Link TV - Mosaic Intelligence Report

June 28, 2006

This Week: World Cup Pay-Per-View Rilesï¿½ Fans A Veil Doesn't Mean "Oppressed"ï¿½ Saudi Dissent More Than Just Jihadisï¿½ï¿½ Media Made -- and Killed -- Zarqawi The (Anti)- Palestinian Authority Lettersï¿½ About Us We'd Love to Hear From You!
World Cup Pay-Per-View Riles Middle East Fans By Jamal Dajani, New America Media "The poor man's game is for the rich only." Such is the cry of sports writers across the Arab world these days. From my position monitoring Arab media for a U.S.-based non-profit, I've watched the fallout from the decision by soccer's governing body to grant exclusive World Cup broadcast rights in the Middle East to a Saudi-financed television network. The result of the deal: Middle Easterners must pay upwards of $500 to view the competition. Though only two Arab teams, Saudi Arabia and Tunisia, are playing in the World Cup, soccer-mania has spread like wildfire throughout the Middle East, as it does every four years. But diehard fans from Morocco to Yemen are furious at FIFA's (Fï¿½dï¿½ration Internationale de Football Association) deal with the Arab Radio and Television Network (ART). In Algeria, President Abdelaziz Bouteflika gave instructions to the ministry of information to pursue all possible means to convince FIFA to grant Algeria TV the broadcast rights for the games. All efforts failed. Last week an Algeria TV news anchor apologized profusely to the country's soccer fans and consoled viewers that they could at least watch the highlights of 64 games. Read More...
A Veil Doesn't Mean 'Oppressed' By Souheila Al-Jadda, USA Today An elderly woman stopped me in the mall the other day to ask what I was wearing. I told her a head scarf, or hijab, and overdress, or abaya. I said my Islamic religion requires me to dress modestly and hide the contours of my body so as not to attract the opposite sex. "You people are oppressed and submissive," she replied, questioning why God would want a woman to hide her beauty. She added that my clothes were just plain "ugly." So according to her, if women are seen as persecuted based on what they wear, then many of the world's women from Africa to the Middle East to Southeast Asia would be considered oppressed. ï¿½ The head scarf continues to be perceived in the West as a symbol of religious cruelty. A survey last year by the Council on American-Islamic Relations found that more than half of the 1,000 U.S. respondents believe that Islam encourages the oppression of women. An elderly woman stopped me in the mall the other day to ask what I was wearing. I told her a head scarf, or hijab, and overdress, or abaya.ï¿½ ï¿½ Read More...
Saudi Dissent More Than Just Jihadis By Mahan Abedin, SaudiDebate.com It is often taken for granted in the West that dissent and Islamic radicalism in Saudi Arabia are inextricably linked. The rise of the jihadis and the terrorist campaign in recent years is often cited as proof of this contention. But whilst the conflation of dissent and radical Islamism may serve Western interests in the short-term ï¿½ insofar as it connects the post-9/11 counter-terrorism discourse to the survival of the House of Saud ï¿½ it does little to advance understanding of Saudi politics. Despite there being connections between Islamism and dissent in the Kingdom, not all dissenters are radical Islamists ï¿½ and vice versa. Explaining why this is so requires clarification of the relationship between Islamism and dissent, and a clear understanding of where the two converge and dive Read More...
Arab Analysts: Media Made -- and Killed -- Zarqawi By Brian Shott, New America Media Editor's Note: Jamal Dajani, director of Middle Eastern programming at Link TV, looks at Arab media's breaking news coverage of the lethal airstrike on Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, Al Qaeda's leader in Iraq. He was interviewed by Brian Shott, an editor at New America Media. Q: You've had a busy day monitoring Arab and Western media. Any significant differences in coverage of this story so far? A: Early on, Arab media showed the gruesome pictures. On CNN they showed Zarqawi in death as if he were asleep. They didn't show him all bloodied; Arab television did. Q: Do Arab commentators think Zarqawi's death will weaken the insurgency? A: Well, for example, you have (Dubai-based) Al-Arabiya Television, which is closely allied with the Saudi government. They always give a more favorable view of the war, and they are saying this is a major blow -- a major blow to Al Qaeda, to the terrorists, and a major signal to civilians that they can cooperate with the Iraqi government. This is what Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki told the Iraqi public, saying, "Don't be afraid; with your help we were able to nail him. And if you give us more information, we'll end the terrorism." Read More...
The (Anti-) Palestinian Authority Joseph Massad, Al Ahram One of the most important measures that the Israeli and Palestinian architects of the Oslo agreement took in order to guarantee the structural survival of what came to be known as the Oslo "peace process" was the creation of structures, institutions, and classes, that would be directly connected to it, and that can survive the very collapse of the Oslo agreement itself while preserving the "process" that the agreement generated. This guarantee was enshrined in law and upheld by international funding predicated on the continuation of the "Oslo process", as long as the latter continued to serve Israeli and US interests as well as the interests of the corrupt Palestinian elite that acquiesced in it. Read More... ï¿½
Letters to the Editor Dear Sir:I deplore the actions of Congress and President Bush.ï¿½ To me, the state of Israel is a racist state, for one religion/race, and its treatment of the native Palestinians (and other non-Jews) has been horrible.ï¿½ Since 1947 Israel has been killing these people and confiscating their land, and the USA and the rest of the world has sat back and allowed it. Rosemary Longworth Editor: My congratulations.ï¿½ This is the second time I get a copy and I like the content.ï¿½ And it is very useful and helpful to give another point of view..ï¿½ Keep it up.ï¿½ George Hishmeh Jamal Dajani: I think that only the Iraqi people can stop the radical Islamic terrorists and I wonder if all the terrorists are Islamic. Lastly, how about some good news and some truth about that's happening in the Middle East. If Al Jazeera canï¿½ overcome their technical and and off-camera politics will they contribute to some kind of peace? And why can't politics deal with the truth. Hil Zich Sir: Thanks for the great work!!!!! I wouldn't get any real news if it was not for LinkTV and CSpan. How are others getting their news if they don't have DirectTV?thanks so much, Elise PJ and I appreciate your "Intelligence Reports"; please send more! You have people with viewpoints we rarely hear in our so-called "main-stream media" here in the U.S..Thank you! PJ and Bill Darbyshire Every religion and philosopy says it in some manner -- that one should understand how the other guy feels.ï¿½ Your Mosaic program does more to aid this than anything else I know of. Jim Belvins Editor: The difference between India, Pakistan, and Israel who have nukes, and Iran which is close to having nukes is: The leadership of Iran embraces Adolph Hitler and the Nazi solution of wiping all Jews off of the face of the Earth. I am not a Jew, but I realize the incredible war that could result if Iran has nukes, as their leader is a bipolar nut. Jim Belvins Sir: Very pleased to receive newsletter.ï¿½ I finally watched Occupied Minds and think it a good format and dialogue for a tragic tangle.ï¿½ Lois Swartz ï¿½ To the Editor: Hamas is only using the people for their expansionistic Islamist notion. The others are using the Palestinian people because they let them and for power and EGO. Israel and most "Arabs" have more in common than differences. Only EGO and ENVY stand in the way. Edda ï¿½ Disclaimer:ï¿½Mosaic Intelligence Reportï¿½will put up as many of your comments as possible but we cannot guarantee that all e-mails will be published.ï¿½MIR reserves the right to edit comments that are published.
ABOUT US The Mosaic Intelligence Report (MIR) is a periodical newsletter which will bring you the most important news and views from the Middle East. Relying on Mosaic broadcasts and Middle Eastern press, MIR will highlight issues and events that you don't see in mainstream Western media. Mosaic: World News from the Middle East features selections from daily TV news programs produced by national broadcasters throughout the Middle East. The news reports are presented unedited and translated, when necessary, into English. ï¿½ Mosaic includes television news broadcasts from selected national and regional entities. Some of the broadcasters are state controlled and others are private networks, often affiliated with political factions. These news reports are regularly watched by 280 million people in 22 countries all over the Middle East. Mosaic is supported by various grants, foundations and viewers like you. Mosaic is broadcast on Link TV. Link TV broadcasts programs that engage, educate and activate viewers to become involved in the world. These programs provide a unique perspective on international news, current events, and diverse cultures, presenting issues not often covered in the U.S. media. Link TV connects American viewers with people at the heart of breaking events, organizations in the forefront of social change and the cultures of an increasingly global community.
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