The Layalina Review: Volume VI No. 9 | Layalina Productions, Inc.

The Layalina Review

	The Layalina Review on Public Diplomacy and Arab Media The Layalina Review is a peerless bi-weekly source for monitoring developments in the spheres of public diplomacy and Arab media. Its readers include academics, Foreign Service Officers, students, members of Congress and their staffs, foreign diplomats, and professionals in both the private and public sectors. Published 26 times per year, the review is free to subscribers and available in PDF, HTML, and RSS formats. The Layalina Review is brought to you thanks in part to a grant from The Dr. Scholl Foundation of Illinois.
Statistic of the Week The UAE is the 'most connected' Arab country, followed by Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, in a new study. PDF RSS Twitter Facebook Recent Issues Vol. VI No. 13: 6/18-7/1, 2010 Vol. VI No. 12: 6/4-6/17, 2010 Archives Subscribe to our Publications Layalina Review Staff Leon Shahabian Senior Editor Anne Hagood Managing Editor Amelia Bell Contributor Mirna Oud Contributor Lorraine Jablonsky Contributor Elodie Liobard Contributor The views expressed here are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of Layalina Productions, Inc.	VOL. VI NO. 14, July 2-July 15, 2010 NASA's Outreach to Muslim's Grounded NASA Administrator Charles Bolden sparked a firestorm when he announced during an interview with the Qatari network Al-Jazeera that the agency’s “foremost” mission was to conduct outreach to the Muslim world through various programs. Many former NASA members and conservative news outlets criticized the move as a misguided mission. CNN Fires Journalist over Twitter Senior Editor for Middle Eastern Affairs at CNN, Octavia Nasr, lost her job over a posting on Twitter praising Grand Ayatollah Mohammed Hussein Fadlallah for his views on women’s rights. Although the posting generated an instant uproar among pro-Israeli groups and conservatives, analysts and media outlets in the West and the Middle East condemn the sacking as a double standard on freedom of expression. Ground Zero Tolerance A group of Muslim Americans seeking to build a community center named The Cordoba House in Manhattan next to the 9/11 site, known as Ground Zero, faces strong protests from several groups. Televangelist Bill Keller thought to respond by building a $1 million church on the same site. Some fear that the behavior displayed by Keller and his supporters may convey the idea that America has become an anti-Muslim nation. France Bans the Burqa France’s lower house of parliament has approved a ban on the face-covering veil, raising concerns among Muslim citizens about how the ban will be enforced. Al-Qaeda's English Magazine: Authentic or Fraud? The first English language Al-Qaeda magazine surfaced on the web, bearing the emblem of the Arabian Peninsula branch of the organization. However, technological flaws, poor English and humorous titles have raised doubts regarding the document’s authenticity. BBG's New Leadership Brings New Opportunities The new board of the BBG faces old bureaucratic challenges, but may represent an opportunity to re-vamp some of the agency’s broadcasting efforts. Middle East Peace Negotiation: A Light at the End of the Tunnel? The outcome of President Obama's recent meetings with President Abbas and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu signifies a positive mood shift in the Middle East peace negotiations. While the Arab League has endorsed proximity talks with Israel, some believe that encouraging positive media coverage will further promote a successful movement towards peace. Rotana Goes Yahoo! Arab media conglomerate Rotana and American internet service Yahoo! recently signed a distribution agreement, allowing Arabic-speaking audiences to access Rotana’s music, film, TV and radio programming from Yahoo!’s new online Video Network channel. Both companies are enthusiastic about the new opportunities for growth and development the agreement presents. No Justice for the Media Media figures gathered to debate the role of media in Arab society at the Arab Media Leaders Forum, discussing the relationship between the state and the media. While some mild improvements are noticed in Egypt, other countries in the region such as Tunisia and Bahrain are taking a step backward. Al-Waleed and Murdoch Take on the Middle East Prince Al-Waleed Bin Talal's Kingdom Holding Company recently announced that it will launch an Arabic-language news channel in partnership with the Fox News Network.

The Layalina Review on Public Diplomacy and Arab Media

The Layalina Review is a peerless bi-weekly source for monitoring developments in the spheres of public diplomacy and Arab media.

Its readers include academics, Foreign Service Officers, students, members of Congress and their staffs, foreign diplomats, and professionals in both the private and public sectors.

Published 26 times per year, the review is free to subscribers and available in PDF, HTML, and RSS formats.

The Layalina Review is brought to you thanks in part to a grant from The Dr. Scholl Foundation of Illinois.

Statistic of the Week
The UAE is the 'most connected' Arab country, followed by Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, in a new study.

Recent Issues

Vol. VI No. 13: 6/18-7/1, 2010

Vol. VI No. 12: 6/4-6/17, 2010

Archives

Layalina Review Staff

Leon Shahabian
Senior Editor

Anne Hagood
Managing Editor

Amelia Bell
Contributor

Mirna Oud
Contributor

Lorraine Jablonsky
Contributor

Elodie Liobard
Contributor

The views expressed here are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of Layalina Productions, Inc.

VOL. VI NO. 14, July 2-July 15, 2010

NASA's Outreach to Muslim's Grounded
NASA Administrator Charles Bolden sparked a firestorm when he announced during an interview with the Qatari network Al-Jazeera that the agency’s “foremost” mission was to conduct outreach to the Muslim world through various programs. Many former NASA members and conservative news outlets criticized the move as a misguided mission.

CNN Fires Journalist over Twitter
Senior Editor for Middle Eastern Affairs at CNN, Octavia Nasr, lost her job over a posting on Twitter praising Grand Ayatollah Mohammed Hussein Fadlallah for his views on women’s rights. Although the posting generated an instant uproar among pro-Israeli groups and conservatives, analysts and media outlets in the West and the Middle East condemn the sacking as a double standard on freedom of expression.

Ground Zero Tolerance
A group of Muslim Americans seeking to build a community center named The Cordoba House in Manhattan next to the 9/11 site, known as Ground Zero, faces strong protests from several groups. Televangelist Bill Keller thought to respond by building a $1 million church on the same site. Some fear that the behavior displayed by Keller and his supporters may convey the idea that America has become an anti-Muslim nation.

France Bans the Burqa
France’s lower house of parliament has approved a ban on the face-covering veil, raising concerns among Muslim citizens about how the ban will be enforced.

Al-Qaeda's English Magazine: Authentic or Fraud?
The first English language Al-Qaeda magazine surfaced on the web, bearing the emblem of the Arabian Peninsula branch of the organization. However, technological flaws, poor English and humorous titles have raised doubts regarding the document’s authenticity.

BBG's New Leadership Brings New Opportunities
The new board of the BBG faces old bureaucratic challenges, but may represent an opportunity to re-vamp some of the agency’s broadcasting efforts.

Middle East Peace Negotiation: A Light at the End of the Tunnel?
The outcome of President Obama's recent meetings with President Abbas and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu signifies a positive mood shift in the Middle East peace negotiations. While the Arab League has endorsed proximity talks with Israel, some believe that encouraging positive media coverage will further promote a successful movement towards peace.

Rotana Goes Yahoo!
Arab media conglomerate Rotana and American internet service Yahoo! recently signed a distribution agreement, allowing Arabic-speaking audiences to access Rotana’s music, film, TV and radio programming from Yahoo!’s new online Video Network channel. Both companies are enthusiastic about the new opportunities for growth and development the agreement presents.

No Justice for the Media
Media figures gathered to debate the role of media in Arab society at the Arab Media Leaders Forum, discussing the relationship between the state and the media. While some mild improvements are noticed in Egypt, other countries in the region such as Tunisia and Bahrain are taking a step backward.

Al-Waleed and Murdoch Take on the Middle East
Prince Al-Waleed Bin Talal's Kingdom Holding Company recently announced that it will launch an Arabic-language news channel in partnership with the Fox News Network.