Waleed bin Ibrahim Al Ibrahim

Waleed Al Ibrahim was born in 1962 and raised in Saudi Arabia.{{cite news|title=The War Inside the Arab Newsroom|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2005/01/02/magazine/02ARAB.html|author=Samantha Shapiro|date=2 January 2005|work=The New York Times Al Ibrahim received education in Oregon, USA, during the 1980s{{cite book|author=J. E. Peterson|publisher=Scarecrow Press ==Business activities==

ARAvision After completing his university education, Al Ibrahim founded the ARA Productions and Television Studios (ARAvision) in Saudi Arabia. It was his first enterprise in media. Middle East Broadcasting Company (MBC) Al Ibrahim founded MBC in London in 1991 with the late entrepreneur, Saleh Kamel, launching the first independent Arabic satellite TV station. The company was established to express the views of Saudi royal family. Others In the 1990s Al Ibrahim was shareholder and board member of the United Press International (UPI). He served as the chairman of the UPI board until the early 1999. It was argued that they made their wealth through being Boeing and Rolls-Royce representatives in Saudi deals. ==Arrest and release==

On 4 November 2017, Al Ibrahim was detained in Saudi Arabia in a corruption crackdown conducted by a new royal anti-corruption committee. Al Ibrahim was held at Riyadh’s Ritz-Carlton hotel. Over the weekend of 26–27 January 2018, Al Ibrahim was released along with at least half a dozen other prominent Saudi businessmen detained in the probe, after being found innocent of any wrongdoing. In May 2018, Saudi Arabian authorities allowed Al Ibrahim to leave the Kingdom for the first time since November 2017 to chair a strategy meeting at the headquarters of MBC Group in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Al Ibrahim had been required to remain inside the Kingdom as the government finalised arrangements to take a controlling 60 percent stake in MBC. Following the meeting, the MBC Group released a statement, with Al Ibrahim quoted as saying: “The coming stage shall witness MBC Group’s entry into new markets and sectors, in various fields, with the group shifting a greater focus towards Saudi Arabia and neighbouring regions, in line with the current transformational positive changes occurring in the Kingdom.” ==Awards==

Al Ibrahim has been awarded for his contributions in the field of Arab media. He was among top 20 prominent Gulf businessmen according to Amwal magazine in 2005. He was chosen to be the 27th most influential Arab among 100 Arab personalities by Arabian Business in 2007. He was named the 'Media Man of the Year' at the 4th MENA Cristal Awards held in Lebanon in 2008. ==Honours==

• Grand Master of the Order of Independence (Jordan; 2016) ==Other positions==

Waleed bin Ibrahim is a member of the advisory board of the Mohammed bin Rashid School for Communication (MBRSC) at the American University in Dubai (AUD). ==References==