Al-Jazeera’s 'Double Standards' in the Arab Spring

This book finds that Al-Jazeera’s coverage of Bahrain and Syria has conformed with Qatar’s foreign policy, throughout the last decade (2011-2021). Al-Jazeera Arabic adopted Qatar’s 'double standards' policy in both countries in the beginning of the Arab Spring, framing Bahrain’s protests as a 'sectarian movement,' while depicting the Syrian armed conflict as a legitimate 'revolution' (2011-2013). The book observes that when ties between Qatar and Bahrain worsened during the 2017 Gulf crisis, Al-Jazeera Arabic has shifted its coverage from being 'pro-Bahraini regime' to 'pro-protesters,' focusing on violations and giving voice to activists (2014-2021). The book concludes that the lack of 'Peace Journalism' framing in Al-Jazeera’s coverage of Bahrain’s uprising and Syria’s chemical weapons attacks has represented 'claims' as 'facts,' and justified military action against Syria. It also reveals distinctive differences between Al-Jazeera Arabic and English, with theformer lacking 'objective reporting standards,' and using more sectarian language than the latter.