The audience of BBC News Arabic has increased by 9 per cent year-on-year, according to the Global Audience Measure (GAM) figures published for 2023/24.
The brand remains the BBC World Service’s second largest service, now reaching 35 million people a week across the Arab-speaking world. The service’s linear broadcast channel, BBC Arabic TV also saw its viewership rise by 4 million compared to 2023.
In a year where the news cycle has been dominated by the Israel-Gaza war, BBC News Arabic has provided a vital service to audiences across the Middle East.
BBC News Arabic’s tangible impact
BBC News Arabic’s news-gathering team in Gaza provided crucial firsthand reporting from the Gaza strip during the outbreak of the war when many international media outlets were unable to access the territory.
Tarik Kafala, Controller BBC News Languages Output says: “The rise in audience figures is a testament to the hard work, dedication, and incredible journalism of the BBC News Arabic team. They have continued to strengthen the BBC’s reputation as the most trusted news provider by providing audiences with the world-class expertise and impartial reporting they have come to expect from us.
“We can see where our output has had a tangible impact on Arab-speaking audiences and will continue to shine light on injustice with our investigations, help our audiences make sense of the world with our expertise and provide audiences in conflict with a vital lifeline to information, as we have done in Sudan and Gaza.”
Radio service reaches 700,000 per week
In November 2023, BBC News Arabic launched the emergency radio service which has broadcast vital daily news to the people of Gaza and the surrounding region.
Listening figures from Lebanon and Jordan reflect an audience of 700,000 listeners a week – figures could not be obtained for BBC News Arabic’s audience in Gaza due to the ongoing conflict. When taking into account listeners in Gaza and the West Bank, exact figures will be higher.
Popular programming on BBC Arabic TV includes BBC Trending, a youth-focused daily programme assessing social media trends, its flagship tech programme, BBC 4Tech, Art For Life, and BBC Extra, a weekly programme which highlights unique human interest stories for younger audiences.
Alongside regular programming, BBC News Arabic also produce several longform investigative documentaries. Films by BBC News Arabic for BBC Eye this year include the award-winning Gaza 101, which followed Gaza’s emergency services during the first weeks of war, Perfume’s Dark Secret and American Mercenaries: Killing in Yemen.
