While campaigning for his first term as US President, Bill Clinton made headlines when he made a guest appearance on MTV in 1992 in an effort to court the American youth vote. The appearance was regarded as a historical landmark in the relationship between politicians and the media. With today s technology, Clinton would likely also have had his own blog, Facebook page and YouTube channel. Such revolutionary applications have developed the Internet into a primary democratic medium, allowing audiences to instantly and directly communicate with leaders without any geographic or time barriers. Queen Rania of Jordan, a guest of honor at the recent Google Zeitgeist Conference in mid-June in London, launched her own YouTube channel (www.youtube.com/queenrania) last April. Queen Rania s YouTube endeavor is a conscious effort to promote dialogue and understanding between the Arab and Muslim world and the West. Arabs and Muslims struggle daily with how the world sees us: our reality, history, and way of thinking. We must break down these stereotypes and speak up for ourselves so that everyone understands who we are, and what we value, explained Queen Rania. Dialogue is the best way to achieve this, and YouTube fosters much needed conversations on tolerance, compassion, and understanding. What I m seeing on YouTube today is exactly that desired dialogue which at its best dispels old suspicions by forming new communities, she added. The Queen will be receiving questions and comments on her channel, which currently has over 5,000 subscribers, until International Youth Day on August 12. She also emphasized the need to focus on youth: The YouTube, Facebook and Ikbis generation is fluent in uploading, tagging, and instant messaging, and we must be too. Youth today are the main source of energy and innovation in our region; not only will they erode negative stereotypes, but they will create new companies, new jobs, and new opportunities for Jordan, and the Arab world. Various commentators on the Queen s YouTube channel have expressed harsh language toward Islam and its symbols. Others, however, have attempted to correct inaccuracies and build bridges, including the Queen herself, who has posted a number of videos. In a recent video, Queen Rania replies to one user s comment, saying that although she was always good at maths, one doesn t need such skills to know that the equations Arab = Muslim =Terror = War and Arabs are Muslims and Muslims = Violence (posted by a particular user) are inaccurate. Queen Rania calls for getting the facts straight before making assumptions, explaining that: With every line written and video posted, we share our experiences and knowledge which dismantles barriers and brings us together. Yasmina Brihi, Marketing Manager of Google (which owns YouTube) for the Middle East and North Africa, says, We are delighted to see this engagement online and eagerly anticipate direct dialogue about politics and issues that matter to people around the world. This engagement has been evident in the recent coverage of the US Presidential elections. The first CNN/YouTube candidate debates took place this year and displayed the significant potential in the combined use of television and the Internet. These debates allowed potential voters to send their questions and comments directly to the candidates. Many questions were played live on air for the candidates to answer. CNN senior vice president and Washington bureau chief David Bohrman said that the debates really worked and were a success, and CNN will continue to experiment with new technologies for the upcoming political conventions and Election Night 2008. Brihi explains that YouTube helps voters be part of the political debate in ways that were not possible before the emergence of online video. People can express their views to those in power, ask questions and be heard, while those in office can use the immediacy of video to highlight their priorities and engage with people on the issues that matter most to them. Faisal Abbasis the media editor at Asharq al-Awsat. This abridged article is distributed by the Common Ground News Service (CGNews) and can be accessed at www.commongroundnews.org. The full text can be found at www.asharqalawsat.com.
