Iraqi Media Museum – one of a kind in the Arab world
(Image source: Iraqi Media Museum)
Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) – The Iraqi Media Museum is turning heads in Baghdad – the first of its kind within the region to showcase the history of media in Iraq.
Director of the museum, Mina Amir Al-Helou said: “The idea behind the Iraqi Media Museum initially began with plans to rehabilitate one hall at the Radio Training Institute. We wanted to rehabilitate one hall for archiving and for the devices that were used by Iraqi media.”
The building was founded in 1972 as homage to the Radio Training Institute – a training ground for actors and radio enthusiasts, from which many artists graduated from.
Tamkeen Fund, sponsored by the Central Bank of Iraq, funded this project. The museum is now constructed of seven halls, organized according to time periods. The first three are exclusively dedicated to equipment. The remaining sections of the museum are comprised of newspaper and press halls, with newspapers arranged in chronological order. There is also an auditorium where films are showcased about television, radio and press.
The equipment was collected from the stores of the Iraqi Media Network, other departments, as well as donors. Not a single piece in the museum was bought.
Al-Helou’s hope and vision is: “This museum will be a start to archive the entire history of Iraqi media. We welcome all visitors, and we hope that students from the Fine Arts College, schools and those studying media will visit us. We want everyone to visit the exhibition.”