About Shahid Masood

Shahid Masood Khan (Urdu: شاہد مسعود خان) is a Pakistani journalist, columnist, TV show host and a political analyst & commentator.^[1] He was the anchor of the popular show “Meray Mutabiq” (Urdu for “According to me”) on Geo TV. Previously, he had been affiliated with ARY One World, as its senior executive director and was the chief of ARY One World conducting the show Views On News on ARY. Dr. Masood also parted ways with Geo TV for unknown reasons. He was also Chairman and Managing Director of state-run Pakistan Television and advisor to Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gillani. He subsequently resigned from these posts.

Early life

Shahid Masood spent most of his childhood in Saudi Arabia. His father was a civil engineer who worked there for 15 years.^[1] He received an FSc from DJ Science College, Karachi, and subsequently attended Sindh Medical College receiving a MBBS degree.

[edit]Career

Shahid Masood’s father was a civil engineer in Saudi Arabia and he worked there for 15 years. Shahid spent his childhood in Taif and Riyadh. For seven years, Shahid went to the Pakistan International School in Riyadh. Shahid Two younger brothers were born in Saudi Arabia so the country is close to his heart.”

By training Shahid Masood is a medical doctor. He also taught surgery to medical students at Sindh Medical College, Karachi, Pakistan.

[edit]Views on News

Shahid Masood came into the spotlight with his program Views On News (launched after 9/11) Asia’s longest-running current affairs TV show. His show carried interviews with prominent people from politics, civil life, literature and culture. Politicians who have been interviewed on Views on News include President General Pervez Musharraf, former Pakistani Prime Ministers Shaukat Aziz, Benazir Bhutto and Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali, MQM leader Altaf Hussain, PML-N leader Shahbaz Sharif, Nawaz Sharif former Pakistani general A. A. K. Niazi (of East Pakistan fame), Abdul Rashid Ghazi, former CIA Director James Woolsey, and former ISI chief Hamid Gul. Famous writers who have appeared on the show include Ahmed Faraz, Dr. Israr Ahmad, Dr. Zakir Naik, the late Ashfaq Ahmed, Ahmed Nadeem Qasmi, Munnoo Bhai^{[citation needed]}, Asif Ali Zardari and late Nawab Akbar Khan Bugti along with his most wanted Balouch rebel grandson Bramdagh Bugti. It was Nawab Bugti’s last public appearance before he was killed in a military operation by the Pakistan Army.

[edit]GEO TV

On January 2007 Shahid Masood joined Geo TV^[2] which is owned by the Jang Group, the largest Urdu media group, as group executive director.

In late 2007 GEO Television was banned by General Musharraf after the imposition of emergency rule. However, even after the restoration of GEO’s transmission Dr. Masood’s show did not immediately resume. The lack of explanation led many^[who?] to believe that the network had struck a deal with the government, casting a shadow of doubt on GEO’s claim of being the only truly independent network in Pakistan.^{[citation needed]} However, Dr Shahid came back on air mid-April 2008, and hosted an interview with Asif Zardari.

On June 13, 2008 Dubai city administration threatened GEO to drop Masood’s show, among others, or risk losing its license as they “threatened the UAE’s relations with a friendly country.”^[3]

On Nov 30, 2008 Dr Shahid’s Meray Mutabiq was back on Geo TV in which he explained his departure from GEO to PTV and also repented on the fact that he should consider public opinion before taking such decisions.

[edit]On War on Terrorism

Ever since 9/11 Shahid Masood has been severely critical regarding the American-led War on Terrorism and the events unfolding upon theMuslims around the world as a result.^{[citation needed]} He often tends to analyze controversial issues, which were evident from his columns and interviews during the Afghan, Iraq or 2006 Lebanon War.^{[citation needed]}

[edit]PTV

On June 21, 2008, he assumed the office of Pakistan Television (PTV) chairman-cum-managing director.^[4] During his time at PTV he has produced the first ever independent audit report on corruption in the office, for which he came under pressure from Information minister and subsequently offered his resignation. Masood refused to back down from his stance on the audit report;^{[citation needed]} after meeting with Prime minister he tendered his resignation and was appointed as a Special Advisor to Prime Minister but after few days he resigned from that office as well. \^[5]