu.
"You have to be specialized in where you live and you need to get qualified to make expert comments to keep you one-step ahead all of the time."
