Mass media in Saudi Arabia - Research Paper Example

? Mass Media in Saudi Arabia of the TABLE OF CONTENTS Page No Introduction ………………………………………………….. 3 2. An Authoritarian Mass Media System………………………….. 3 3. The Conditions Influencing Mass Media in Saudi Arabia …….. 5 3.1. Weak Economic Base …………………………….. 5 3.2. Politicization ……………………………………… 6 3.3. Cultural Influence ………………………………… 8 4. Print Media in Saudi Arabia …………………………………… 10 5. Saudi Arabian Electronic Media ………………………………. 11 6. Direct Satellite Broadcasting in Saudi Arabia ………………… 13 7. The Development of Socially Acceptable Television in Saudi Arabia ……… 14 8. Conclusion ……………………………………………………… 17 9. References ……………………………………………………… 18 Mass Media in Saudi Arabia 1. Introduction The mass media in Saudi Arabia generally perform the same fundamental functions of media all over the world, but in different ways. The primary functions of media include conveying news and information of general interest; interpreting and commenting on events; providing opinion and view points; “reinforcing social norms and cultural awareness by transmitting information about the society and its culture” (Rugh, 2004, p.14); making availabe specialized information for commercial promotion, advertising or available services; and entertaining. Saudi Arabia achieves control of the media mainly through the Ministry of Information, which administers the national news agency and the broadcasting services, and is responsible for applying censorship regulations (Rampal, 1994). Simons (2006) states that the three main roles played by mass media are as mirror, witness, and transmitter. This refers to the necessity for media to reflect the news, events, and situations, to observe occurrences of social, political and other interest, and to convey the information, observations and analysis to the general public. Thesis Statement: The purpose of this paper is to investigate the various aspects of mass media in Saudi Arabia, including its functioning and conditions affecting Arab mass media. 2. An Authoritarian Mass Media System The standard systems of classifying mass media are as authoritarian, libertarian, social responsibility and totalitarian (Siebert, Peterson & Schramm, 1963). The Arab media do not fall specifically into any one of the above categories, but some elements of all four systems are found in the mass media system of Saudi Arabia. In most of the Arab countries the media function under different variations of the authoritarian theory; thus, of the four theories this is the one that most closely explains the Saudi Arabian mass media operations. The authoritarian governments in these Arab countries play a part in the use of authoritarian media functions. In the authoritarian system, the media “support and advance the policies of the government, which controls the media either directly or indirectly through licensing, legal action, or perhaps financial means” (Rugh, 2004, p.23). Rampal (1994) reiterates that despite political reform initiatives, Saudi Arabia remains an absolute monarchy. The authoritarian political system has resulted in a controlled press, particularly since 1958 when the government’s Publications Department was goven to censor publications. The authoritarian regime permits the media to discuss society and the machinery of government, but not of the people who hold the political power. This system is built on the theory that truth does not emerge from a great mass of people, but of a few wise men capable of directing and guiding their fellow human beings (Siebert et al, 1963). In the authoritarian system comment and criticism are carefully guided, and lucid goals for the community align with the objectives of the regime itself. A common feature of authoritarian systems elsewhere is found in the Arab media systems also, which is that even where the press is not under government ownership, authoritarian features will prevail (Rugh, 2004, p.23). Saudi Arabia as one of the six Gulf states, complies with the common principles of Gulf communication policies. These include the concepts that the media should promote the idea of obedience to God, the media should not criticize the ruler, should promote respect for and preservation of the established order, should protect the sublime Islamic values, reinforce and preserve traditional Arabic customs, highlight the importance of heritage, focus on the need to develop, confront attempts to undermine or challenge one’s heritage, reinforce women’s role in society as defined by the Gulf ruling elites, pay attention to youth in order to prevent their deviation from the right path, and should not defame any Arab or Moslem head of state or head of state considered friendly to the Gulf countries. Further, the media should not publish any material with a potential for disrupting relationships between the state and any Moslem, Arab, or other friendly state, and should preserve the local cultural tradition, social and spiritual values, “adhering to the behavioral patterns derived from Islamic ideology” (Kazan, 1993, p.93). On the other hand, Floreancing (2002) argues that signs of change are evident in Saudi Arabia. The people increasingly consider the news they receive at home as uninformative and useless. Hence, many Saudis become consumers of international news. With more outside information becoming available through satellite or Internet access, the government is unable to continue its complete control over mass media. 3. The Conditions Influencing Mass Media in Saudi Arabia Various circumstances have affected the mass media in Saudi Arabia and the Arab world. These include a weak economic base, politicization, and cultural influence. The outcomes on the nature and form of mass media in Saudi Arabia as a result of these factors detailed below, include political patronization, fragmentation, and geographic concentration (Rugh, 2004). 3.1. Weak Economic Base “Arab information media have by and large been established on a weak economic base” (Rugh, 2004, p.5). Newspapers developed when the national incomes and populations were small, and literacy rates were low. Thus, the two main sources of commercial newspaper income in other places were restricted. Even after World War II, with development of Arab economies, advertising did not become important enough or promise enough in the modest circulation press, to help publishers significantly. In the next fifty years with increasing wealth of the Arab states, contrastingly the Arab media remained comparatively poor. One Arab editor estimated that in the early years of the new millennium, with substantial Arab economic development and after the oil boom, the total revenue of all Arab media would be less than that of the New York Times or Washington Post, and that annually the total incomes of all journalists in wealthy Saudi Arabia would add up to less than that of television journalists and news anchors. Most daily newspapers have a modest financial base. The “short supply of newsprint, other printing costs, plus the various limitations on distribution, such as political differences and poor domestic and international transport facilities” (Rugh, 2004, p.5) work against the publisher making a profit. The daily newspaper is no longer an expensive luxury for the middle class, with increasing oil wealth, but price and illiteracy curtail circulation figures. In the case of electronic media high costs are even more restrictive, are considerably more expensive to operate, and most private Arab entrepreneurs have not been able to afford the enterprise. This is the predominant reason for most radio and television stations being monopolies owned by government. 3.2. Politicization Arab mass media have always been closely related to politics. The first newspapers that were published in the Arab world were not private, but for the purpose of telling government bureaucrats and the public what the government wanted to convey to them. Arab governments and colonial administrators in the Arab world controlled the early newspapers for political reasons. With increasing Arab nationalism in the twentieth century, Arab newspapers were attracted to this cause in opposition to colonial rule. Thus drawn into political issues the nationalism/ anti-imperialism theme has remained key to the Arab media today. The tradition of free press that the British and French had at home made less of an impact on media development in Arab areas under their control, than did the more important issues of nationalism and politicization of institutions (Rugh, 2004). With radio becoming technologically feasible for mass broadcasting, most Arab governments recognized its significance also, and took it under their control. In recent years, attention has been focused on the value of the media for political purposes, supported by “changing political conditions, differences over policy, changes of regime, and changes of political system” (Rugh, 2004, p.6). Times of tension and instability have been of concern to governments particularly about the influence of the media and their control. Radio stations and television facilities are the main targets of revolutionaries seizing them in a move to take over power. Therefore, Arab regimes are specially careful to guard them against politically significant eventualities. The Arab governments including that of Saudi Arabia emphasized on the requirement for unity, and exerted influence and control over the mass media stating that their newly independent nations faced tremendous external and internal problems. Partisan conflict was to be completely avoided, and the media had to promote the national interest by supporting governmental policies. More than for economic development, th most common focus of such reasoning was the Arab-Israeli conflict. Since the late 1940s every Arab government has been politically preoccupied with this conflict, supporting the struggle against the national enemy, making the dispute the central issue in Arab foreign policy and a matter of Arab patriotism. In this context, Arab governments have justified their influence over the mass media as essential both when the country is at war with Israel, or politically confronting Israel’s policies (Rugh, 2004). Further, according to Alkarni (2005, p.14), “the Saudi public has been the target of terrorist organizations, whether they are local or international”. The terrorist organizations aim to influence the Saudi citizens and complicate their relationship with their government, creating mistrust and misunderstandings. During a terrorist crisis, the Saudi public tunes to all kinds of mass media, local, national, regional and international for information and analysis of unfolding events, particularly when they occur in their hometown. Various sources of news and analysis are taken into consideration to understand the national scene of events; and this creates difficulties for the Saudi Arabian government. The relationship between mass media in Saudi Arabia and terrorism has been studied by Alkarni (2005). The author developed a model to shed light on the complicated relationship among the parties involved: the government, mass media, terrorist organizations, and the general public. The model represents four action elements that occur among the four parties when competing and dealing with such events. These include terrorists as creating events, media as reporting events, governments as influencing events, and the public as understanding events. Additionally, the model proposes six interactions relations among the four parties involved in terrorist events, each interaction dealing with how one party interacts with the other. 3.3. Cultural Influence The Arab press has historically been strongly linked to Arab culture. Arab literature, including “poetry, tales, and stories, predated mass media by more than a millennium and had developed a very rich tradition by the time the first newspapers appeared” (Rugh, 2004, p.7). The publishers of these newspapers regarded the Arab press as the appropriate medium for Arab literature, influenced by contemporary French newspapers which had a highly cultural content. According to Yamani (2008, p.323), “Saudi Arabia’s government has long been characterised by an ambivalent, if not schizophrenic, relationship with the media”. At the same time, it is a relationship signified not merely by oscillation, but also by evolution. This change took place with the Saudi regime overcoming its initial attitude of deep suspicion, and even antipathy, towards broadcast media, newspapers and publishers. Thus, the attitude of Saudi rulers is stated to be comparable to that of a person terrified of lions, who becomes a lion tamer himself. Though Saudi Arabia has not learned to love the lion, it ackowledges its power and danger, and uses all possible means to confront, tame and master it. The means provided by oil money available in abundance was the motivation to the point of obsession, to “defend a carefully constructed international image at all costs” (Yamani, 2008, p.323). Long (2005) attributes a lack of vitality in the Saudi press to the deep rooted tradition of private, interpersonal, oral communication to exchange news and views in a closed, family-oriented society. However, during King Faisal’s (1906-1975) era, the people’s sense of belonging to a national identity grew because of the rising use of mass media. Other contributory factors included the enhanced development of infrastructure and a rapidly expanding government of Saudi Arabia which was increasingly in touch with the general public (Beling, 1980). Ghareeb (2000) assessed mass media and the information revolution in the Arab world; he found that the latter was restricted to the Arab elites. With its growing influence, the information revolution has transformed political discourse in the region in the span of a few years. New technologies have promoted a new type of political debate that goes beyond national boundaries. These include the widening availability of pan-Arab newspapers published simultaneously in several cities, the growth of satellite television networks especially the controversial Al Jazeera based in Qatar, and increasing use of the Internet. Although the Internet has had an impact on the Arab world only during the last decade, it has great potential. However, it may help mainly the elite because of high access costs and its mainly English language content. 4. Print Media in Saudi Arabia Private ownership of the press is allowed in Saudi Arabia, but such publications are published by press organizations. These organizations that took over from small private firms under a royal decree in 1963, are privately owned by groups of individuals experienced in newspaper publishing and administration. Nearly twenty years ago, in 1993, there were ten press organizations in the country publishing a diverse number of newspapers and periodicals. Numerous periodicals were also published by the government. According to the 1993 Press and Publication Law, most newspapers and periodicals are published by press organizations, under the administration of government-approved boards of directors. This law ensures that all newspapers must be licensed, and a censorship committee reviews and censors all national and foreign publications in compliance with state policies (Rampal, 1994). Long (2005) adds that two main characteristics of the Saudi press are that it is fairly uncritical and is privately owned. Saudi print media do not exhibit the range of perspectives and orientations that distinguish Kuwaiti print media. Their content is comparatively conservative and homogenous. They reinforce official policy in their fundamental news and editorial policies, and do not cover critical reporting. The outcome is that Saudi print media lack diversity despite the fact that they are privately owned. Additionally, they are extremely similar in their coverage of local, Arab world and foreign events. Compared to the content of the Kuwaiti print media, that of Saudi Arabia is more passive in its mode of dealing with events. Contrasting with Kuwait and UAE print media, both of which deal with development-related problems in their respective countries, Saudi print media rarely produces questions regarding “values, attitudes, and behavioral patterns that their society has to acquire, or the fundamental changes that have to be introduced into their society before it can become modern, let alone developed” (Kazan, 1993, p.96). Saudi print media focus mainly on the activities of the king, the government, and members of the royal family. These news items are front-page stories in all daily newspapers and weekly magazines, and are usually treated in the same way in all print media. If other topics or events run counter to the policies of the government, they are downplayed or completely ignored by the media. At the same time, Saudi print media differ among themselves in the space they allocate to nonpolitical items and social stories. Further, a major difference between Saudi print media and those of the other Gulf countries is that while both national and foreign women are depicted widely in the non-Saudi print media, particularly those of Kuwait, it is uncommon to find a woman’s picture in a Saudi print medium, even if the woman is not a Saudi native. The women’s magazine Sayyedati published outside Saudi Arabia portrays only non-Saudi foreign women. Therefore it is evident that the portrayal of Saudi females in print media as well as on Saudi television has yet to take place (Kazan, 1993). 5. Saudi Arabian Electronic Media Although radio services were introduced into Saudi Arabia in the 1930s, the first indigenous program did not begin until 1949. Today’s Saudi broadcasting is equipped with modern facilities. The stateowned Broadcasting Service of Saudi Arabia (BSSA), a Ministry of Information department, holds a monopoly on public broadcasting. BSSA provides its domestic service on “43 medium wave, 25 FM (frequency modulation), and 3 shortwave stations” (Rampal, 1994, p.248), besides external service on 17 shortwave frequencies. This vast network necessitates the availability of radio programming throughout Saudi Arabia. The chief reasons for each Gulf government to introduce broadcasting facilities into its society were varied. For example, in the case of Saudi Arabia, the primary factors related to national security and national integration. On the other hand, based on national prestige, sovereignty, national identity, and competition fuelled the other small states of the Gulf to establish broadcasting facilities of their own. Saudi Arabia had to face a stiff opposition from the Saudi religious authorities, in contrast to the electronic media of the other Gulf countries “which did not face any opposition from the Saudi religious authorities” (Kazan, 1993, p.97). The electronic news media seriously challenge the reputation of the Saudi rulers, not only due to their fast-moving images, but also because the internet specifically has introduced a new political culture. The internet creates a space for convergence, with no national limitations of content regulation. There are hundreds of Saudi websites that “defiantly expose the secrets that protect the illusion of stability and harmony within the kingdom” (Yamani, 2008, p.326). The Al Saud or ruling family of Saudi Arabia cannot prevent, prohibit, or obstruct all these avenues of publicity. The nature of the new mass media and the vulnerability of the official narrative underlying the regime make such an attempt feasible. Radio and television were not immediately accepted in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia by the Muslim religious leaders “because the Quran forbids making images of living beings” (Rampal, 1994, p.249). Further, there was concern regarding television bringing in Western influences to the Saudi culture, when it went on the air in 1965. According to Head (1985), King Faisal of Saudi Arabia used television as an essential tool to help counter propaganda from neighboring countries and to assist in national development. Moreover, based on Saudi Arabia’s more conservative interpretation of Islam than Egypt or other Arab states, the religion and culture category assumes a primary role in television programs, and “there are strict rules governing the acceptability of foreign programming” (Rampal, 1994, p.250). Saudi government policy restricts cable television in the country, and the private use of satellite dish is also illegal. Similarly, there are no cinemas or movie theatres in Saudi Arabia because public exhibition of films is prohibited by the government. However, private viewing of films through movie rental businesses, screenings for expatriate audiences, and upscale, influential people such as government officials, is permitted. Only movies found acceptable after screening were allowed into the country. 6. Direct Satellite Broadcasting in Saudi Arabia Marghalani, Palmgreen and Boyd (1998) conducted a study on the use of direct satellite broadcasting widely adopted by members of the Saudi middle class in the mean age of 30 years, studied here. This use has been fuelled by a number of factors, some of which also prompted the swift diffusion of VCRs in Saudi Arabia in the 1980s and early 1990s. These include the limited range of highly censored content on the two government operated channels, the greatly reduced cost of DBS systems, the technological impracticability of wiring such a sparsely populated desert region with an alternative delivery system such as cable, and the requirement created by the Gulf War for alternative sources for news pertaining to world affairs. The earlier introduction of VCRs may also have played a major role by increasing an interest for a wider variety of content, most of it from western sources, unavailable on the government channels. “ Most of these predisposing forces are reflected in the motives for viewing satellite channels illuminated in this study through qualitative interviews and focus groups and subsequent factor analysis of gratification sought items derived from the qualitative data” (Marghalani et al, 1998, p.311). An important motive for satellite viewing was the availability twenty-four hours a day of a great variety of quality programming. Direct satellite broadcasting has extensively increased the alternatives available to Saudi viewers on both the provision of greater variety of content, or greater control over the consumption of that content, or both. The rapid adoption of direct satellite broadcasting in Saudi Arabia is also greatly motivated by surveillance of the local and international environment. In this politically insular country the ability of people to watch the news from different perspectives appeared to be a specifically prominent aspect. This links the broader surveillance motive to the narrower concern of avoiding the political and religious censorship of the two traditional broadcast channels, a separative motive in the analysis of the main components. The historical separation of this “traditional Islamic monarchy also helped to mould a modern audience of Saudis who want information about the cultural norms, values, and practices of other cultures and peoples” (Marghalani et al, 1998, p.311), especially about religious practices. In this study, the intercultural motive and desire for knowledge about religions other than Islam was evident. An additional symptom of the religious and cultural censorship characterizing the government channels, was the uncommonly experienced appearance of women on these channels. The desire to see females on television among women is believed to be caused by the need for more female role models with whom to identify, “and among males by sexual curiosity” (Marghalani et al, 1998, p.312). Therefore, it is clear that a combination of technological, political, economic, cultural, and religious forces have created strong motivations to accept the various benefits found to be offered by direct satellite broadcasting. A disincentive is that most direct satellite broadcasting channels available to Saudis have a pronounced western flavor, thereby expressing values, beliefs, and practices that clashed with the doctrines of Islam. 7. The Development of Socially Acceptable Television in Saudi Arabia Saudi commentators state that there rising infiltration of undesirable content into the households of the kingdom through the Internt, satellite television, and mobile devices such as the Blackberry. This is the result of major changes in the Saudi broadcasting sector. There are plans to transform state run Saudi television to operate on a corporatised or partially commercial basis, and there are more private television and radio channels in the pipeline. Currently, Saudi viewers like the other parts of the Middle East and North African viewers, “have access to about 500 satellite TV channels in Arabic, in addition to nine TV and radio channels from the government-run domestic service” (Feuilherade, 2010, p.37). Besides the leading pan-Arab channels, they can view news and current affairs programs in Arabic from foreign channels such as the BBC, the US government-funded Alhura, France 24, Russia Today, Germany’s Deutsche Welle, Japan’s NHK World, China’s CCTV and Iran’s Al Alam. The demand for socially acceptable, entertaining programs for family viewership will be met through digital terrestrial channels instead of satellite, thus offering an alternative that is also free of cost. Saudi Arabia has developed into a leading media and broadcasting market in the Middle East. It is the biggest market in the Gulf, with the highest GDP and second-highest expenditure on advertising, which is expected to increase by 10% annually until 2013. The kingdom has 8.5 million Internet users, and is the second-most connected country in the Arab world, in terms of total establishment of domestic main phone lines, mobile phones and Internet use, as found by the Amman-based Arab Advisors Group. Licences for private FM radio stations and for private satellite TV stations are being planned. Further, the Ministry of Culture and Information aims to privatise its nine channels in order to avoid restrictive regulatory conditions forming blockages to the normal functioning of the sector, and to permit Saudi TV to generate revenue and operate profitably. The ministry continues to negotiate with other government bodies on commercialization, although the idea had been debated some years ago. The effects of unregulated mass media on Saudi society is being increasingly debated in the kingdom. The 150-member strong legislative body, the Shura Council promoted ways to ensure that a sense of morality remained in the kingdom’s mass media. The council is aware of the impending danger of the multimedia and mass media, and their implications on the cultural, social, and economic life of people in the kingdom (Feuilherade, 2010). Saudi ownership of the media was once mostly confined to newspapers, but with the increasing use of satellite television, ownership has spread to the level that it now dominates the mass media industry in Saudi Arabia and the rest of the Gulf region. Significantly, media expansion was broader than merely seeking to own major news channels, with investment into music, movies and entertainment. Similar to the situation all over the world, the Saudi government wants to purchase increasingly larger market shares of the media. With large stakes in broadcast media showing general entertainment, the kingdom both restricts and directs the nature of cultural information that the people of the Middle East are exposed to, according to what it considers appropriate. Feuilherade (2010) adds that although several outlets run at a loss, it is considered worth the influence the government is able to have on the region. There is significant increase in the media sector in Saudi Arabia, while the media business in most other parts of the world are in downward trajectory such as in the West due to economic recession. The growth in the Saudi media is due to reduction of social and political restrictions on publications, “overall robust economic growth, a rise in the level of education in the general population, and an increased level of advertising spending in the country” (Oxford Business Group, 2008, p.172). Although the mass media sector faces the risk of volatility being closely related to the rest of the economy, it is likely that the peak years are yet to come, for the local media. With Saudi Arabia’s new importance in the region’s media map, and the prevalence of foreign investors in pan-Arab satellite television, Western media companies will fulfill the important role of providing content and brand for local franchise operators. Further, over the last four years, there has been press freedom has increased in an unprecedented manner. Television viewers are provided with increasing numbers of channels and choice of topics to view. 80% of them are owned by five major companies. “Saudi Arabia’s state owned television station Saudi TV has seen its profile drop over the last five years” (Oxford Business Group, 2008, p.173). 8. Conclusion This paper has highlighted mass media in Saudi Arabia. The authoritarian mass media system was examined. It was found that the king and the government curtailed the freedom of mass media, restricting content to portray the kingdom in the best light to the rest of the world. The conditions influencing mass media were found to be a weak economic base, politicization, and cultural influence. The role of print and electronic media, and direct satellite broadcasting were determined. Opposition to colonialism, the Arab-Israeli conflict, and terrorism were some of the political factors that impacted the media’s autonomy. Similarly, powerful cultural influences directed the information made available to the public. In the early times, television did not broadcast any entertainment, focusing on religion and regulated news programs. Significantly, the evidence indicates that over the last five years, there has been an unprecedented increase in freedom of the press in Saudi Arabia. Similarly, the number of channels in the private-owned television stations have increased exponentially, broadcasting more socially acceptable programs for the general public. These improvements have emerged from the removal of social and political constraints and the healthy economic conditions in the kingdom. Although the media is no more a vehicle for transmitting Saudi dogma and radicalism, their freedom is constrained by the government to some extent. The traditional manner of disseminating information through face to face oral communication is gradually giving way to accessing information through mass media, with the Internet playing an important part. 9. References Alkarni, A. (2005). A media/ terrorism model: The Saudi experience. Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Retrieved on 6th November, 2011 from: http://faculty.ksu.edu.sa/alkarni/DocLib1/media%20terrorism%20model%20the%20saudi%20experience.pdf Beling, W. A. (1980). King Faisal and the modernisation of Saudi Arabia. New York: Taylor and Francis. Feuilherade, P. (2010). Saudi Arabia plans ‘socially acceptable’ TV. The Middle East, 416: pp. 37-39. Floreancing, L. (2002). The media’s role. 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