Module manager: El Mustapha Lahlali
Email: e.m.lahlali@leeds.ac.uk
Taught: Semesters 1 & 2 (Sep to Jun) View Timetable
Year running 2024/25
No Arabic knowledge is required for this module.
| ARAB2092 | Arab Media, Politics and Society |
ARAB 2880 – Contemporary Arab Media
This module is approved as a discovery module
This module, which requires no knowledge of Arabic, is designed to provide an in-depth study into the nature of contemporary Arab media and its relation to politics, culture and society of the Middle east. It will provide a critical overview on the development of Arab media, and examine the aims, objectives and programmes of the main transnational Arab channels. It will also examine the social, political, and cultural aspects, as well as power and conflict, underpinning transnational Arab broadcasting. The module will also introduce students to Social Media and its role in the Arab Spring. Finally, the module will attempt to examine the impact of transnational broadcasting and Social Media on the Arab public sphere. The module will also examine how power, politics and conflicts shape and are shaped by Arab media broadcast.
The main objective of this module is to provide an overview on the Arabic media development since its establishment until today. The discussion of the development of Arab media will take into consideration many elements, some of which are political, cultural and social. The module shall examine the main objectives behind the establishment of print and audio-visual media. We shall also refer to the great impact of some of these broadcasting outlets on the Arab regimes and population.
On completion of this module, students should have acquired:
- an in-depth understanding of the theoretical literature in the field and a good grounding in the patterns of Modern Arabic Media broadcast.
- a good understanding of how politics, power and conflict shape and are shaped by Arabic media broadcast.
- an insight into the impact these broadcasting outlets have on the Arab regimes and wider society
The topics covered in this course include amongst others:
1. Overview of Arab audio-visual and print media
This section shall provide a general review of the audio-visual media. It will look at its broadcasting strategy, in relation to the social and political landscape of the Arab world. It will also examine its progress and its impact on the Arab public. It shall touch upon some historical aspects which have hindered or underpinned the development of Arab Media.
2. Arab media: Politics, Sponsorship and Policies
This part of the module will introduce case studies of Arabic channels and will examine the similarities and differences in broadcasting between these channels. It aims to acquaint the students with the broadcasting style of these channels. It shall also provide a comprehensive analysis of the aims and objectives, policies and the target audience of the above channels.
3. Arab media, conflict, discourse and Society
This part will mainly look at the change of broadcasting discourse in Arab media since Mid 1990s. It shall provide an analysis of media discourse in its social, cultural and political context. It will examine discourse in relation ideology in institutional broadcasting. It will closely examine Arabic media broadcast of conflicts in the Middle East.
4. Globalisation, Democracy and Arab media
This part will consider Arab media in light of the globalisation and worldwide competition. It shall look at how globalisation has affected Arab media discourse and broadcasting.
| Delivery type | Number | Length hours | Student hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lecture | 15 | 1 | 15 |
| Seminar | 6 | 1 | 6 |
| Private study hours | 179 | ||
| Total Contact hours | 21 | ||
| Total hours (100hr per 10 credits) | 200 | ||
179 hours of private study, including preparation for lectures and seminars as well as time spent on researching/writing a 3,000 word essay, and 1,500 article review.
Reading primary texts: 40 hours
Lecture preparation and consolidation: 40 hours
Seminar preparation: 25 hours
Essay: 44 hours
Literature review: 30
Student progress will be informally monitored via participation in the seminar discussions. Opportunities will also be provided for one-to-one consultation via the lecturer’s weekly Feedback and Advice times. Formal feedback will of course be provided on the coursework essay, which will be returned in good time to inform the student’s article review preparation.
| Assessment type | Notes | % of formal assessment |
|---|---|---|
| Essay | 3000 words | 70 |
| Literature Review | 1500 words | 30 |
| Total percentage (Assessment Coursework) | 100 | |
Normally resits will be assessed by the same methodology as the first attempt, unless otherwise stated
The reading list is available from the Library website
Last updated: 4/29/2024
Errors, omissions, failed links etc should be notified to the Catalogue Team