Real Arab reform begins with the media

The irony, of course, is that up until the past month, media in the Arab world has been more of an obstacle to democracy and peaceful expression than it has been a facilitator.

Generally speaking, media outlets in the Arab world fall into two categories. Most Arab media outlets shill for a certain government or political bloc, serving as glorified mouthpieces with no pretension of impartiality. You know what you are getting when you watch a station like Hezbollah’s Al-Manar.

On the other hand, there is a smaller group of outlets that attempts to claim independence. And in some cases, they succeed, but at the cost of promoting real debate and education. Forced to keep a cautious eye on their finances at all times, they are loathe to rock the boat, knowing that one controversial segment on government corruption or research into an unpunished crime could chase away their advertisers, leaving them adrift and unfunded.

Even a generally high-quality station such as Saudi-funded Al-Arabiya has its limits. Having worked there for several years, I found that it was certainly more open-minded to Western-style journalism; yet there were still clear red lines that we knew we could not cross. The most commonly used example of successful, unfettered and open journalism in the Arab world — Al-Jazeera — often adjusts its reporting to align with the foreign policy interests of the Qatari government.

While technology and oil money have allowed for the proliferation of mass media in the Arab world, this growth of media has come at a heavy price. It makes very little difference how many channels there are in the region if they are unwilling or unable to take a stand for the democratic exchange of information. 

What the Arab world needs are media outlets that embody the best practices in Western journalism. Like ABC or CNN, such outlets need to participate in the advancement of independent thought, and defend the interests and well being of society. We need media outlets that are role models in terms of transparency and social responsibility, delivering on their pledged values by providing viewers with content that informs, entertains, develops minds and ripens individuals, and most importantly, hold politicians accountable for every action.

Unfortunately, any media outlet that dares to adhere to these values faces many obstacles. Funders, scared of retaliation by governments, may flee. And Arab audiences, used to news that toes one clear ideological line, may not tune in.

I write from personal experience. MurrTV, the secular Lebanese TV network I work for today, was punished in 2002 for giving airtime to opposition candidates in occupied Lebanon.

Our muckraking journalism was met with an all-too-common fate in the region—we were shut down by armed soldiers, and forced off the airwaves for seven years. This is the unfortunate lesson that Arab media outlets learn when attempting to promote the democratic exchange of information. 

Yet as of 2009, MurrTV has returned to the air and is thriving. In Lebanon, the channel is challenging for the top overall rating, and in the region our audience has been growing.

Whether this growth can continue along its natural course is yet to be seen. But I hope that the world judges Arab countries not just by government reforms, but also by media reforms as well. For as the great American president Thomas Jefferson wrote, “I would rather have a free press and no government, than a government and no free press.”

Ultimately, the only masters of the Arab media must be the people and the laws that govern them.

Elie Nakouzi has been one of the Arab world’s leading journalists for two decades, including hosting two top-rated political shows on Al-Arabiya. One of the original founding journalists of MurrTV in Lebanon, he is now the network’s Washington bureau chief.