RIYADH: What began as a chance entry into journalism for Amjad Tadros turned into a career lasting three decades and chronicling some of the Middle East’s most turbulent recent chapters — from Saddam Hussein’s rule in Iraq and the US-led invasion that toppled him, to the Syrian civil war and the COVID-19 pandemic.
After trading the fast-paced world of broadcast journalism for the quieter life of date farming, the former CBS News producer and four-time Emmy Award-winning journalist has reflected on the triumphs and trials of his career in a new book titled “The Fixer.”
Amjad Tadros survived a US missile strike in Baghdad, only to be visited by Saddam Hussein in his hospital bed. These and other interesting anecdotes are captured in his memoir of life as a CBS News producer, “The Fixer.” (Supplied)
Appearing on the Arab News current affairs program “Frankly Speaking,” Tadros spoke of the challenges of working in some of the world’s toughest environments, shared his views on the Western media’s coverage of the Arab world and the region’s many conflicts, and recounted the start of his “accidental journey through the Middle East.”
He said: “I went and studied in the UK and I came back to Jordan in August 1990 with a mechanical engineering degree. But at that time Jordan had the financial crisis, so I finished my studies, and I did not actually graduate because Imperial College would not give me my certificate before I paid the fees.”
