Just to get some content going here at Intermap, the following is a re-post of an essay I wrote for the USC Center on Public Diplomacy.
A CONSTRUCTIVE LOOK AT AL-HURRA AND ITS CRITICS
JUN 24, 2008 – 5:35PM PST
Posted by Craig Hayden
I have to admit I did not expect to be writing what could be deemed a defense of Al-Hurra — the U.S.-sponsored Arab-language television station beamed across the Arab world. Al-Hurra (which means “the free one” in Arabic) has come under scrutiny over the past few years for its potential impact on U.S. public diplomacy objectives. Yet the recent story by CBS News on the failings of Al-Hurra and coverage by The Washington Post, necessitates a critical response. The following blog entry provides two critiques — first of the oddly framed arguments in CBS’s coverage of Al-Hurra, and second of the government’s rejoinder. Basically, while the CBS report brings up important organizational and strategic deficiencies surrounding Al-Hurra and its ‘mission’ — its criticism only highlights the fact that Al-Hurra has been conferred conflicting (and perhaps contradictory) objectives and lacks a political constituency in the government. The U.S. government’s response amounts to claims that Al-Hurra’s numbers are improving and that the government is essentially “doing something” to promote its perspective in the competitive Arab media market. This controversy reveals the enduring problems of contemporary U.S. international broadcasting — its weakness in the face of domestic political opposition, haphazard implementation of conflicting foreign policy imperatives, and perhaps a strategic misrecognition of the real communication landscape. In the wake of these observations, I suggest that a revitalized Al-Hurra would resolve its mandate issues, and embrace the relevance of participatory media in its target market.
