Mir Javed Rahman: An icon of journalism

As the eldest son of Mir Khalil-ur-Rahman (MKR), the founder of the Jang Media Group, Mir Javed Rahman (MJR) inherited passion of journalism and missionary zeal from his illustrious father. Under Mir Javed's stewardship, the legacy has continued and the Jang Group has become Pakistan's largest media conglomerate that has a fleet of newspapers, magazines and television channels under its aegis.

Having an independent policy, the Jang Group has survived numerous onslaughts from diverse forces in its lifetime. It continues to serve and shape public opinion despite pressure of coercion and financial strangulation by the powers that be. The secret of its survival is the large number of professional journalists, analysts and columnists who resist the pressures from those seeking to suppress freedom of expression and work towards speaking truth to power. The management encourages fierce internal debate and discussion and creates the environment where pressures can be resisted.

Jang Group has expanded over the years and has been a pioneer in many fields. It has successfully moved in to the electronic and digital domain and serves as the most credible media outlet and is the most quoted source of news in the region.

With a commitment to serve the people, Jang Group has earned the trust of the masses over the years. George Orwell said “News is what is hidden. The rest is public relations”. The Group has followed this dictum and is now recognised globally as the media of record.

Born in Delhi on August 16, 1946, Mir Javed Rahman earned a Masters degree from Karachi University before proceeding to the UK to study newspaper management at the Thomson Foundation Editorial Centre at the University of Wales.

In a career spanning over five decades, he has been associated with the media in different capacities. Currently, he is the Group Chairman, Publisher and Executive Editor of the Jang Media Group which includes the flagship publications, Daily Jang and The News.

MJR has served his journalistic fraternity with great success and was elected Secretary General, a post he held for two consecutive terms, Vice President and President of the All Pakistan Newspapers Society (APNS).

Jang group’s employees who have worked with MJR know him for his meticulous attention to detail and strict adherence to journalistic norms. He remains curious and inquisitive about developments in domestic as well as international affairs and his search for knowledge helps him to build on past successes and change with the times.

While sharing his working experience with MJR, G|M Special Reports, Jang, Saleem Qazi said: “MJR was a disciplined person and sound professional with expertise in the production affairs of newspapers.

“Till Dec 18, 1987, Jang’s colour pages used to be published in advance. However, Dec 19, 1987, was the first day in Pakistani newspaper history when colour pages of Jang were published. The day also carries another significance because colour picture of Benazir Bhutto’s marriage was printed in Jang pages on that day. The whole project was led by MJR and Mir Khalil-ur-Rahman was overwhelmed to see his son’s performance.

MJR was a strict administrator having a constant vigil on the performance of all departments. More than once he advised me, “Saleem Qazi aisey release order or ad ka koi faida nahin jis ke paisey na aain (there is no use of any Release Order or ad for which no payment is issued).

As an avid reader and fiction lover, he initiated special pages in Akhbar-i-Jahan and Mag the weekly, in which works of famous writers is published. His favourite writer was Ibn-i-Safi and he used to read his series extensively. It was probably the impact of reading Ibn-i-Safi that he used to investigate any matter in the office in a detective manner.

MJR possessed sound legal knowledge about labour affairs and labour unions. He had complete understanding of Wage Award and APNS working.

May Allah rest his soul in eternal peace (Ameen)