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6 Berkeley J. Middle E. & Islamic L. 1 (2014)
Arab Media Regulations: Identifying Restraints on Freedom of the Press in the Laws of Six Arabian Peninsula Countries

handle is hein.journals/bjme6 and id is 26 raw text is: 1 BERKELEY J. OF MIDDLE EASTERN & ISLAMIC LAW ARAB MEDIA REGULATIONS: IDENTIFYING RESTRAINTS ON FREEDOM OF THE PRESS IN THE LAWS OF Six ARABIAN PENINSULA COUNTRIES Matt J. Duffy I. INTRODUCTION The movement later dubbed the Arab Spring started in December 2010 when Mohamed Bouazizi, a Tunisian produce vendor, doused his body with gasoline and set himself on fire to protest the endemic corruption in his country. His death galvanized Tunisians and led to a rare peaceful protest in the autocratic country. Amateur videos of the protest were posted on social media sites and quickly went viral, circumventing Tunisia's state-controlled media system. The Al Jazeera news network aired the videos more broadly and unrest spread throughout the country. The next month, Zine el Abidine Ben Ali, Tunisia's authoritarian president for more than 23 years, fled to Saudi Arabia amid massive protests.2 Aided by social media and regional news networks, the protest movement bom in Tunisia spread to many countries in the Arab world. Both public and private state-controlled media in these countries generally ignored or downplayed the swarming protests and other unrest. But social media sites such as Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube provided the activists a forum to publicize and organize their movements. The use of social media to circumvent state-controlled outlets has brought renewed attention to media regulations in the region, which have for decades imposed widespread censorship and tightly restricted information. 3 Applying Siebert, Peterson, and Schramm's Four Theories of the Press framework, Arab countries generally fit into the authoritarian media system model, although specific situations vary from country 1. Yasmine Ryan, How Tunisia's Revolution Began, AL JAZEERA ENGLISH (Jan. 26, 2011), http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2011/01/2011126121815985483.html. 2. Edward Cody & Joby Warrick, Unrest Continues in Tunisia as President Ben Ali Flees Country, THE WASHINGTON POST (Jan. 15, 2011), available at http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/01/14/AR2011011401131 .html. 3. See, e.g., Mohamed Elmasry, Producing News in Mubarak's Egypt: An Analysis of Egyptian Newspaper Production During Late Hosni Mubarak Era, 4 JOURNAL OF ARAB AND MUSLIM MEDIA RESEARCH 121 (2011); NOHA MELLOR, THE MAKING OF ARAB NEWS 6 (2005); LAWRENCE PINTAK, THE NEW ARAB JOURNALIST 11 (2011); WILLIAM A. RUGH, ARAB MASS MEDIA 59 (2004). 2014

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