Meet Nabil El -Habbaki and Julia Nader of Lebanon Times Magazine & Radio

Today we’d like to introduce you to Nabil El -Habbaki and Julia Nader.

So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
Well to begin our story, we are originally from Lebanon. My name is Nabil Habbaki and I am the Editor-in-Chief of Lebanon Times Magazine & Radio and my colleague Julia Nader is the Executive Editor. We have years of experience in the field of journalism as we have worked in radio, television, magazines, and newspapers. In Lebanon, we have a magazine titled Al-Hader (The Present) Magazine which was founded in 1994. The magazine focused on the Lebanese diaspora around the world as we printed nearly 100 issues about the Lebanese communities abroad including destinations ranging from North & South America, Central America, to the African continent. We traveled around the world for nearly 16 years visiting these highly successful Lebanese communities. We even found Lebanese present in the Amazonian jungle! The Lebanese community outside of Lebanon is nearly 18 million people with several generations born abroad. The shocking fact is that Brazil alone has 10 million Lebanese and among them there are more than 80 Lebanese Parliamentarians, 4,200 City Council members, 12 Governors, and even the President Michel Temer is of Lebanese origin. Until today, our magazine is still being published in Lebanon.

Fast forward to approximately 12 years ago, my colleague Julia and I visited Houston for the first time in 2002 and we prepared 3 special edition issues about the Lebanese in this wonderful city. Then, in 2012, we visited again and saw that Houston had a definite need for a Lebanese magazine, newspaper, radio, or TV. The Lebanese community in Houston began asking us to represent their voices in the city. This is how Lebanon Times Magazine & Radio was founded. Our first issue was published in May 2012. During the past 5 years, we have successfully reached the homes of all Arabs and Lebanese and we have formed a bridge between the Arab American society and American political authorities. This is because Lebanon Times is published in both Arabic and English and it has no link to any politics or religion. As our motto says, we embrace all! Today, Lebanon Times additionally covers the news of the Hispanic, Turkish, Asian, and French communities since Houston is the most diverse city in the country.

Lebanon Times Magazine & Radio has become one of the landmarks of Houston as we have become nationally and internationally recognized. We have also published all of our magazines online to be viewed free of charge so that anyone may read the issues at www.lebanontimesmagazine.com. People from all over the world are reading these electronic copies of the magazine. We also have a very highly active social media presence. Within 5 years, Lebanon Times Magazine & Radio has received a Proclamation from the Mayor which states that September 30th of every year is Lebanon Times Magazine Day. We have received awards from several Congress representatives, Sheriffs, police officers, and more as we are the first Arab journalists that have conducted an interview with highly-ranking American officials (including Mayors, Police Chiefs, Sheriffs, Judges, and more).

After 5 years, we also started broadcasting a radio show which airs every Sunday evening from 8pm-10pm. We are the first live Arabic-speaking variety radio talk show in Houston which includes talk shows, sketches, advertisements, live music requests from the band in-studio, birthday celebrations, all in both Arabic and English and all are posted on our website as well at www.lebanontimesmagazine.net. Today, Lebanon Times Magazine & Radio is a necessity in Houston. We have showcased the faces of the Arab and Lebanese and it has become a bridge between American public officials and the Arab community.

Has it been a smooth road?
It was not a hard or an easy road. A struggle we encountered at the beginning was that we are printing partially-Arabic magazines at English-speaking print shops. The printing of the first 6 issues was very hard since magazines in Arabic are opened from the opposite side, with the cover being on the right side of the magazine. In Lebanon, we were able to receive the printed magazine within a maximum of 4 days. However, in the United States, we have had to get used to submitting all materials for printing by the 2oth of each month which is 10 business days ahead of our publishing date. This was one of our main struggles.

Both Julia and I were easily able to overcome all the struggles since we are not new to this field. Even today, we work 24 hours a day without having a day off or a holiday. Our hard work and patience led to our success and we are thankful. Lebanon Times Magazine & Radio is a child to Julia and I. We are the parents of Lebanon Times Magazine & Radio and we continuously look after our child.

So, as you know, we’re impressed with Lebanon Times Magazine & Radio – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
Lebanon Times Magazine & Radio is proud of everyone’s love and admiration for our magazine. We are proud of our honest reporting, our reputable name, and the promises we keep. We are proud of the WOW we hear when we are covering an event and attendees demonstrate their excitement because of our presence. We are proud of the way in which we report the details and background as we present information to readers in the form of telling a story in which all will understand. We are proud that we do not include anything negative about anyone in the pages of our magazine. We are proud that we belong to every Arab, we belong to every American, and every person is a brother or sister to us in humanity without looking at race, religion, or political interests. These aspects are what make us known and when asked what do we do, we plant flowers and not thorns. Our public relations differentiate us from the rest as we have transformed each reader of the magazine into a friend of the magazine. All the communities, including the American, have become a friend of Lebanon Times Magazine & Radio.

We can even add that we have seen readers collect our magazines from the first issue until the most recent as our magazine has entered the homes of 95% of the Arab American community.

Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
We like that Houston is the most diverse city in the country. We like Houston because it is a city which is a part of the United States and it allows for the fulfillment of the American Dream. We liked it even more after we saw the complete solidarity during Hurricane Harvey. People were helping people as one without asking any questions. This made us love the city more and more!

Houston has become our second home and there is nothing we do not like about our city!

Contact Info:

• Address: 7457 Harwin Dr Ste 326, Houston, TX 77036
• Website: www.lebanontimesmagazine.com & www.lebanontimesmagazine.net
• Phone: 713-961-1700 & 832-552-8438
• Email: lebanontimes2@gmail.com
• Instagram: lebanon.times
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/libanontimesmagazine
• Twitter: www.twitter.com/julia_julia1963

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