News from the Middle East fills the pages of websites and newspapers alike. Should it worry us? Jakub Szántó, an expert on current affairs in the region, is clear on this. „You shouldn’t overdo it with news consumption. Twice a day, in moderation, is enough,“ he said today, with a touch of irony, on the programme Přímá řeč s Petrem Vavrouškou. The current conflict, he believes, will undoubtedly have a global impact.
News from the Middle East fills the pages of websites and newspapers. Should it worry us? Jakub Szántó, an expert on current affairs in the region, is in no doubt. "You shouldn't overdo it with news consumption. A modest twice a day is enough," he said today, with a touch of humour, on Přímá řeč s Petrem Vavrouškou. Yet the current conflict, he believes, will undoubtedly have a global impact.
"The shift away from oil fuels will speed up. Not for ecological reasons any more, but because dependence on them isn't safe," he said in an interview watched by two hundred people. Alongside this, the evening in Bílovice also touched on reporters' emotions, the role of public-service media, and how to handle emotions while working in places where violence is part of politics.
Even so, he believes it's a mistake to see the region only as a place forever gripped by conflict. "The Middle East is a vivid landscape with a thousand scents and full of flavours. One of the cradles of our civilisation, where you can immerse yourself in history and feel it," noted the reporter and writer Jakub Szántó.
Přímá řeč s Petrem Vavrouškou is a new format at Design Field. The former foreign correspondent for Czech Radio, now working for the Bílovice-based company Egoé, picks guests who stand out not only in their profession but have something to say beyond it too. The series opened in February with Lucie Výborná, with Alena Mornštajnová and Dan Bárta to follow as guests.
Tickets are being released for pre-sale in stages through SMS Ticket.
Also discussed
- Jakub Szántó on Přímá řeč: "Reportage is the first, still unedited version of history. And it isn't shaped by big names, but by the fates of ordinary people."
- Jakub Szántó on Přímá řeč:"Safety comes first. No report is worth even a broken leg. If it doesn't get broadcast, nothing happens."
- Jakub Szántó on Přímá řeč:"Emotions are part of my job. Sometimes I have to breathe through it and count to a hundred, but I don't shut them out."
