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Overview
NEWSPAPERS: The press can be
divided into three categories: government-owned or
semi-official press, newspapers published by political
organisations, and those that are privately owned. Very
few of the privately-owned newspapers can be considered
editorially independent; they are often owned by wealthy
individuals who have political aspirations or seek of
wield influence.With a few exceptions, Arab journalism
tend to be uninspired and follows tired conventions. This
is partly the result of direct censorship and/or licensing
systems and restrictive press laws.
BROADCASTING: Traditionally, TV
stations have been government-owned and government-run,
with content strictly controlled in terms of news and
debate as well as other programmes that conform to
"Islamic values". Since the 1990s, these
stations have been increasingly challenged by satellite
channels. More ...
INTERNET: The ability of the
internet to provide uncontrolled flows of information
across national boundaries was viewed as an alarming
development by some Arab governments. Several of them -
including Saudi Arabia, Syria and Tunisia - restrict
access to certain websites (though there are
well-established ways of circumventing the censorship).
For several years it was very difficult to produce web
pages in Arabic, which meant that initially internet use
was confined to the education elite who could read
European languages. This has gradually changed, though
internet use is still less than in many other parts of the
world.
For news about the Arab media see:
Articles and reports
Walking
a tightrope
New media and freedom of expression in the Arab Middle East
(PDF - 119 pages). by Layla al-Zubaidi. Heinrich
Boell Foundation, 2004
The press in the
Arab world: 100 years of suppressed freedom
Historical background by Said Essoulami
Responsible
Arab journalism
By Youssef Ibrahim. UPI, 14 September, 2004
Book
review: The Making of Arab News
Reviewed by Ralph Berenger.
TBS Journal 14, Spring 2005
Freedom
of expression in the Arab world
By Ibrahim Nawar,
Arab
Press Freedom Watch. Presented at Aspen Institute
Conference on Freedom of Expression (
Wye
River
, May
30 –June1, 2000)
Dilemmas
of a free media for the Arabian Gulf
by S Nihal Singh, Editor, Khaleej Times, Dubai
Islam and the British press after September 11
The events of September 11 were seen as a disaster for
Muslims in Britain. But they also raised public awareness of
Islam and created an opportunity for better relations between
ordinary Muslims and the media. (Talk given by Brian
Whitaker at a conference on Islam and the media, Central
London Mosque, 20 June, 2002.)
Media
representation and British Muslims
Elizabeth Poole
examines the coverage of Muslims in the British press and suggests
that although this is largely negative there are opportunities for
more positive developments. (Dialogue magazine, April 2000.)
A
new voice
in the Middle East
A provisional assessment of the needs of the Iraqi media. Joint study by
the Baltic Media Centre, Index on Censorship, the Institute
for War & Peace Reporting and International Media Support,
May-June 2003. PDF format.
Media
development in post-war Iraq
Conference report, April 2003
Getting
a bad press
The prospects for a free and independent press in Iraq may not be as good as
they look (The Guardian, 23 June 2003).
Chaos in the Iraqi
media
The United States risks losing a major opportunity to forge an open media in the Middle East.
By Anthony Borden in London, Institute for War and Peace Reporting, 20 June, 2003.
Prohibited
media activity in Iraq
Order issued by Paul Bremer on behalf of the Coalition
Provisional Authority, 2003
The
new Iraqi press, 2003
Details of newspapers established after the overthrow
of Saddam Hussein
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