Al Jazeera in the Gulf and in the World: Is It Redefining Global Communication Ethics? (Contemporary Gulf Studies)

This book examines the deeper meaning of the advent of the Al Jazeera Media Network with regard to ongoing debates on global communication ethics, not only in the global public sphere but also in terms of its influence on new non-Western approaches to media ethics. Rather than simply calling for international perspectives on media ethic is a unique and significant addition to the literature on the topic. The book investigates whether Al Jazeera’s vision, mission, and operations are actually inspired by the New World Information Order debates over contra-flow and hegemony. Further, the book identifies ways of developing new non-Western approaches to global communication ethics, as it suggests injecting more cosmopolitanism in global news reporting and commentary. Foreword 6 Foreword 8 References 13 Acknowledgments 15 Praise for Al Jazeera in the Gulf and in the World 16 Contents 17 Notes on Contributors 19 List of Figures 21 List of Tables 22 Chapter 1: The History of Al Jazeera 23 The Development of the Arab Media 24 Historical Overview of Al Jazeera Arabic 26 Historical Overview of Al Jazeera English 30 Al Jazeera in the North-South Debates on News Flow 33 Al Jazeera in the New World Information and Communication Order 38 Al Jazeera in the Regional Media Landscape 45 Conclusion 51 References 51 Chapter 2: Truth as an Ethical Principle 56 Truth as Authentic Disclosure 60 The Al Jazeera Media Network in Cognitive Terms 62 The Epistemology of News as Knowledge Production6 65 Al Jazeera’s Disclosures 72 Pluralism 72 Anti-propaganda 73 Southern Counter Flow 75 Alethic Truth as a Universal Principle 78 Conclusion 81 References 82 Chapter 3: Editorial Politics and Practices 87 Introduction 87 Literature Review 90 Ethical Codes 91 External Actors 92 Macro and Micro Filtering 93 Descriptive or Prescriptive 95 Social Media 97 Method and Data 99 Field Work 99 Data 100 Findings 100 No Style Guide 101 External Regulations 102 Coverage of the Arab Spring Uprisings 104 Two Mindsets, Two Voices but One Logo 106 Descriptive or Prescriptive 108 Networking and Social Media 110 Conclusions and Implications 113 References 115 Chapter 4: Binary Journalism: An Investigation into Al Jazeera’s News Practices 119 Introduction 119 Pragmatism and Media Discourse 120 Critical Analysis and Media Discourse 121 Method 122 Analysis 125 Syria Coverage During Period of Pre-Qatar Blockade 125 “Activist” Discourse 126 “Sectarian” Discourse 129 Headline Discourse 132 Interactivity Discourse 132 Syria Coverage During Post-Qatar Blockade Period 135 Yemen 137 Saudi Arabia 137 The How and Why of the Two Moments in AJA’s Coverage 138 Discursive and Social Implications 140 Conclusion 142 References 144 Chapter 5: Al Jazeera as a Technological Enterprise 148 The Emergence of Al Jazeera 151 From Internet Protocol Television to a Global Media Cloud 155 Networked Journalism 158 Neogeography and Al Jazeera 162 Mobile Journalism 164 The Ultimate Digital News Service: AJ+ 167 The Future of Al Jazeera 172 Conclusion 175 References 176 Chapter 6: Voices from the Periphery 181 Introduction 181 An Overview of the Social Responsibility Theory 182 The Concept of “Voice” 186 What Voice? 190 Are There Dimmed Voices? 194 The Mission of Voice 198 Al Jazeera’s Legacy 201 Conclusion 206 References 207 Chapter 7: Al Jazeera: Non-Violence and Peace Journalism 209 Introduction 209 Peace Journalism 211 Peace Journalism and Communication Ethics 215 Al Jazeera as a Counter-Hegemonic Voice 216 Al Jazeera’s Coverage of Conflicts 218 The Battle of Raqqa 2017 220 Methodology 220 Data Collection 220 Framing Analysis 221 Analysis 223 Events 223 Actors 225 Effects 227 Al Jazeera’s Organizational Culture 228 Conclusion 233 References 234 Chapter 8: The Ethics of Human Dignity and Freedom of Expression 239 Theories of Human Dignity Worldwide 241 Freedom of Expression 243 Freedom of Expression as a Political-Legal Concept 243 The Philosophy-of-Language Perspective 244 The Two Concepts in Al Jazeera 246 Responsibility and Freedom Worldwide 249 Definitions 250 Hate Discourse and Religious Extremism 254 International Scope 254 Moral Exclusion 257 Positive Freedom 261 Conclusion 265 References 267 Chapter 9: Gender in Policy and Programming: An Analysis of Women Representation in Al Jazeera Arabic News 271 Introduction 271 Women in the Media 273 Arab Women in the Western and Arab Media 277 Women in Al Jazeera 280 Gender in Al Jazeera Arabic News 283 Gender in Al Jazeera Policy 286 Concluding Remarks: Women at the Peripheries of the Periphery 290 Appendix 291 References 292 Chapter 10: Cosmopolitan Ethics and the Al Jazeera Media Network 295 The New Cosmopolitan Ethics 297 Al Jazeera as a Cosmopolitan Organization 299 Al Jazeera’s Problems with Cosmopolitan Ethics 304 Particulars in Terms of Universals 305 Covering Conflict 310 Gender Equality 314 Cosmopolitanism’s Dilemma 316 References 317 Index 320 Front Matter ....Pages i-xxv The History of Al Jazeera (Haydar Badawi Sadig, Catalina Petcu)....Pages 1-33 Truth as an Ethical Principle (Clifford G. Christians)....Pages 35-65 Editorial Politics and Practices (Leon Barkho)....Pages 67-98 Binary Journalism: An Investigation into Al Jazeera’s News Practices (Leon Barkho)....Pages 99-127 Al Jazeera as a Technological Enterprise (Haydar Badawi Sadig, Catalina Petcu)....Pages 129-161 Voices from the Periphery (Haydar Badawi Sadig, Catalina Petcu)....Pages 163-190 Al Jazeera: Non-Violence and Peace Journalism (Hala Asmina Guta)....Pages 191-220 The Ethics of Human Dignity and Freedom of Expression (Clifford G. Christians)....Pages 221-252 Gender in Policy and Programming: An Analysis of WomenRepresentation in Al Jazeera Arabic News (Hala Asmina Guta)....Pages 253-276 Cosmopolitan Ethics and the Al Jazeera Media Network (Haydar Badawi Sadig)....Pages 277-301 Back Matter ....Pages 303-318