Ghassan Tueni  Ghassan Tueni (‎; 5 January 1926 – 8 June 2012) was a veteran Lebanese journalist, politician and diplomat who headed "An Nahar", one of the Arab World's leading newspapers. He was often referred to as the "Dean of Lebanese Journalism". Born in Beirut on 5 January 1926 to a Greek Orthodox Christian family, Ghassan Tueni was the son of Gebran Tueni, the founder and publisher of the daily newspaper "An Nahar". His hometown was Beit Mary. Ghassan Tueni joined the Syrian Social Nationalist Party founded by Antoun Saadeh in the early 1940s. According to Tueni, it was Yusuf al-Khal who recruited him to join the party. During his time at the American University of Beirut, Tueni was the general executive head of student affairs within the SSNP and later rose to the position as assistant cultural dean of the party. In 1947, he met Antoun Saadeh for the very first time in Dhour El Choueir and was blown away by Saadeh's striking charisma. While studying for his master's degree in the United States, Antoun Saadeh at that time was in forced exile and the two exchanged letters between 1946 and 1947. Later that year, Tueni left the SSNP after the dismissal of Yusuf al-Khal, Fayez Sayegh and others from the party. Tueni found himself making a swift comeback to the SSNP after its party leader was summoned and executed in a trial that took less than twenty four hours by the Lebanese authorities in 1949. Saadeh's execution was dubbed by many as the worst kangaroo court trial in Lebanese legal history. The execution prompted Tueni to write a front-page column in the Nahar newspaper where he hailed Saadeh as a national hero forsaking his life for the national cause and condemning the execution. The article created a widespread political storm that caused much worry among the establishment and was soon sent to prison. In 1952, Tueni was appointed by the SSNP leadership to represent the party in the Popular Socialist Front led by Kamal Jumblatt that forced the resignation of Lebanese president Bechara El Khoury  Tueni studied at the International College (IC) and then, at the American University of Beirut under Charles Malik who was influential in the development of his thoughts. He received a bachelor of arts degree in philosophy from AUB in 1945. He then went to the United States to study at Harvard University where he received his master's degree in government.