How can Jazeera be a public utility? Wednesday, 13 July 2011 01:25

Al Jazeera is set to change its legal status to become a “private institution of public utility” — the exact translation of the Arabic terminology. The story was broken yesterday by our sister daily Al Sharq.

Quoting their sources, the front page report said the change was intended to give Al Jazeera more flexibility and facilitate quick decision making since the media outlet was expanding its reach to other areas.

There has been no official confirmation yet, but it has been not denied either which leaves little doubt about the veracity of the story. The move raises several questions.

First, the purported reason for the change is not convincing since Al Jazeera already enjoys the freedom and flexibility to report on controversial issues like no other channel in the Arab world. The need to change its legal status to enable flexibility, therefore, makes little sense.

Then, how can a media outlet become a “public utility”? What do they exactly mean by “public utility”? And how will Qatar as a nation benefit from this public utility?

This is the first time that we’ve heard of a media company, which is profit-based, being turned into a public utility. Besides, it will become a private institution.

Our question: What happens to the billions of dollars spent by the Qatar government on Al Jazeera? Will it just be considered as a donation then? Or do they want to utilise Law No. 21/2006 which gives more autonomy to the management of a public utility.

To me the reason why Al Jazeera is seeking these changes is: Maybe, they want to bypass the new media law expected anytime now. If the government allows Al Jazeera this status change, will it  also allow other local media outlets the same opportunity? Maybe, by taking this decision, Al Jazeera is challenging the government to give a similar opportunity to other media outlets.

Another way to look at it that maybe Al Jazeera wants to avoid being questioned in future about its finances by an elected parliament.

The big question here is how can a company that was financed by government money become a private institution? What’s the legality of this action?

I had high hopes for Al Jazeera, especially after the role they played during the Arab Spring uprising in Egypt. I thought Al Jazeera will become the voice of the Arab people similar to the radio station, Sout Al Arab, during the era of Jamal Abdul Nasser.

I was hoping that our Emir will make a present of Al Jazeera to the Arab people and there will be something like an Advisory Council to support the board members of Al Jazeera. And that Advisory Council will have representatives from the different countries in the Arab world.

Al Jazeera would thus become an institution of the Arab people and the real voice of the Arab world.

That would stop future regimes from saying that Al Jazeera is biased or has its own agenda since the people managing it would represent the Arab world and not just one country. Al Jazeera would be the free media zone, where all Arabs would be given the chance to have their voices heard.