Media Use in the Middle East 2016: A Six-Nation Survey

"Any understanding of the role communication media play among individuals, institutions, nation-states, and society itself requires grounding in how people use media to communicate with others and seek news, opinions, entertainment, and even commercial messages."

Recognising a need for systematic data to track media use and attitudes in the Middle East, Northwestern University in Qatar (NU-Q) and Doha Film Institute (DFI) undertook this 6-nation (Egypt, Lebanon, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, and the United Arab Emirates) survey to provide an overview of media use in the region. The study is based on interviews with some 6,000 people, delving into big-picture issues such as cultural attitudes, censorship and regulation, and perceptions of progress in one's own country, in addition to probing barometers of online and social media use, film and TV viewing, music listening, sports interest, news use, and more. A key finding: "Digital divides in the Middle East are narrowing, not only between the Gulf countries and their neighbors, but also between generations and social classes within countries. The results of the increasing ubiquity of internet use, combined with growth in other infrastructure and economic areas including satellite television and physical cinemas, are that more people are gaining access to a wider variety of media than ever before."

The first Media Use in the Middle East survey (it is an annual survey) was published in 2013; "[i]n the days after the Arab revolutions of 2011 and beyond, the degree to which people could participate in the communication process and express themselves freely was and is an important indicator not just of media use per se, but of freedom of expression itself." The 2016 study found that 3 in 10 internet users worry about governments checking their online activity, a slight decline from 2013 and 2015. More nationals worry about companies checking what they do online. A majority of nationals supports the freedom to express ideas online even if they are unpopular (54%). Support for free speech online increased in Egypt and Tunisia from the previous year's survey; in Saudi Arabia, support declined. "Tension persists between the government as a regulator of content and access on the one hand, and the ability of individuals on the other hand, to make their own content choices."

With regard to cultural attitudes, large majorities of respondents in the 6 surveyed countries support both preservation of culture and integration with the modern world, while many question the possibility of doing both. A majority of nationals in all 6 countries want more entertainment media based on their culture and history, ranging from 52% of Tunisians to 80% of Qataris. "Interest in and consumption of media from the Arab world is increasing. Arab consumers may be intrigued by Hollywood action films, Turkish dramas, and the pageantry of Bollywood, but they also want news and entertainment that is locally produced and sensitive to cultural norms and traditions. Furthermore, the idea that English is becoming the universal language is not borne out in these data, as almost all national respondents in our surveys continue to access content in Arabic." For example, only about 4 in 10 nationals watch films or access the internet in English.

From 2013 to 2016, internet penetration rose in all 6 countries surveyed, but most dramatically in Egypt, as well as Lebanon. Six in 10 Egyptians now use the internet, but just 3 in 10 Egyptians have access to, or choose to use, mobile broadband. "It is ironic that the two countries most closely linked to the Arab uprisings - Tunisia, where the uprisings began and Egypt, the location of the most publicized revolution - are still struggling to be fully enfranchised into the digital age." In fact, internet penetration in Tunisia stagnated over the past few years and is the lowest among countries surveyed. Nearly all nationals in Arab Gulf countries use the internet. About 8 in 10 national internet users in the region use Facebook and WhatsApp, the dominant social media platforms. Across the region, Twitter penetration fell significantly since 2013, while Instagram penetration quintupled in the same period. Nearly 7 in 10 national internet users say they changed how they use social media due to privacy concerns.

Television remains an important source of entertainment in the region, but is losing ground to the internet. Only one-tenth of nationals watch TV in English (11%), down from 18% in 2014. Television remains the most popular medium for watching films, followed by the internet, and TV is the most common platform for listening to music across the region. More people associate positive moral influences with film and TV content from their own country than from the broader Arab world. Sports is reported as a top-three favorite TV genre by 22% of respondents, behind only comedy, drama, and news. More respondents in all countries access news on TV than online, except in Qatar. Popularity of online and TV news remained stable or increased in all countries except Egypt. More Emiratis and Saudis read newspapers than other nationals surveyed.

Adult respondents report that 45% of children 0 to 6 years old in their households play games on a phone at least once a week; one in six spend time online every day. Respondents estimate that more of the entertainment media consumed by girls in their households is chosen by adults than is the entertainment consumed by boys. Three-fourths of respondents want government to do more to protect children in their household from certain content, down slightly from 2014 (80% in 2014 vs. 73% in 2016).

A separate chapter on media use and attitudes highlights the State of Qatar, which is "a propitious case study as a media-rich Gulf nation home to Al Jazeera, and what we call a de facto media city. Any assessment of media in Qatar, however, has connections to the rest of the region and to the global community. This work is a useful resource for the many conversations, meetings, workshops, and conferences that we have in-country."

According to the report, the data gathered goes beyond Qatar and the Middle East, as it contributes to the World Internet Project of which NU-Q is a member. Each year, the study is presented at the Qatar Media Industry Forum, a group that brings together individuals and organisations from across Qatar's media sector, as well as at Northwestern's home campus in Evanston, Illinois, United States (US), and at several academic meetings. The 2016 report was previewed at the International Press Institute's World Congress and at the World Media Summit and will also be presented at Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC) and the International Association for Media and Communication Research (IAMCR) conferences. Reportedly, students and faculty members at NU-Q and at other universities use the data for secondary analysis, repurposing the material and raising new questions about the data and their meanings. Media professionals in industries ranging from satellite television to film production and the public sector, report that they, too, use the material as part of their decision-making processes.