Iqraa tv

Most Arab radio and television systems are government-owned, for several reasons. First, Arab governments regard radio and television as potent domestic political instruments because they reach most of the population regardless of literacy and income levels.

Arabic sports channel

Moreover, Arab broadcasting underwent its first major expansion during the period after World War II when Arab nationalism and anticolonialism were strong, and governments were very eager to use them for purposes of political nation building and national defense. Governments justified controls on the basis of the alleged need to protect the country against its enemies, old and new.

By the same token, radio and television facilities have been prime targets of revolutions seeking to take power, and therefore the governments took special measures to protect them. Third, broadcasting is not a lucrative source of income for commercial investors because commercial advertising in the Arab world, and especially in the electronic media, is relatively limited, and generally advertising revenues do not cover costs.

Fourth, governments are concerned about their image as conveyed in other countries through broadcasting so they want to control the programs. There are a few exceptions, especially in Lebanon and among the new satellite television companies, but the norm is government control of electronic broadcasting. Arab radio broadcasting began in the s, but only a few Arab countries had their own broadcasting stations before World War II.

After , most Arab states began to create their own radio broadcasting systems, although it was not until , when Oman opened its radio transmissions, that every one of them had its own radio station. Among Arab countries, Egypt has been a leader in radio broadcasting from the beginning. Broadcasting began in Egypt in the s with private commercial radio, and in the government gave the Marconi Company the exclusive right to broadcast.

In , however, the Egyptian government declared radio a government monopoly and began investing in its expansion. By the s, Egyptian radio had fourteen different broadcast services, including six for foreign audiences, staffed by more than 4, employees. With a total air time of 1, hours per week, Egypt.