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Al Jazeera invades Israel: Is satellite TV challenging the sovereignty of the nation state?
- Source: Journal of Arab & Muslim Media Research, Volume 5, Issue 3, Sep 2012, p. 245 - 257
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- 01 Sep 2012
Abstract
The pressures of economic, geopolitical and cultural globalization have challenged the sovereignty of nation states by weakening their ability to control and safeguard their citizens. The main focus of this study is to analyse the TV consumption habits of an ethno-national minority such as the Arab Palestinian community of Israel (the APCI) in a global media environment characterized by satellite TV from the Arab World. The main hypothesis, which was supported by this study, is that virtual satellite broadcasting from the Arab World has weakened the ties of this community to the Israeli nation state and strengthened their affiliation with external ethnic, religious and political groups and transnational or regional identities and cultures. This study attempted to explore their viewing habits and their attitude towards the minorities’ collective identity by interviewing a representative sample of Arab Palestinian citizens of Israel using a closed questionnaire. The main finding of this study is that the APCI are active media consumers (particularly TV) who are dissatisfied with the media from the State of Israel. Therefore, our research population spent less time consuming TV content from inside the state and more time consuming TV contents from the Arab World. Finally, this challenge of the sovereignty of the nation state was also reflected in a higher degree of trust and credibility assigned to TV from the Arab World as compared with TV coming from inside the State of Israel.