Abstract
The central aim of this paper is to critically analyze the role of the media during public protests that occurred in the GCC countries during 2011. These protests were part of what came to be called the “Arab Spring”, which started in late 2010. Particular focus will be on how the Arab Spring resulted in fundamental changes and how various institutions played roles in this. The study draws on Gulf region literature about the Arab Spring in order to offer a critical and informed overview on the topic under discussion. The paper’s main question is: what are the main roles played by the GCC media (old/new) during the public protests of 2011? The paper argues that the role of the media in the 2011 protests, while important, was rather limited and affected by the unique contextual characteristics of the media environment in the GCC countries.
Publication details
- DOI
- 10.53542/jass.v7i2.1134
- Journal
- Journal of Arts and Social Sciences, 7(2), 53-68
- Publisher
- Sultan Qaboos University
- Open access
- Gold open access
- License
- CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
Cite this article
APA 7
Al-Kindi, A. K. (2025). GCC Media Roles during the 2011 Arab Spring: An Analytical and Critical Overview. Journal of Arts and Social Sciences, 7(2), 53-68. https://doi.org/10.53542/jass.v7i2.1134
MLA 9
Al-Kindi, Abdullah K. "GCC Media Roles during the 2011 Arab Spring: An Analytical and Critical Overview." Journal of Arts and Social Sciences, vol. 7, no. 2, 2025, pp. 53-68. https://doi.org/10.53542/jass.v7i2.1134.
Chicago (author–date)
Al-Kindi, Abdullah K. 2025. "GCC Media Roles during the 2011 Arab Spring: An Analytical and Critical Overview." Journal of Arts and Social Sciences 7 (2): 53-68. https://doi.org/10.53542/jass.v7i2.1134.
Harvard
Al-Kindi, A. K. (2025) 'GCC Media Roles during the 2011 Arab Spring: An Analytical and Critical Overview', Journal of Arts and Social Sciences, 7(2), pp. 53-68. doi:10.53542/jass.v7i2.1134.
Vancouver
Al-Kindi AK. GCC Media Roles during the 2011 Arab Spring: An Analytical and Critical Overview. Journal of Arts and Social Sciences. 2025;7(2):53-68. doi:10.53542/jass.v7i2.1134
IEEE
A. K. Al-Kindi, "GCC Media Roles during the 2011 Arab Spring: An Analytical and Critical Overview," Journal of Arts and Social Sciences, vol. 7, no. 2, pp. 53-68, 2025, doi: 10.53542/jass.v7i2.1134.