MEDIEN UND POLITISCHE KOMMUNIKATION – NAHER OSTEN UND ISLAMISCHE WELT / Since the 1990s, a new Western intellectual tradition has MEDIA AND POLITICAL COMMUNICATION – argued that global transformations sweeping the Arab World MIDDLE EAST AND ISLAM mark a shift in Arab political communications. Western writers have taken the introduction of new media technolo- gies as manifestations of a new – more democratic – public sphere. Such arguments have been closely aligned with Western efforts to bring about democratic reforms to a region long shackled by ‘political authoritarianism’. In this book, the writer takes this vision to task for failing to grasp the real dynamics of an Arab public sphere. The author argues that we could never conceive of the Arab public sphere outside the boundaries of sustainable egalitarian and parti- cipatory political developments in Arab societies. He harnes- ses the notion of ‘Islamo-cracy’ to put forward a new public sphere perspective that draws on both Islamic moral values and contemporary political practices. This synthesis holds a great promise both for inter-Arab World communications as well as for dialogue with other cultures. e r e h p S Muhammad Ayish is Professor and Dean of the College of c The New Arab Public Sphere i l Communication at the University of Sharjah in the United b u Arab Emirates. He holds a Ph.D. in international communi- P b Muhammad I. Ayish cation from the University of Minnesota (Twin-Cities) (1986). a r He has got two books and over 50 articles published in both A Arabic and English on issues ranging from political commu- w e nication to media convergence to war coverage to women N representation. e h T h s i y A Frank & Timme EUR 29,80 Verlag für wissenschaftliche Literatur Muhammad I. Ayish The New Arab Public Sphere Medien und politische Kommunikation – Naher Osten und islamische Welt / Media and Political Communication – Middle East and Islam, Vol. 15. Edited by Prof. Dr. Kai Hafez, University of Erfurt (Volume 1–10 at the German Institute for Middle East Studies/ Deutsches Orient-Institut, Hamburg 2000–2005) Muhammad I. Ayish The New Arab Public Sphere Verlag für wissenschaftliche Literatur ISSN 1863-4486 ISBN 978-3-86596-168-6 © Frank & Timme GmbH Verlag für wissenschaftliche Literatur Berlin 2008. Alle Rechte vorbehalten. Das Werk einschließlich aller Teile ist urheberrechtlich geschützt. Jede Verwertung außerhalb der engen Grenzen des Urheberrechts- gesetzes ist ohne Zustimmung des Verlags unzulässig und strafbar. Das gilt insbesondere für Vervielfältigungen, Übersetzungen, Mikroverfilmungen und die Einspeicherung und Verarbeitung in elektronischen Systemen. Herstellung durch das atelier eilenberger, Leipzig. Printed in Germany. Gedruckt auf säurefreiem, alterungsbeständigem Papier. www.frank-timme.de Dedication To my Wife Halima whose enlightened vision in life has always been a source of inspiration and support 5 Acknowledgements The author would like to thank the University of Sharjah for providing the ap- propriate research environment that made this work possible. It is the author’s personal hope that this book would contribute to developing clearer visions about communication and politics in the Arab World and enriching ongoing dia- logue between Arabs and the West in the spirit of mutual respect and peaceful co-existence. In carrying out this work, this author is inspired by the ceaseless endeavors of His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Mohammed al-Qassemi, Member of the UAE Supreme Council, Ruler of Sharjah, whose devotion to the pursuit of global and human dialogue has been globally-recognized. My sincere thanks also go to Prof. Dr. Kai Hafez of the University of Erfurt in Germany for his valuable comments. 6 INTRODUCTION....................................................................................................................9 CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK.........................................................................................32 II.1. The Public Sphere: A Conceptual Definition...................................................................34 II.2. Transitions in the Public Sphere.......................................................................................37 II.3. Universalizing and Globalizing the Public Sphere...........................................................40 II.4. Critiques............................................................................................................................43 II.5. An Arab Public Sphere in the Making?............................................................................45 II.6. Proposed Framework........................................................................................................55 II.7. Summary & Conclusions..................................................................................................56 NORMATIVE ARAB-ISLAMIC TRADITIONS...............................................................58 III.1. Historical Arab-Islamic Political Experiences................................................................60 III.2. The Arab-Islamic Symbiosis...........................................................................................63 III.3. Normative Islamic Components......................................................................................69 III.4. Corollary Concepts..........................................................................................................71 III.5. Normative Islamic Communication Principles...............................................................78 III.6. The Dichotomous Nature of Classical Arab-Islamic Discourse.....................................84 III.7. Summary & Conclusions................................................................................................93 THE MODERN ARAB PUBLIC SPHERE.........................................................................94 IV.1. The Arab World Media Scene: 1798-1990.....................................................................96 IV.2. Summary and Conclusion.............................................................................................125 THE ARAB WORLD IN THE AGE OF GLOBALIZATION........................................127 V.1. The Arab World in the Eye of the Globalization Storm: Emerging Political Contexts.129 V.2. U.S. Spearheading Reform.............................................................................................133 V.3. Arab Responses..............................................................................................................136 V.4. The Unfolding Political Scene.......................................................................................140 7 V.5. Implications for the Public Sphere.................................................................................148 V.6. Summary and Conclusion..............................................................................................149 THE EMERGING ARAB PUBLIC SPHERE..................................................................150 VI.1. Defining the Arab Public Sphere..................................................................................152 VI.2. Components of the Arab Public Sphere........................................................................153 VI.3. Summary and Conclusion.............................................................................................183 TOWARDS AN ARAB-ISLAMIC PUBLIC SPHERE....................................................184 VII.1. Islam and Democracy: The Ongoing Debate...............................................................187 VII.2. A Proposed Arab-Islamic Public Sphere Perspective..................................................195 VII.3. Arab-Islamic Public Sphere Features..........................................................................199 VII.4. Components.................................................................................................................203 VII.5. Realizing an Arab Global Constructive Engagement..................................................206 VII.6. Summary & Conclusion..............................................................................................212 CONCLUDING REMARKS...............................................................................................214 REFERENCES.....................................................................................................................230 8 I INTRODUCTION 9