Journal of Arab & Muslim Media Research - Volume 3, Issue 3, 2010

The aim of this article is to examine how Muslim women on Islamic satellite television channels are represented as symbols, as citizens and as religious authorities within or outside the Mosque. The article presents an analysis of a series called Malikat Jamal Iqraa (Iqraa's beauty queen). The analysis illustrates how the Islamic satellite channels offer Muslim female viewers a multitude of identities. I argue that the programme can be interpreted as a critique of the cultural hegemony of western media, while highlighting the ideal image of the Muslim woman as a selfless, obedient daughter.

This article reports on some of the findings of a large research project conducted by the United Nations International Research and Training Institute for the Advancement of Women and The Centre of Arab Women for Training and Research entitled Strengthening women's leadership and participation in politics and decision-making processes in Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia. The aim is to further our understanding of the relationship between the media and women in the political field in Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia. The findings discuss the way media in the above countries propagate certain images of women who participate in the political field, and how these women react to such images, particularly the images of female politicians. The article concludes with some reflection on the way female politicians can harness the new media technologies to break through social barriers and to gain visibility.

This article aims to draw on the empowerment perspective as a key sociological concept to define our understanding of Arab women's transitions from the traditionally prescribed private sphere of the family to the emerging public sphere of the community. Female empowerment is viewed here as a multi-dimensional and multifaceted process of power re-distribution in society, and therefore its realization is conceived as a function of the interplay of progressive gender-based societal and legal advocacy actions, as well as institutional reforms. The proposed framework suggests that female empowerment in psychological, social, cultural, political, legal, economic and institutional contexts would generate wide-ranging outcomes with significant social and moral implications that go beyond media workplace boundaries.

This article closely examines the status of female Saudi journalists and the development of their professional role that began in women's magazines, and now is more pronounced on satellite TV channels. The article discusses this development in light of the notion of empowerment, which is loosely defined as a process of change. Despite the abundant opportunities for female Saudi journalists, particularly those working as TV presenters, their presence, as I argue here, is still conjured and superficial rather than a reflection of genuine change in women's status inside the kingdom. Thus, it is difficult to measure female empowerment in the media field, unless we consider the particularity of the Saudi context by taking into account the different circumstances that Saudi women deal with inside and outside the Saudi Kingdom.

This article aims at reviewing the condition of Iraqi female journalists specifically after the US invasion in 2003 by using different Arabic and English sources. The study argues that female Iraqi journalists enjoyed new freedoms of speech and got new opportunities to improve professionally after 2003, but many of them were harmed because of the spread of lawlessness, and thus they were mostly drawn to their sect or ethnic group as a protective measure to secure them from outside threats. After the US invasion, some journalists who wanted to cover the events in a balanced manner were threatened, kidnapped or assassinated by armed groups, militias and political parties. This fact has further enhanced the polarization of these journalists. Iraq has become known as the worst place for journalists to live and work; thus, it is not surprising that the circumstances Iraqi female journalists go through are probably some of the worst in the world.

This article deals with the growing phenomenon of Islamic feminism and its multiple manifestations through many new media avenues in the Arab world today. It begins by defining the term Islamic feminism and the many ambivalences and paradoxes surrounding it. The article then maps the transformative socio-political landscape in the Arab world, with a special focus on the rising tide of (re)Islamization and its complex causes and implications. It also maps the equally transformative media landscape in the Arab world, especially the impact of the proliferation of satellite television channels and Internet websites on the degree of freedom, plurality and diversity that is permitted and exhibited throughout the Arab region. The article provides specific examples of this New Wave of Islamic feminism as it manifests itself through various satellite channels and Internet websites exhibiting different forms of self-expression and multiple resistances.