The Fear That Chokes the Arab World

Since 9/11, Arab media outlets, such as Al-Jazeera, have appeared on the international news radar. However, the current Middle Eastern writers and pundits are not effectively performing their jobs, writes Youssef M. Ibrahim in this International Herald Tribune opinion. While quick to jump on inconsistencies and biases in the American media, they fail to scrutinize their own shortcomings. Instead, the Arab media conceal governmental and societal problems with euphemisms. According to Ibrahim, restrictive Information Ministry rules and a culture of fear in many Middle Eastern countries are to blame. "[If] we cannot reform, what is left of Arab civilization will evaporate, making place for a new agenda set by someone else," he writes. –YaleGlobal