Saad Mohseni
This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. (November 2012) |
Saad Mohseni | |
---|---|
Born | |
Nationality | Afghan |
Occupation | Entrepreneur |
Known for | founder of MOBY Group and Tolo TV |
Website | www.mobygroup.com |
Saad Mohseni (Persian: سعد محسنی , born 23 April 1966 in London, United Kingdom) or Kabul, Afghanistan ( not clear ) is an Afghan Australian businessman and entrepreneur.He fled Afghanistan to Australia in 1980s after the Taliban took over the State. He is the chairman and chief executive officer of MOBY Group, launched in Afghanistan in 2002 and now active across South and Central Asia and the Middle East.He is also known from receiving $1.6 Million to promote Immigration Minister Peter Dutton's anti-refugee telemovie.He was given the Nickname "Rupert Murdoch of Afghanistan". Many people admire him and many see him as an insensitive person who has a special hatred for refugees. [[ Because of the Cooperation with Immigration Minister Peter Dutton and helping him with the Anti-refugee Telemovie.
Prior to establishing MOBY Group, he headed the equities and corporate finance division of an Australian investment banking firm.
Mohseni has been called the "Rupert Murdoch of Afghanistan"; he is also considered a friend of Murdoch.[1][2][3]
Early years and background
Mohseni was born on 23 April 1966 in London, United Kingdom, where his father, Yassin Mohseni, was serving as an Afghan diplomat. Yassin Mohseni served in Kabul, Washington, DC, London, Islamabad, and Tokyo during his 25-year career.
After the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, Yassin Mohseni, then serving in Tokyo, resigned from the diplomatic corps and sought asylum. The family relocated to Australia in 1982.[4] Mohseni has two younger brothers, Zaid and Jahid Mohseni, and younger sister Wajma.
Mohseni began his banking career as an apprentice at an Australian funds management entity, and later became a commodities and derivatives trader in Melbourne, Sydney, and London, culminating in the management of a trading desk of an Australian investment bank.
Return to Afghanistan and launch of media company
After the removal of the Taliban government in late 2001, Mohseni and his brothers returned to Afghanistan to participate in the country's reconstruction and launch MOBY Group, with funding support from the United States government.[5][6] They entered the media arena in 2003 by establishing Arman FM, the country's first privately-owned radio station. Arman played Western and Afghan pop music, which was groundbreaking after years of Taliban rule, in which all music, television, and independent news had been banned.[4] In 2004, MOBY Group launched TOLO TV, which airs international soap operas, The Voice Afghanistan, Afghan Star, and locally produced dramas. In addition to TOLO TV, MOBY also owns TOLOnews and Lemar TV, a Pashto-language channel. In 2014, MOBY channels were viewed by over 60 per cent of Afghans.[7] The Taliban have accused Mohseni of being "an American agent."[8]
MOBY Group's regional expansion
In 2009, MOBY launched Farsi1, a general-entertainment satellite channel targeting Persian speakers in the Middle East and West Asia.[9] In 2012, 21st Century Fox funded further expansion by temporarily becoming a minority shareholder.[10] The Mohseni family assumed full control of MOBY Group following The Walt Disney Company's acquisition of 21st Century Fox.[11]
In 2014, MOBY launched LANA TV in Iraq, the first satellite channel to dub shows into the local Iraqi dialect.[12]
In 2019, MOBY Group launched Darya, Afghanistan's first streaming service offering live and on-demand TV and movies. The platform is available on the web, Roku, Amazon Fire TV, LG Smart TVs, Apple App Store and Google Play Store.
MOBY Group now owns 17 businesses operating in seven markets across South and Central Asia and the Middle East, spanning television, radio, production, strategic communications, and digital platforms.
References
- ^ Gartrell, Adam (2 April 2016). "Former refugee paid to promote Dutton's anti-refugee telemovie". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
- ^ Bowley, Graham (27 July 2013). "An Afghan Media Mogul, Pushing Boundaries". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
- ^ Bearup, Greg. "Eyes wide open". The Australian.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ a b "Profile: Saad Mohseni, Afghanistan's first media mogul". The New Yorker. 29 June 2010.
- ^ "Saad Mohseni Is Afghanistan's First Media Mogul". NPR.org. Retrieved 8 March 2022.
- ^ "Lunch with the FT: Saad Mohseni". Financial Times. 24 March 2012. Retrieved 8 March 2022.
- ^ "MOBY GROUP TV CHANNELS CONTINUE TO LEAD THE AFGHAN MARKET WITH A COMBINED AUDIENCE SHARE OF 62%". www.mobygroup.com. Archived from the original on 12 October 2014.
- ^ "The Networker". The New Yorker. 28 June 2010. Retrieved 8 March 2022.
- ^ "Farsi 1". www.mobygroup.com. Archived from the original on 16 January 2012.
- ^ "Explained: Who is Saad Mohseni, owner of Afghanistan's leading TV news channel TOLO News?". The Indian Express. 29 August 2021. Retrieved 8 March 2022.
- ^ "Saad Mohseni – M100 SANSSOUCI COLLOQUIUM". www.m100potsdam.org. Retrieved 10 March 2022.
- ^ ""Nothing like it" – The Launch of LANA TV". www.mobygroup.com. Archived from the original on 17 September 2014.
External links
- Charlie Rose "Saad Mohseni; Rick Levin; the Confidence Code; A Look at the Afghan Elections" (April 2014)
- Al Jazeera English: Afghanistan's first 24/7 TV channel (8 July 2010)
- Rachel Maddow: Media as another Front – Saad Mohseni (7 July 2010)
- Reuters: Afghanistan gets first 24-hour news TV (6 July 2010)
- Morning Joe (Ken Auletta discussing the Moby Group) (29 June 2010)
- Rachel Maddow Show "Saad Mohseni on MSNBCs Rachel Maddow" (18 March 2010)
- On The Media "Saad Mohseni on NPR's On the Media" (5 March 2010)"
- MSNBC " Saad Mohseni on MSNBC’s Morning Joe" (16 June 2009)
- The Daily Show " Saad Mohseni speaks to Jon Stewart on the Daily Show" (10 June 2009)
- Charlie Rose "A Conversation with Saad Mohseni" (January 2008)
- NPR "Afghan TV Station to Fight Soap Opera Ban" (April 2008)
- NPR "Emerging Afghan Media Triggering Change" (September 2007)
- Marketplace/Public Radio "Radical Change on Afghanistan’s Airwaves" (October 2006)
- ABC Television "Afghan TV" (November 2006)
- SBS Television "Revolutionary TV (August 2005)
- Washington Post "David Ignatius: What Afghans Want" (December 2008)
- Washington Post "Reaching his Prime Time in Afghanistan" (September 2007)
- New York Times "Amid War, Passion for TV Chefs, Soaps and Idols" (August 2007)
- Time Magazine "Capitalism Comes to Afghanistan" (December 2006)
- Fortune " Cobbling a Media Empire in Kabul" (January 2006)
- Saad Mohseni at IMDb