The961 is home to everything news and engaging content catered to the Lebanese audience.
The961 has become the leading English digital media company catered to the Lebanese audience – offering engaging content.
The961 develops and presents news/stories in an engaging and easily-consumable manner.
The961 initially launched in the summer of 2016 as a humble blog aimed at keeping the Lebanese diaspora, an estimated 20-30 million Lebanese descendants, up-to-date with everything Lebanon. Till today, The961 is very involved and integrated within the Lebanese communities around the world – working with business and political leaders to promote Lebanon and its interests.
We quickly evolved to cover breaking news, local daily news, first to break stories, light-hearted content, magazine stories and much more. In addition, The961 covers activist efforts and developed a fact check section, as well as a dedicated COVID-19 section offering verified information and resources to reduce the spread, an extensive news coverage, and the first live tracker in Lebanon – supplying the Ministry of Information with reliable content.
About the Founder
The961 was launched and privately owned by Anthony Beik Kantara, a serial entrepreneur with multiple businesses in the fields of digital marketing, eCommerce, advertising, and media.
Core Beliefs & Stances
As over 80% of the media outlets in Lebanon are politically-controlled or linked, our core mission is to decentralize the control of information and limit propaganda.
The961 is an independent media company. We have no political-affiliations or backing. This is crucial to maintain our independence.
We aim to present our news coverage in a factual and neutral manner while limiting biases to the best of our ability.
The961 is against any group or idea that undermines the sovereignty of Lebanon as a nation and people, whether internal or external. We are anti-colonial and anti-proxy. We are against the cultural appropriation of our culture or of other cultures.
The961 does not recognize the Lebanese people as being any other identity aside from being simply Lebanese (we are against the Arab, Western etc. label). The961 recognizes the ‘Arab’ label as a form of colonial imposition by former invaders/rulers as well as a cultural invasion. We recognize present-day Lebanese as the descendants of the Canaanite and Phoenician people. This is part of our core belief that this can responsibly lead to national unity among all Lebanese.
The961 is an equal opportunity company that is against any sort of discrimination based on ethnicity, gender, religion, age, family status, or sexual orientation. We aim to prevent this in our hiring process as well as our coverage.
Although the current Lebanese laws don’t, The961 recognizes children born to Lebanese mothers and non-Lebanese fathers as Lebanese, regardless if in Lebanon or abroad. This will be reflected in our coverage of this topic.