The Dialectic of Human Bias versus Viewer Ratings Decision-making regarding these missions is quick and effective, especially during crises and natural disasters. Both the Planning and Commissioning Departments are authorised to make the decision to dispatch crews for press assignments without necessarily waiting for the approval of upper management. Because of this administrative flex- ibility, Al Jazeera was able to cover a large number of humanitarian disasters from Haiti, southwest Latin America and sub-Saharan Africa to the Far East and Southeast Asia. If the obsession with viewer ratings is one of the main reasons for the behaviour of some Western media that tend to cover humanitarian disasters quickly and superficially, does that mean (that) Al Jazeera is indifferent to ratings? The answer is no. The network is aware of the importance of ratings and wants to increase them. However, it is also aware of the fact ratings do not necessarily reflect the value of news and therefore does not disregard a story that is newsworthy, regardless of how small the percentage of the audience is, especially if it represents an elite and influential segment of the audience. “Every segment of so- ciety deserves to be served regardless of its size. Serving an influential and elite segment that makes up 5% of the society empowers it to af- fect more positive societal changes than a non-elite segment that makes up 50% of the society can. Al Jazeera is undoubtedly concerned with viewer ratings but only to a certain degree. If that degree is exceeded, ratings become a tool for the commercialisation of media, which would infringe on viewers’ rights and the human biases of Al Jazeera”, Khan- far points out (1) . Although no scientific study has been conducted to measure the quantitative impact of Al Jazeera’s coverage of humanitarian crises and disasters on relief operations, the results of this coverage are undeni- able. Perhaps, the institutions most qualified to evaluate Al Jazeera’s coverage scientifically and objectively are humanitarian relief agen- cies. Nevertheless, despite the absence of scientific studies, there is plenty of appreciation and continuous praise from international human- itarian organisations for Al Jazeera’s role and positive impact in raising
(1) Khanfar, personal interview, Ibid.
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