Includes bibliographical references and index.

Ever since the events of 9/11, great attention has been paid to Arab mass media by politicians, experts and journalists around the world. This book evaluates, revises, and stimulates the academic debate on Arab media. Many have argued that Arab media has been the catalyst for various political and social developments ranging from democracy to political radicalization and from Westernization to Arab and Muslim cultural renaissance. Much of the debate, however, has been too narrowly focused - particularly on the famous TV network Al-Jazeera. This leaves the majority of the dynamic Arab media unnoticed. Moreover, the existing scholarly literature on the subject often lacks theoretical and empirical sophistication, and it is these gaps that this book will address.