Journalism in the Grey Zone: Pluralism and Media Capture in Lebanon and Tunisia

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Kjetil Selvik (Research Professor, Norwegian Institute of International Affairs) Jacob Høigilt (Head of Research in the Department of Culture Studies and Oriental Languages and Professor of Arabic Language and Culture, University of Oslo)

Journalism in the Grey Zone

Pluralism and Media Capture in Lebanon and Tunisia

Kjetil Selvik (Research Professor, Norwegian Institute of International Affairs), Jacob Høigilt (Head of Research in the Department of Culture Studies and Oriental Languages and Professor of Arabic Language and Culture, University of Oslo)

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English

Edinburgh University Press
11 March 2025

Media studies; Comparative politics; Political control & freedoms; Press & journalism

Lebanon and Tunisia are two of the freest countries in the Middle East and North Africa, but elites in both countries seek to manipulate media organisations and individual journalists to shore up support for themselves and attack opponents. This book explores the political role of journalism in these hybrid settings where democratic and authoritarian practices co-exist a growing trend all over the world. Through interviews with journalists in different positions and analyses of key events in recent years, Journalism in the Grey Zone explains the tensions that media instrumentalisation creates in the news media and how journalists navigate conflicting pressures from powerholders and a marginalised populace. Despite 'capture' of the media by political and economic actors, journalism remains a powerful and occasionally disruptive force.

By: Kjetil Selvik (Research Professor Norwegian Institute of International Affairs), Jacob Høigilt (Head of Research in the Department of Culture Studies and Oriental Languages and Professor of Arabic Language and Culture, University of Oslo)
Imprint: Edinburgh University Press
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 234mm, Width: 156mm,
ISBN: 9781399515825
ISBN 10: 1399515829
Pages: 208
Publication Date: 11 March 2025
Audience: Professional and scholarly , Undergraduate
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

Acknowledgements | A Note on Transliteration Introduction Hybrid Politics and Media Instrumentalisation Being a Journalist in the Grey Zone Finding a Role: Tunisian Journalism after the Revolution Navigating a Field of Tensions: Journalism and Politics in Lebanon National Security and Free Speech in Tunisia Elections and Media Capture Protests and Disruptive Journalism Conclusion Appendix I: Interviews - Lebanon Appendix II: Interviews - Tunisia Index

Kjetil Selvik is Research Professor in the research group on Peace, Conflict and Development at the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs. He is co-author with Stig Stenslie of Stability and Change in the Modern Middle East (I.B. Tauris, 2011) and co-editor with B.O. Utvik of Oil States in the New Middle East: Uprisings and Stability (Routledge, 2016). Jacob Høigilt is Head of Research, Department of Culture Studies and Oriental Languages, and Professor of Arabic Language and Culture at the University of Oslo. He is the author of Comics in Contemporary Arab Culture: Politics, Language and Resistance (I. B. Tauris, 2019) and Islamist Rhetoric: Language and Culture in Contemporary Egypt (Routledge, 2011). He is also co-editor with Gunvor Mejdell of The Politics of Written Language in the Arab World (Brill, 2017).

Reviews for Journalism in the Grey Zone: Pluralism and Media Capture in Lebanon and Tunisia

This book is a unique contribution based on interesting, primary analyses of the news apparatuses in two important Arab countries. It is valuable not only to scholars of Arab media, but also to researchers studying the realities of politically fragile states, or states transitioning from authoritarianism to democracy. -- Mohamad Hamas Elmasry, Doha Institute for Graduate Studies [A]n important resource for scholars of comparative politics and for anyone interested in media and politics in the Middle East and North Africa. It offers valuable insights into the consequences of media instrumentalization and raises crucial questions for media studies and journalism scholars. -- Buket Oztas, Furman University * International Journal of Communication *