AKEED, Wasfi Khushman

Several news websites have turned into an arena for debate between the government on the one hand and poet Haidar Mahmoud, former minister and current senator, and his son, Ammar, adviser at the Prime Ministry, on the other.

While some websites raced to publish the statements made by each side, writers and websites formed a front for the defense of the viewpoint of the poet versus another front formed by others to defend the viewpoint of the government. However, nothing was presented to prove the viewpoint of either side.

The story began with a letter attributed to Haidar Mahmoud and addressed to Prime Minister Hani Mulki. The letter spoke about the appointment of Mulki"s son as head of Airport Services, compared with the "firing" of the son of Haidar Mahmoud, who is adviser at the Prime Ministry.

The letter was written in a blameful and sarcastic style, which generated different reactions, including sympathetic, angry, deploring, and mocking comments on social media platforms.

The fever of sarcasm and criticism moved from social media platforms to the pages of news websites. Then, the handling of the news took a different turn when the Prime Ministry issued a reply, using "harsh" words, such as not yielding to "blackmail by poets."

Following the reply, which quoted "informed sources or sources close to the Prime Ministry," some websites posted both the poet"s letter and the reply of the Prime Ministry, while others tried to obtain detailed information through their sources. Meanwhile, some websites published reactions to the information revealed by the Prime Ministry"s reply about the son of Haidar Mahmoud.

Arab newspapers were involved in the debate. At least two newspapers monitored and published the letter of Haidar Mahmoud and the reply of the Prime Ministry to it and the reactions on interactive platforms.

Afterward, a news website published statements by Haidar Mahmoud, in which he denied any quarrel with the prime minister, saying that the letter "is just gentle reproof."

Other websites quickly published the details of a telephone call between Mulki and Mahmoud, in which the former inquired about the health of the latter"s wife.

No sooner had the debate cooled down than it reignited with a letter addressed by Ammar Haidar Mahmoud, in which he accused an "official source" of using his connections with journalists to hurt him, thus keeping the door open to new developments.

The Jordanian Media Credibility Monitor (AKEED) has observed that the daily newspapers steered clear of the debate, while news websites and social interaction platforms turned into an arena for quarreling, during which the two parties were personally attacked. This violates Article 11 of the Press Code of Honor, which stipulates that journalists shall be committed to respecting the reputation of families, households and individuals and the confidentiality of matters pertaining to citizens. Also, some news websites did not abide by neutrality and impartiality.