Opinion and the other opinion

Al Jazeera is the biggest and loudest thing that has happened in the Arab media. Hugh Miles, a British journalist, has written Al Jazeera which claims to be the inside story of the Arab news channel that is challenging the West.
Miles has succeeded in his work; a great PR job for the Doha-based TV channel.
Miles says in the acknowledgements section of Al Jazeera that he has never received any payment from Al Jazeera in connection with this book.
If Miles’ book had taken a critical look at Al Jazeera, he would not have attempted to assert his independence as a journalist.
There is no doubt that author’s sympathies lie with Al Jazeera. Al Jazeera, definitely, is a big thing in Arab world. It merits a book. The question is does the book Al Jazeera sound like Al Jazeera, the channel?
Al Jazeera has kept its journalism simple. It gives everyone air time. And if it is to spew venom at the US it gives you unlimited hot air.
You can say anything on the channel as long as you haven’t got anything to say on Qatar’s rulers. Sorry, I meant if you haven’t got anything negative to say on Qatar.
Al Jazeera first talks to A, who has an axe to grind against B. A says all sorts of things about B. Then Al Jazeera goes to B, says that A has said all these things about you, what have you to say now? Another round of unbridled opinion.
Al Jazeera, and many of its viewers take this for balanced journalism. As the channel proudly proclaims in their logo, it is the opinion and the other opinion.
It does not hurt Qatar or Al Jazeera but this brand of journalism irritates all involved parties. Hence the all round condemnation of the channel by those who control the levers of power in Arab nations, and also by the United States.
Miles brings attention to the point that it was Al Jazeera who first let the Arab world hear the Israeli point of view through their channel. Much has been made about that. But to rest of the world who are not obsessed with Israel, it matters little.
But Al Jazeera’s USP is that it has proved to be a megaphone for Osama Bin Laden. A star Al Jazeera reporter – Taysir Alluni – is still awaiting trial in Spain for being an active member and recruiter for a Spain-based Al Qaeda cell.
I believe you are free to make your own inferences.
Miles makes much noise about Al Jazeera’s independent mode of journalism. It means letting involved parties to hurl accusations against each other. Miles is reluctant to state that Al Jazeera is owned by Shakih Hamad Bin Khalifa Al Thani, who practically owns Qatar.
But on Page 337 of Al Jazeera he admits
“Not one Arab satellite channel, including Al Jazeera could survive without political and financial support either from an Arab government or from a wealthy member of the Arab elite who has close ties to its government.”
So tell me Miles, where is the free speech?
How free, how intrepid is Al Jazeera’s journalism? They can rail against Saudi Arabia, they can rail against the US. But how deep Al Jazeera want to look within, look inside Qatar? Al Jazeera, of course, has to be and is reverential towards Qatar government.
On another front, Miles is all sympathies for the Arabs in the US. They (Arab-Americans) are feeling like second class citizens in the post-9/11 atmosphere. Miles talks about his visit to Detroit to gauge the impact of Al Jazeera’s telecast among the Arabs in the US.
In a chapter called “Watching from the West” Miles writes:
“ Citizenship, I was told, had now been subdivided into grades and Arab-Americans had become something less than full citizens. People had been picked up at bus stops and deported without a trial or even the chance to make a single phone call or collect their belongings from home.”
Sad, indeed.
But I assume as part of his Al Jazeera project, Miles would have spent time in quite a few Arab nations. Did he see any non-Arab faces there? Did they have any tales to tell him? I wonder why didn’t those faces interest him?
Is it because they are the Asian coolies serving the Arab agenda?
Do Asian coolies abroad have any human rights?
Unlike those Arab-Americans, these Asian coolies can’t claim even a hyphen to their status.
They can’t be interesting subjects to journalists like Miles, when there are no petrodollars to oil their agenda.
Certainly there are Miles to go before things can change.