Al Jazeera is
an independent news corporation dedicated to covering and uncovering stories in
the Arab region. The news channel, which is owned by the state of Qatar and
based in Doha, now has over sixty bureaus around the world that span six
different continents (Al Jazeera 2012: np).
However,
despite the ever-increasing credibility of Al Jazeera as a leading alternative
news source, a large degree of skepticism still remains about the independent
news corporation in the western world. So the question that needs to be asked
is, is Al Jazeera a counter to Western media imperialism or a mirror version of
Fox News style propaganda?
Propaganda is a
very specific type of manipulation. It involves preaching a compelling message
and reinforcing it continuously. This is what Fox News is notorious for and
what a large proportion of the Western world believe Al Jazeera do. But is
there evidence to back this up?
Skeptics will
say yes, but I’m not so sure.
Al Jazeera
appears to simply cover the alternate point of view and highlight the plights
of many that the Western media simply chooses to ignore. The independent
organization received widespread acclaim for its coverage of the uprising in Tunisia (an issue initially ignored by most Western media) and was the channel the US President had to tune into in order to watch the protests in Egypt as
they began to unfold (The Canadian Charger 2011: np).
Like all news
corporations, Al Jazeera toes the party line. But is their message any worse
than Western media imperialism? The answer appears to be no.
References:
Al Jazeera
2012, Corporate Profile, Al Jazeera,
Retrieved 19th August 2012,
Al Jazeera
2012, Timeline: Tunisia’s uprising,
Al Jazeera, Retrieved 19th August 2012,
Boaz, C 2011, Fourteen Propaganda Techniques Fox “News”
Uses to Brainwash Americans, Truth Out, Retrieved 19th August
2012, <http://truth-out.org/index.php?option=com_k2&view=item&id=1964:fourteen-propaganda-techniques-fox-news-uses-to-brainwash-americans>
MacNicol, G
2011, Even President Obama Is Watching Al
Jazeera, Business Insider, Retrieved 19th August 2012, <http://articles.businessinsider.com/2011-01-29/entertainment/30035180_1_al-jazeera-crisis-egyptian-president>
Great post Joel, i tend to agree with your conclusion that Aljazeera isn't just a mirrored version of Fox News. I also think that all it aims to do is present the side of news that you will not be able to find in most Western Nations. Also very interested in your point on Barrack Obama having to tune into Egypt protests through al jazeera, i'd be interested to know what percentage of Americans actually tune in.
ReplyDeleteYour post on Al Jazeera i liked as it does not merely take one solitary view on whether the broadcasting network presents the alternative side of the news, or simply news oriented bias. On the topic of propaganda however, i would suggest that identifying it is not always straightforward and there tends to be a highly subjective element in which people who agree with it view it as truth, ad people who disagree- see it as propaganda.
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