media channel aired free discussions of controversial issues, such as the Bahraini opposition, the army’s control of politics in Algeria, cor- ruption in Egypt, Islamists’ rule in Sudan, the Kurdish issue in Iraq and Syria, and the Sunni-Shia divide in the Arab and Muslim World. Other shows like al-Shari’ah wal-Hayat (Sharia law and Life), dis- cussed legal and religious issues. Minbar Al Jazeera (Al Jazeera Plat- form) provided a different experience in the Arab media scene as it al- lowed viewers to call-in, interact, and engage freely with presenters and guests. Linnisaa faqat (For Women Only) addressed complicated social issues that received no interest by the Arab media before Al Jazeera. All these shows contributed to the same effort of shock and provoke, to rid the audience of its uncritical dependence on government-oriented me- dia content. A 2008 audience-based study on Al Jazeera during its first ten years, revealed significant findings. The study was the biggest Arab research project in its field, covering 19 countries and surveying the opinions of more than 600 university Professors of Media and Political Science. The questions focused on Al Jazeera’s performance and how committed it was to the standards of professionalism, objectivity, neu- trality, and accuracy (1) . The general outcome of this study revealed the position and role of Al Jazeera in the changing media landscape in the region and its wider impact. It showed Al Jazeera’s viewership among university professors was at 98.4%, with a daily rate of 3.2 hours or 1168 hours a year. It also revealed Al Jazeera’s viewership compared to its competition reached 77.2%, marking a threefold difference. (2) . On the issue of professionalism, the study showed 40% of those surveyed believed there was no foreign influence on Al Jazeera’s editorial policy, citing it as positive. About 75% said Al Jazeera enjoys a great level of professionalism in terms of live coverage content and breaking news. As for objectivity, 96% of those surveyed said Al Jazeera operates in a very highly credible manner, while 2% argued otherwise. And about 29% said Al Jazeera’s coverage of major issues was balanced (3) .
(1) Sami al-Khaznadar, Surveying the Opinions of Political Science and Media Professors on the Professionalism of Al Jazeera , (Doha: Al Jazeera Centre for Studies, 2008).
(2) Ibid, pp. 143.
(3) Ibid, pp. 145.
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