Mir Shakil ur Rahman (born 8 January 1957), also known as MSR, is a Pakistani

media mogul A media proprietor, also called a media executive, media mogul, media tycoon, or press baron is an entrepreneur who controls any means of public or commercial mass media, through the personal ownership or holding of a dominant position within a ...

and businessman. He is the founder of the

24-hour news cycle The 24-hour news cycle (or 24/7 news cycle) is the 24-hour investigation and reporting of news, concomitant with fast-paced lifestyles. The vast news resources available in recent decades have increased competition for audience and advertiser a ...

network, ''

Geo TV Jang Media Group (), also known as Geo Group, is a Pakistani media conglomerate and a subsidiary of Dubai-based company Independent Media Corporation. It has headquarters in Printing House, Karachi. It is the publisher of the Urdu language new ...

''. In addition, he is also the owner of the

Jang Group of Newspapers Jang Media Group (), also known as Geo Group, is a Pakistani media conglomerate and a subsidiary of Dubai-based company Independent Media Corporation. It has headquarters in Printing House, Karachi. It is the publisher of the Urdu language new ...

and

the News International ''The News International'', published in broadsheet size, is one of the largest English language newspapers in Pakistan. It is published daily from Karachi, Lahore and Rawalpindi/ Islamabad. An overseas edition is published from London th ...

, which was founded by his father, the late Mir Khalil ur Rahman and part owner of the Independent Media Corporation. This media group publishes a number of newspapers and magazines in

Urdu Urdu (; , , ) is an Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in South Asia. It is the Languages of Pakistan, national language and ''lingua franca'' of Pakistan. In India, it is an Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of Indi ...

and English. IMC also owns the

network.

Early life and education

Mir Shakil ur Rahman was born on 8 January 1957 in

Karachi Karachi is the capital city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Sindh, Pakistan. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, largest city in Pakistan and 12th List of largest cities, largest in the world, with a popul ...

, to father Mir Khalil ur Rahman and mother Mehmooda Khalil ur Rahman. He is of Kashmiri descent, as his paternal grandparents had immigrated from

Kashmir Valley The Kashmir Valley, also known as the Vale of Kashmir, is an intermontane valley in northern Jammu and Kashmir, a region in Indian-administered Kashmir.(a) (subscription required) Quote: "Kashmir, region of the northwestern Indian subcont ...

. He grew up with six siblings; an older brother, four older sisters and a younger sister. His father was the founder of the ''Jang Group of Newspapers''. Mir attended St Patrick's High School in Karachi and is listed among the famous personalities of Pakistan that were educated here.

Career

In the late 1990s, during

Nawaz Sharif Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif (born 25 December 1949) is a Pakistani politician and businessman who served as the 12th Prime Minister of Pakistan, prime minister of Pakistan for three non-consecutive terms, first serving from 1990 to 1993, then ...

's second term as prime minister, Shakil was first asked by Sharif's government to dismiss some of the staff members of the

Jang Group Jang Media Group (), also known as Geo Group, is a Pakistani media conglomerate and a subsidiary of Dubai-based company Independent Media Corporation. It has headquarters in Printing House, Karachi. It is the publisher of the Urdu language new ...

. Keeping in line with the tradition of the media group that was founded by Mir Shakil's father,

Mir Khalil ur Rehman Mir Khalil ur Rahman (19 July 1921 – 25 January 1992) was a Pakistani newspaper editor and founder of the Jang Group of Newspapers, which currently publishes many Urdu and English newspapers in Pakistan. A self-made newspaper magnate, he rank ...

, Shakil refused to dismiss the staff, a number of tax evasion cases were filed against his news group amounting to 40 million US dollars, followed by freezing of bank accounts and seizure of their assets. The government withdrew their court cases after some facts were made public by Shakil. Shakil founded

in May 2002. Shakil established a television channel network by the name of

in May 2002. He was arrested by the NAB on 12 March 2020 on the allegations of getting 52 kanal land in

Lahore Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...

by that time Chief Minister of Punjab

Media industry associations

Mir Shakil has also served as the president of the All Pakistan Newspapers Society, in 2006. He remained a convener of the 'Wage Board Committee' of the society in 2010. He was the president of the Council of Pakistan Newspaper Editors in 1995–96 and again in 2003–04 and also the president of '' Pakistan Broadcasters Association'' (PBA) in 2005. Shakil served as a member of the Press Council of Pakistan in 2013. He owns multiple media outlets such as Jang News,

Geo News Geo News () is a old technology foundation Pakistani news channel owned by the Jang Media Group. It was launched in October 2002 as the news and current affairs program was under its flagship channel Geo TV, which later in 2004, Geo TV decided ...

TV channel, The News, and others.

Personal life

Mir Shakil ur Rahman is the younger brother of former Jang Newspaper Editor Mir Javed ur Rahman (1945–2020), and the second youngest child of Mehmooda Khalil ur Rahman (1926–2021) and the late Mir Khalil ur Rahman (1921–1992). He resides in

Dubai Dubai (Help:IPA/English, /duːˈbaɪ/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''doo-BYE''; Modern Standard Arabic, Modern Standard Arabic: ; Emirati Arabic, Emirati Arabic: , Romanization of Arabic, romanized: Help:IPA/English, /diˈbej/) is the Lis ...

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a Federal monarchy, federal elective monarchy made up of Emirates of the United Arab E ...

with his two wives, Shahina and Erum, sharing five children (including Mir Ibrahim Rahman) with his first wife and four with his second. He has a total of nine children, including four sons and five daughters.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shakil-Ur-Rahman, Mir Pakistani businesspeople Geo TV executives Living people St. Patrick's High School, Karachi alumni Pakistani expatriates in the United Arab Emirates Rahman family Pakistani male journalists Pakistani philanthropists People named in the Panama Papers Pakistani mass media owners Pakistani people of Kashmiri descent Pakistani prisoners and detainees 1970 births Pakistanis named in the Pandora Papers