Introudation - Dissertation Example

The role of the Saudi press during the recent conflict in Bahrain should be analyzed with respect to the Saudi government system, the Saudi society and the Saudi mass media. 1.1. The Saudi Government System The Saudi Government system comprises on the following three branches, on the basis of its goals, nature, responsibilities of the Country and the correlation of the ruler with the Saudi people. 1. Council of Ministers. 2. Legal and Judicial structure. 3. Consultative Council. 1.1.1. Council of Ministers The King, as the Prime Minister of the State, heads the Council of Ministers.

Other members of this body include the Deputy Prime Minister (Crown Prince), the 2nd Deputy Prime Minister and the Cabinet Ministers (Saudi Arabian Information Centre, 1996). The responsibilities of the Council are drafting, supervising the execution of the external, internal, economic, financial, educational and defence policies, and general affairs of the Country. 1.1.2. Legal & Judicial Structure Saudi Arabia possesses a pervasive legal structure, in which the judicial system strictly follows the Shariah (The Islamic Law).

At present, the Shariah legal system is governed by the Ministry of Justice through the Shariah Courts. The Special Courts or the Board of Grievances administers the disputes that emerge due to codified regulations. 1.1.3. Consultative Council The Consultative Council, also known as the Majlis Al-Shoura, fundamentally provides its advice to the King on important affairs by consulting its experienced and learned citizens. The Consultative Council, in its present form, comprises of a chairman and 90 advisors/members who are being hired by the King for a tenure of renewable 4 years. 1.2.

Saudi-Society It is evident from the above description of the Saudi government system that the Islamic principles and the government permeate all areas of the social life in Saudi Arabia. Therefore, numerous political religious, cultural and economical factors influence the Saudi Arabian society to a great extent. The Saudi society is governed by the primitive ethics and traditions that have their roots deep in Islam as well as in Arabian morals and behavior, for instance, neighborliness and truthfulness (Ministry of Information, n.d.). 1.3.

Saudi Mass Media As the case in the Saudi Arabian society, the mass media also cannot be considered individually from the influence of Islamic believes and government policies. 1.3.1. Saudi Press The National Press Agencies Act was approved by the Council of Ministers in January 09, 1964 through the resolution number 600 and a royal decree number 60 with the purpose to allow new people to know about their country, increase the rate of distribution by adding more readers to the national press (The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, 1993).

This act was also helpful in expanding the information and news from abroad. Several news offices began their work from outside as well as inside of Saudi Arabia, specifically in the Arab region. The government of Saudi Arabia provided the financial support to the Saudi national press. The press in Saudi Arabia is presently more dependent on advertisements as a result of the economic problems, especially since the year 1991. As for instance, in July-1999 the Saudi newspaper, al-Riyadh allocated more than 60 percent of its space per day to advertisements while the al-Yaum and Okaz newspapers of Saudi Arabia, respectively, dedicated 50 percent and 53 percent of their space to advertisement for