Media Empowerment or Media Scare?
Posted on | January 22, 2009 | 1 Comment
The United Arab Emirates is set to have a new media law.
The Federal National Council has given the legal package two thumbs up, it is now going to cabinet.
But is the new law a step forward? Not all of those to be impacted by the legislation are impressed.
The director-general of the National Media Council of the UAE, Ibrahim al-Abid spoke with me on Nightline on DubaiEye 103.8 FM about what this new legislation might really mean.
Will the new media law create a more courageous media? Or will it be more of the same?
My concern was very simple.
1. talk radio in the UAE at some point might be critical of government activity could this not be interpreted as demeriting the UAE and lead to my breaking the law?
2. by hosting talk radio and allowing people to air an opinion might I not be facilitating a distortion of the national identity and thus break the law?
According to Ibrahim al-Abid these are the very activities being encouraged, responsibly though, and what the law serves to encourage and protect.
Tags: freedom > Law > media > National Media Council > Press > United Arab Emirates
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January 22nd, 2009 @ 5:39 am
It is an interesting concept and perhaps as a radio host, you may not be as great a threat as print or web media.
I think the government may be worried about the wrong message getting out outside the region or at worst a biased one.
I sort of see their point but (without having gone into the nitty gritty of it) see too many grey areas that could be exploited if inconvenient. I heard you last night talking to a few editors and I do think that the National has got the mix right – they give both sides a voice without giving one side more importance than the other.