"This report assesses widespread claims that pan-Arab satellite news channels are responsible for inciting sectarian violence during the Arab uprisings. Based on an empirical study of how the most popular channels (Al-Jazeera Arabic and Al-Arabiya) and a competitive newcomer (Al-Mayadeen) have frame
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d seminal events involving violence between sects in Syria and Iraq, the report finds that while often geo-politically charged, some of these claims are valid. While abusive language and direct promotion of violence are rare in a mainstream context, incitement to sectarian violence has been invoked primarily through linguistic and thematic tropes that forge legitimacy claims and narratives of victimhood. The paper draws on these findings to make recommendations for UK policymaker engagement with the Arab media." (Abstract)
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"Amid civil war, failing states, and terrorism, Arab liberals are growing in numbers and influence. Advocating a culture of equity, tolerance, good governance, and the rule of law, they work through some of the region's largest media outlets to spread their ideals within the culture. Broadcasting Ch
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ange analyzes this trend by portraying the intersection of media and politics in two Arab countries with seismic impact on the region and beyond. Through TV talk shows, drama, and comedy, local liberals play off the government's anti-Islamist agenda to more thoughtfully advocate religious reform." (Back cover)
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"Free-to-air channels for Arabic-speaking children expanded alongside the emergence of a few Arab national regulatory agencies with varying degrees of independence from government and powers that could potentially influence children’s channels. Even so, the rationales that inform production and ac
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quisition of children’s screen content in the region remain far from transparent, beyond rhetoric about protecting children from material that ‘breaches cultural boundaries and values’. Drawing on theoretical literature that highlights regulation’s effect on policy, and links the principles of provision, protection and participation in relation to children’s media, this article compares regulatory discourses and practices revealed in the documents and speeches of Arab regulators, broadcasters and independent production companies. It finds that, with some exceptions, only the latter advocate measures that look beyond a narrow interpretation of ‘protection’. A dominant consensus around the narrow vision seems to stand in the way of developing more stimulating approaches to regulation." (Abstract)
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"Satellite TV channels from the Middle East started beaming into Eritrea from 1996, and the Eritrean youth are avid consumers of the global messages from across the borders. Following an in-depth interview method as a research technique, using an unstructured, openended questionnaire, the present st
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udy presents how ethnicity and religion play a role in making meaning out of the messages of Middle East-based Arabic TV channels among lowland Tigre-/Arabic-speaking Eritrean youth aged 18–25 years. The researchers have observed the way foreign TV channel programmes have influenced family norms, social roles for women, sexual norms, lifestyles and music preferences of young Tigre viewers. The study concludes that Islam and Arabic language are two important factors influencing the lowland Tigre youth in picking up Arabic channels as they reinforce the same culture and traditions apart from creating Pan-Arab identities among the Arabic-/Tigre-speaking youth, at the same time preserving the indigenous culture from the influence of the West." (Abstract)
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"Much has been made of the role of various media in the shaping of conflicts and political agendas in today's Arab world. This volume examines this topic with interdisciplinary contributions that range across media studies, anthroplogy, religious studies, and political science and explore both new a
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nd older media forms." (Publisher description)
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"Transnationale arabische Satellitenfernsehsender sind immer noch die meistgenutzten Medien in fast allen Ländern der Region - sei es für Informationen oder Unterhaltung. Internetmedien werden ihnen vermutlich in den nächsten Jahren nicht den Rang ablaufen können. Stärkste Konkurrenz könnten w
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ieder nationale Fernsehangebote werden, wenn diese vielfältiger berichten und gleichzeitig besser auf lokale Themen fokussieren. Dies scheint im Libanon, dem Irak oder zeitweise Ägypten der Fall. Die transnationalen Fernsehsender sind nach wie vor Motoren für Innovationen, sie entwickeln neue Formate, setzen die Standards für professionelle Erscheinungsbilder und werden durch ihre Vernetzung mit den sozialen Netzwerken zunehmend cross-medial." (Seite 48)
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"This briefing argues that the Iraqi media landscape of 2013 may not be the free, plural and professional fourth estate that many in the West had envisaged in 2003 but that it has real strengths – as well as weaknesses – which reflect the reality and complexity of modern Iraq. The seismic shift
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in attitudes that the Iraqi media was asked to embrace in the reconstruction of the sector after Saddam Hussein’s fall was always likely to take time. It is suggested here that the prospects for Iraq’s media are less bleak than is often assumed." (Executive summary, page 4)
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"The Qatari news network, Al Jazeera, has emerged as a prime example of a global media contra-flow that has been able to give its region a voice in the international news arena. At a time when developments like the global economic crisis have called for greater checks and balances on Western governm
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ents and corporations, this paper takes a critical look at an increasingly prominent news player in the fast-growing developing region of East Asia, Channel NewsAsia, to ascertain if it is likely to rise up the ranks to the level of Al Jazeera. A critical discourse analysis comparing the coverage of Channel NewsAsia and the BBC’s most salient stories, however, shows that the Singapore-based station falls short in its claim to ‘provide Asian perspectives’ because it is constrained by political-economic factors to operate within an authoritarian developmental news model." (Abstract)
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"Almost 300 news channels are currently available in Europe, of which more than 170 are established in the European Union. Private channels dominate the national TV news landscape with more than 80% owned by private companies. The pan-European channels with the widest distribution in Europe are CNN
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International, BBC World News, Al Jazeera (English), Euronews (English) and RT (Russia Today). The number of news channels available over free DTT channels has increased to 43, compared to 16 four years ago." (Website European Audiovisual Observatory)
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"Television is the most widely used media among this population: 9 out of 10 interviewed reported watching it at least once last month; satellite dishes are the dominant way of receiving television signal in rural areas (Cable more prevalent in urban areas). Chinese channels are largely reserved for
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entertainment (Distrust the news on most Chinese television channels). Local dialect programming [is] important (Amke, Khamke, or Uke): No single dialect is dominant across all regions; Chinese and English broadcasting has limited audience." (Slide 30)
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"A historical survey of the Iraqi media from its beginning up to the present day, focusing on the post-2003 media scene and the political and societal divisions that occurred in Iraq after US-led occupation. Investigates the nature of the media outlets and offers an analysis of the way Iraqi satelli
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te channels covered the 2010 general elections." (Publisher description)
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"This report reviews the situation in which media operate in the Middle East, specifically in Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria, and also including a short section on Tunisia [...] Part 1 explores the historical development of the media in the region, outlines their structural environment, and
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probes practices of censorship and self-censorship. Part 2 looks into those developments of the past decades that have affected the monopoly on information by states and the access to information on the part of the public. Part 3 critically examines the function of guidelines for good journalistic practices in the region, and provides some samples of codes of ethics. Part 4 presents an overview of the recent situation of the media and freedom of expression in the region and provides some historical background. In general, this part seeks to survey the existing media, including the press, radio and television, the Internet, as well as media legislation in the individual countries. Due to specific local circumstances, some of the country sections are however structured in a slightly different manner. Part 5 compiles select training opportunities for journalists, as well as organizations and projects that are committed to networking, monitoring, advocacy and legal aid." (Foreword, page 8)
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"This report has established that the jamming of Persian-language satellite TV channels is endemic in Iran, and is having adverse effects on both broadcasters and viewers alike. In Iran, satellite television is one of the few sources of news, entertainment, and commentary not controlled by the count
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ry’s authorities; it is, therefore, an important source for Iranians, many of whom desire opinions, information, and entertainment beyond what is provided by the state-run media." (Page 64)
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"Using Entman’s work on mediated public diplomacy, the authors conducted an Arabic-language online survey of news consumers on Arab websites, including one US-funded media outlet. They examined factors leading to gaps in exposure and perceptions of credibility for three Arab news outlets. Specific
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ally, they examined variables that differentiated between exposure to and perceived credibility regarding the three satellite news media – al-Jazeera, al-Arabiya, and al-Hurra. Results showed that issue importance and attitudes toward the United States were significant predictors of exposure gaps between the US-funded network and other Arab media. Exposure gaps were also powerful predictors of perceived credibility." (Abstract)
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"This article explores the links between transnational media flows and social and political change in authoritarian regimes through a conjunctural study of Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB), a Burmese exile media organization. Drawing on observation and interviews conducted at DVB's Oslo studio during
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the 2010 elections in Burma as well as documentary research, the article explores how diasporic media may contribute to democratization in a military regime where press freedoms and political expression are severely curtailed. The first section draws on Appadurai's theory of global flows to scrutinize transnational flows of people, capital, media, ideas and technology contributing to DVB's operations from 1992 to 2010. The next section engages with theories of media and democracy in order to examine DVB's innovative satellite television coverage of the 2010 elections. The article concludes with a brief discussion of the ongoing relevance of opposition media based outside of Burma amid liberalization measures undertaken by Thein Sein's nominally civilian government in 2011." (Abstract)
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