Are Arabs better or worse off following the 2011 revolutions? Did the Arab Spring make the world a safer place and should the UK and USA accept the new democratically-elected governments of the Middle East if the people vote-in religious parties which may oppose Western interests?

Clearly, answers to...

What makes social media an interesting field to study and follow is that you simply can't predict what will happen next; it's a world where things change every moment, where a simple 'tweet' could reach millions with a press of a button and a Facebook page could help bring down...

And so the last of the American troops have left Iraq, marking the end of a campaign which has lasted nine bloody years. What started as a hyped-up war of 'shock and awe', has ended rather quietly, tainted with mixed reviews as to whether or not the 'mission' was indeed...

Earlier today, Saudi billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal's Kingdom Holding Company (KHC) announced a $300m investment in social media site, Twitter, following months of negotiations.

Given the nature of Twitter, it didn't long for the prince to feel the significance of his investment, as most people found...

To many, Coca Cola's decision to invest $980 million in buying a stake in leading Saudi beverage manufacturer, Aujan Industries, may simply seem as an attempt to catch up with arch-rival, Pepsi, which for long has been the leader in the Middle East.

The agreement was announced earlier this...

With Lebanon suffering one of the world's slowest internet connection speeds, it is certainly not surprising that social media hasn't picked up in this country as quickly as it did in other parts of the globe.

However, while it is understandable why a Lebanese web-surfer might avoid being...

The UK Home Secretary Theresa May's decision to impose a ban on protest group 'Muslims Against Crusades' as of midnight tonight is highly likely to cause a storm of controversy.

However, this controversy is not necessarily a negative thing, especially not for the Home Secretary herself who...

It was business as unusual on the first day of the week in Saudi Arabia, as millions of Saudis woke to the disturbing news of the passing of Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz, long-time Defense Minister and heir to the throne since 2005.

Saudi state television carried a palace statement...

As a journalist specialising in the Middle East, I can't help but reflect on how phenomenal a year 2011 has proved to be so far; we have witnessed a wave of serious changes, unexpected in both size and rapidness, thanks to what is now referred to as the "Arab Spring."

In less than a week, more than 750,000 people viewed Monopoly, the Saudi short-film released on YouTube on Wednesday 14 September 2011, making it the undisputed biggest blockbuster of this summer for most Saudis.

The 22 minute feature is a dark-comedy which tackles the issue of increasing...

It seems that 2012 will be the year when Arab viewers may finally see the break up of the dominance currently imposed over the Arabic satellite news channel market by the Qatari-owned Al-Jazeera and Saudi-backed Al-Arabiya.

Whereas preparations and staffing continues for the highly anticipated launch of...

"Better late than never" is the only thing that could be said about The United States and the EU finally calling on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to step down.

In a written statement, President Obama accused al-Assad of "torturing and slaughtering" his people in what U.N. officials...

Until today, many people seem to have not understood the real dynamics behind what is often referred to as a 'battle' between 'new' and 'old media'.

In the Middle East, the rapidly developing events, sometimes dubbed 'Twitter Revolutions', which took (and still are taking) place since January have revived...

"Not even in 300 years" said Hezbollah's leader, Hassan Nasrallah, as he appeared on Lebanese television a few days ago bluntly declining to adhere to an indictment and arrest warrants issued by the United Nations Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) against four of his party's members.

Mr. Nasrallah...

It was clearly the moment traditionalists and new-media sceptics were eagerly anticipating; for as soon as it emerged that the blog known as 'A Gay Girl in Damascus' turned out to be a hoax and that the sensational Syrian Lesbian, 'Amina Arraf', was in fact a married man in Scotland...

(A protester removing a poster of Mubarak - AP)

The highly anticipated trial of former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak will commence in a few weeks' time. It is believed that he may face the death penalty if convicted over charges...

Now that Manal Alsharif, the young Saudi woman who has been campaigning for the right to drive in her country, has safely been released from detention and this whole row seems to have settled down a bit; it might be worthwhile to set the record straight on some of the...

As I prepared to leave Dubai following last month's 10th annual Arab Media Forum (AMF), the one image that really stayed with me was the dedication of the people involved in putting together such a landmark event and I don't just mean the Dubai Press Club (the organizing body), but...

As the curtains came down marking the conclusion of the 10th annual Arab Media Forum (AMF) last week, it was quite evident that The Dubai Press Club (the body entrusted with organizing this event since its establishment) had it planned for guests, participants, speakers and reporters covering the...

If you are an Arab journalist who happened to have worked at some point with an "Establishment" newspaper or television channel (a media outlet which is either owned or backed directly or indirectly by an autocratic regime), then you must have noticed the remarkable resemblance that these organizations have with...