Mapping the Arabic Blogosphere: Politics, Culture, and Dissent

Abstract

On January 17, 2009, a popular Saudi television sports program covered the day’s disappointing loss by the national soccer team to Oman in the Gulf Cup. The show’s host and his guests, including a professional soccer player and a former coach, are critiquing the team and its management when a call comes in from Saudi Prince Sultan bin Fahd, a key patron of the team. He is not happy with their analysis. On air, the prince dresses them down in turn, and goes so far as to tell one of them he is poorly raised, a serious insult in Saudi culture. The prince’s tone is disrespectful, and his words are not those of a leader to citizens, but of a ruler to his subjects. A clip of the tirade quickly appears on YouTube, and blogs and online forums post the link, spawning long chains of comments. These are overwhelmingly critical of the prince, who was seen as speaking to the commentators as though they were his slaves.

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