Social Media is Catalysing Arab World Change
EMAN AL-NAFJAN: Leaders throughout the Arab World are suspicious of new media. Their citizens are using tools not simply to communicate concerns, but campaign for change.
Religion & Fiction: The Problems of Self Censorship
M. LYNX QUALEY: No Arabic writers can really write about religion, for instance. People can write about politics, in some countries, they can write about sex, but the fundamental questions…
The Wait is Over: New Saudi Online Law Unveiled
AHMED AL OMRAN: The wording may be clunky but the intent is clear. The Ministry of Culture and Information is looking to extend its control.
Al Jazeera Kuwait Closure – Stormy Times Ahead
DAVID ROBERTS: Once again Kuwaiti authorities have responded to perceived bias in Al Jazeera’s coverage of its political upheaval by closing its office.
The Future’s Coming, Please Tell the UAE’s Telcos
ALEXANDER MCNABB – Technology has allowed us to speak to each other in ways unimaginable five years ago. The telco operators in the Middle East, however, don’t appear to have caught on yet.
How Saudi Arabia’s Media is tacking Wikileaks
CROSSROADS ARABIA: Saudi media is taking note of the WikiLeaks phenomenon. This piece from Arab News reflects the best and smartest policy that the Saudi government could follow: refuse comment.
Wikileaks – Where is the UAE Media?
MATT J. DUFFY: I suggest that one—or preferably all—of the UAE’s press outlets compile a simple report analyzing the leaked cables. The report should be published without a byline so no single reporter can be sued.
Publish it Not – Israel and the Sultans of Spin
JONATHAN COOK: Most freelancers forced into this position would either have learned to tailor their reporting to what was expected by the news desks or have headed off to another conflict zone. I stayed…
Privacy and the Law
ALEXANDER MCNABB: One month in jail and deportation for filming an actual incident and posting it online may appear madly draconian, but the UAE (and the Gulf in general, actually) has always had a fraught relationship with photography…
Censorship over KSA Unemployment
I have written on unemployment before. The situation is desperate. It’s bad for men and much worse for women… According to Mr. Al Dosari 12000 Saudis apply when only 45 positions are announced…
Dr. Mutawa: Book Censorship is Killing Arabic
In the name of preserving culture, book censorship is really killing it. … People interested in culture are gravitating toward English argues the author of the extremely successful comic book series, 99.
