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Instrument of propaganda?

THE QATAR-BASED Al Jazeera displays the ‘power’ of Qatar in resolving problems, but is, in fact, a breeding ground for the spread of a disease called Qatari propaganda. The channel’s core functioning is based on political propaganda and it has lived up to the adage that ‘empty vessels make the most noise’.

The channel pursues the same policy advocated by Joseph Goebbels, the Nazi propagandist, who portrayed Adolf Hitler to the Germans as their saviour. His infamous dictum — “If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it” — comes to mind when one thinks of the way Al Jazeera functions.

The channel has moved away from constructive criticism of intellectuals. Yet another quote of Goebbels comes to mind: “When I hear the word culture, I reach for my gun.”

Ever since it was set up in 1996, Al Jazeera has hosted religious extremists and terrorists. A number of US political analysts have said the station was the main tool of Osama bin Laden’s propaganda. The deadly 9/11 attacks tarnished the image of Arabs and Muslims and we are still in the process of trying to change that image. Al Jazeera, however, went on to play the role of inciter; it sent contrasting messages of what was happening in the Arab world. Its activities support hardliner movements such as the Hezbollah in Lebanon, Houthi rebels in Yemen and other extremists in the Arab world.

It also destabilised the security enjoyed by the GCC countries by hosting opposition figures who have long worked with militias before returning to their home countries. The channel opened its doors to such people’s indoctrination to spread their venom and affect public opinion so that the targeted country was undermined.

The Qatari government’s financial support to the station has played a role in shaping its editorial policy. It takes instructions from Qatar’s foreign ministry. This was illustrated in the leaked conversation of the Emir of Qatar with ousted Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi. The Emir is heard telling Gaddafi that Al Jazeera would be directed to attack Saudi Arabia. The channel’s staff are highly paid so that they would not quit. It also routinely hires journalists inclined towards the Muslim Brotherhood. A professional journalist is either sidelined or fired. S/he will also be threatened by Qatar-backed militias to not divulge anything. Bassam Al Qadiri, a former correspondent with the channel, told the UAE-based Al Roeya daily that he lives in the fear of being attacked by such militias.

To expand its influence on non-Arabic speaking societies, the channel launched Al Jazeera English towards the end of 2006. It pursued an editorial policy to influence foreign public opinion on Arab issues and showed the unrest that erupted in some Arab countries in a different angle.

The channel described the Bahraini government as “suppressive” after some people staged a protest there. It reported falsely that the Bahraini government did not give protesters room to express themselves and used force to suppress them. It later transpired that these so-called ‘protesters’ were in fact terrorists. The last terror attack there claimed the lives of three police officers, including Emirati martyr First Lieutenant Tariq Al Shehi, who was part of the GCC joint security forces deployed in Bahrain to maintain order.

Al Jazeera also supports US foreign policies with former US secretary of state Hillary Clinton praising the role played by it. However, when it tried to launch its American channel — Al Jazeera America — it faced criticism from the US society because they did not want the channel to bring its influence along. US television channels are governed by a cable system and they refused to transmit Al Jazeera’s seditious views to the US society. Al Jazeera America was last August, as per a statement by the channel’s manager in the US.

The US is wary of any television channel which could compromise its homeland security. However, it supports channels, including Al Jazeera, when they promote its own views.

Stewart Veshcov, a media analyst, told CNN people would have had the impression that Al Jazeera America was a Qatari TV channel, that is, an Arab channel that would air biased news.

Is it not time then to stop the channel after its seditious and biased editorial policy has been exposed?

Mustafa Al Zarooni is the city editor of 
Khaleej Times