The launch of the rolling news channel, Al-Arab, by Saudi Prince Al Walid Bin Talal, was postponed many times. Finally it happened on February 1st, at the company’s headquarters in Bahrain. Less than 24 hours later, though, the channel went black. Originally it was for “technical and administrative reasons”. Then on February 9th the Manama government announced the channel would close. The official reason: Al-Arab broadcast without the “necessary permissions”. In reality the problem is editorial. The channel apparently “did not respect the traditions of the Gulf countries: impartiality of news items and rejection of anything likely to affect the spirit of regional unity”. The news programme’s first guest was the Bahraini opposition leader Khalil al-Marzouq, who had criticized the kingdom’s decision to strip seventy-two people of their nationality.
Souces: lorientlejour.com, lemonde.fr
