Middle Eastern Journalism Ethics

Looking closer at the Middle Eastern region, with 21 countries and territories, there is only partial to zero freedom of the press and/or Internet. Five Middle Eastern countries were considered the deadliest countries in 2016, for journalist or individuals with media affiliation, according to cpj.org.

Everette Dennis dean, and CEO of Northwestern University in Qatar says that that the major difference between journalism ethics in the U.S. and the Mideast is “the civil code which has constraints on freedom of expression with regard to Islam and treatment of the chief of state in most of the MENA MENA (Middle East and North Africa) countries. The economics of the media is different too with many media outlets, notably, major daily newspapers heavily subsidized by the government or ruling families.” Yet, some major networks such as Al Jazareea or Al Arabia developed some of the same U.S. ethics in approach, value, and form. “ At the same time, there are brave efforts by some media outlets, especially online, to challenge the status quo and push for investigative, critical journalism.”

The Qatari government, in September 2014, signed a new cybercrime law that restrains freedom of speech online. The highest punishments in opposing this can lead to imprisonment for three years and a fine up to $137,000. Adding to that, the Qatari law punishes online slander with a fine of up to $27,000 and imprisonment up to one year, all according to Freedom House, an independent watchdog organization.

Moving slightly away from the Persian gulf, Jordan also has high self-censorship and ethical standards. The Jordanian government allows some criticism towards politicians and policies. However, the government attempts to regulate editorial content, by having top leaders and state officials reach out to editors, ‘advising’ them not to publish stories on politically sensitive issues. Thus, journalists routinely practice self-censorship and are aware of what should and shouldn’t be in their media content, especially negative coverage of the royal family, as stated by Freedom House.

But, what should journalists aspire and fight for in MENA? Well, the first thing would be to have less censorship, to be able to report with the knowledge that they will be protected and safe. Journalists, in general, do not have an easy job, imagine those journalists reporting or living in parts of the worlds where media censorship is obligated.

In the Mideast, the fight for free journalism and not yielding to those in power is slowly on the climb, especially with the help of digital media. For instance, journalists in the Arab world have participated in the investigation that leaked the financial secrets of the wealthy and powerful in the world, the Panama Papers.

In Jordan, Amman Net released a report, based on the leaked data, that exposed “former Prime Minister Nader Dahabi supported businessman Khaled Shaheen in a tender for the expansion of an oil refinery in the Kingdom [of Jordan]. The report also claimed a conflict of interest between Shaheen and Akram Abu Hamdan, another businessperson.” Reported by Albawaba, online media website headquartered in Amman, Jordan.

Now, even though the Panama Papers has generated a great deal of noise in the world, it hasn’t created as much of an impact in the MENA area. According to an interview done with the Columbia Journalism Review (CJR), Rana Sabbagh, a Jordanian journalist, stated that “people are more afraid of chaos in the region — the civil wars and failed states, the death, destruction, and drowning — than they are of normal Arab repression by the state.” Sabbagh directs the Arab Reporters for Investigative Journalism (ARIJ), which helped in training and financing some of the journalists who worked on the Panama Papers investigation.

“For them, democracy, free speech, and accountability equal anarchy and lack of security. They don’t want to become like the Syrian, Libyan, or Yemeni refugees.”

Digital media has and will play a huge part in the work of journalism in Mideast, according to Dennis, who said it is “amazingly active and leading to more robust speech and open criticism of previously sacrosanct institutions of society.” Even though, as stated earlier some governments had implemented cybercrime laws, social media still had a big impact in the Arab world, for instance during the Arab Spring. “ There is a more robust public debate now, especially among women, that didn’t exist before. Even some legal decision[s] that heretofore would have not been publicized are getting attention.”

The upcoming Arab generation is also still showing a great interest having careers in media, even though they are well aware of the stern and abiding rules. Dean says that some are interested in

“Journalism as a noble calling and understanding its role in society generally; others are interested in media entrepreneurship. Still, others feel the region and their countries have been inaccurately portrayed in international media and want to change that. The motivations are many and varied — people who like to write, create, design, etc. — all migrates toward media careers. A lot also want to go into strategic communication, often for quite idealistic reasons. There are worries, of course, about journalism being a dangerous profession, which it can be under certain circumstances.”