First , many viewed the creation of Al Jazeera as an attempt by Qatar, the sponsoring state, to create soft power through the capitalisation of increasing globalisation during the 1990s and the benefits it brought with it. Holders of this view believe Al Ja- zeera has “dramatically changed the way Qataris see the rest of the world”. To them, “it is clear that the channel has made them feel Qatar is a player on the world stage” (1) . Certainly, in the last 25 years, Al Jazeera, among other factors like energy and education, has played a pivotal role in boosting Qatar’s presence and soft power internationally (2) . These Qatari successes have extended to other areas, including conflict resolution, regional and interna- tional mediations, humanitarian aid, and sports competitions. But for all of its constantly developing soft power, for Qatar, Jazeera has, and still does, hold a special position, yet at a high political cost as argued by the former Qatari Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sheikh Hamad bin Jasim Al Thani. According to him, Al Jazeera’s professional line “harmed us at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and nationwide, because certain Arab countries have not been accustomed to the freedom of expression” (3) . Second, Al Jazeera’s emergence has been an unprecedented professional shock to the legacy of traditional Arab media, either at the level of content or professionalism. Two years later, that shock found its way to the international level as Al Jazeera gained exclusive access to the U.S. bombing of Iraq in December 1998. Such a professional scoop and distinguished capability has be- come Al Jazeera’s trademark, particularly in major events such as the invasion of Afghanistan (2001) and Iraq (2003), as well as the Israeli war on Lebanon (2006) and Gaza (2008, 2012, 2014, 2021). While extensively covering these important news stories, Al Ja- zeera achieved more success and established itself as a serious
(1) Hugh Miles, Al Jazeera: How Arab TV News Challenged the World (New York: Grove Press, 2005), p. 23.
(2) Josh Rushing, Mission Al Jazeera (New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2007), p. 148.
(3) Hamad bin Jasim Al Thani, ‘The Siege Imposed on Qatar has been Pre-planned’, Al Ja- zeera.net , 26 Oct. 2017, http://gg.gg/mpqvw (accessed 15 November 2020).
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