Courting and Containing the Arab Street: Arab Public Opinion, the Middle East and U.S. Public Diplomacy
Creator
Zayani, Mohamed
Abstract
This paper looks at the nature and dynamics of the so-called Arab street. It examines the forces shaping the Arab public opinion. Arguing that Arab public opinion is a real though subtle force to contend with, this paper takes issue with three prevailing understandings of the political relevance of Arab public opinion: the tendency to celebrate it as omnipotent and liberating; the tendency to view it as submissive and therefore largely ineffective; and the tendency to dismiss it as mythical. A discussion of the historical dimension and socio-political underpinning of these three views will help eschew a reductive categorization of Arab public opinion, highlight its diversity, point out its dynamics, and explore its intricacies. The paper concludes with a discussion of new forces and noteworthy variables which are likely to influence and shape Arab public opinion in the future
Permanent Link
http://hdl.handle.net/10822/711141External Link
Gu-Q library: https://wrlc-gu.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/fulldisplay?docid=jstor_csp41858543&context=PC&vid=01WRLC_GUNIV:QATAR&search_scope=DN_and_CI&tab=Everything&lang=enDate Published
2008Rights
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Subject
Type
Is Part Of
Arab Studies Quarterly, 30(2).
Publisher
Pluto Journals
Collections
Metadata
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