The Handbook of Media and Culture in the Middle East, a new volume of Blackwell Global Handbooks in Media and Communication Research series co-edited by Northwestern Qatar Professor Joe F. Khalil, has been released. As a publication of the International Association for Media and Communication Research (IAMCR), the new volume offers a comprehensive exploration of the media and culture landscape in the Middle East with insights into the complex changes shaping the 21st century.
Featuring contributions from established and emerging scholars, the new volume addresses a wide spectrum of topics, including the evolution of mainstream and alternative media, the contesting historical narratives within the Middle East, and pressing socio-economic and media-related debates. It examines the multi-local characteristics of knowledge production, media, and culture in the Middle East and North Africa region while contextualizing the region’s competing histories, geopolitical and socio-economic issues, and ongoing cultural and media debates.
“Unlike other handbooks in the IAMCR-Wiley series, this volume is the first dedicated to regional media and culture,” said Khalil, associate professor in residence at Northwestern Qatar. “What sets it apart is its commitment to broadening the conventional scope of Middle East media research to include mass media, digital and social media, alternative media, and the arts.”
Notable contributions in the volume include an essay by Marwan M. Kraidy, dean and CEO of Northwestern Qatar, titled Hybridity as Dazzlement: Rethinking Fusion Through Joseph Tonda's Postcolonial Imperialism. In the essay, Kraidy examines the concept of hybridity in Middle Eastern media and culture and its connections to globalization and postcolonial theory, analyzing how hybridity as a concept has shaped and transformed the cultural and media landscapes of the region.
Featuring contributions from established and emerging scholars, the new volume addresses a wide spectrum of topics, including the evolution of mainstream and alternative media, the contesting historical narratives within the Middle East, and pressing socio-economic and media-related debates. It examines the multi-local characteristics of knowledge production, media, and culture in the Middle East and North Africa region while contextualizing the region’s competing histories, geopolitical and socio-economic issues, and ongoing cultural and media debates.
“Unlike other handbooks in the IAMCR-Wiley series, this volume is the first dedicated to regional media and culture,” said Khalil, associate professor in residence at Northwestern Qatar. “What sets it apart is its commitment to broadening the conventional scope of Middle East media research to include mass media, digital and social media, alternative media, and the arts.”
Notable contributions in the volume include an essay by Marwan M. Kraidy, dean and CEO of Northwestern Qatar, titled Hybridity as Dazzlement: Rethinking Fusion Through Joseph Tonda's Postcolonial Imperialism. In the essay, Kraidy examines the concept of hybridity in Middle Eastern media and culture and its connections to globalization and postcolonial theory, analyzing how hybridity as a concept has shaped and transformed the cultural and media landscapes of the region.
“The Handbook of Media and Culture in the Middle East is an essential reading for academics and researchers across fields and a valuable scholarly resource to understanding the Middle East's dynamic media and cultural landscape”
- Marwan M. Kraidy, dean and CEO of Northwestern Qatar
Ilhem Allagui, professor in residence and director of the Journalism and Strategic Communication Program, is the author of another contribution exploring the intricate dynamics of the advertising industry in the Middle East and North Africa region. Titled The Dynamics of Advertising in MENA: An Empirical Model, the chapter provides critical insights into the evolution and challenges of advertising practices in the region and how media tensions, local-global dynamics, and digital media are impacting and shaping the future of the industry.
The volume also includes an essay by Khalil examining expressions of resistance across the Middle East. Through a longue durée approach, Dialectics of Resistance: Youth in the Middle East draws a parallel between youth and acts and expressions of resistance circulating below mainstream media and examines the different ways expressive activities contribute to producing new thinking about societies in the region.
“The Handbook of Media and Culture in the Middle East is an essential reading for academics and researchers across fields and a valuable scholarly resource to understanding the Middle East's dynamic media and cultural landscape,” said Kraidy.
The Handbook of Media and Culture in the Middle East is now available for purchase and online access. For more information about the handbook, click here to access its website.
The volume also includes an essay by Khalil examining expressions of resistance across the Middle East. Through a longue durée approach, Dialectics of Resistance: Youth in the Middle East draws a parallel between youth and acts and expressions of resistance circulating below mainstream media and examines the different ways expressive activities contribute to producing new thinking about societies in the region.
“The Handbook of Media and Culture in the Middle East is an essential reading for academics and researchers across fields and a valuable scholarly resource to understanding the Middle East's dynamic media and cultural landscape,” said Kraidy.
The Handbook of Media and Culture in the Middle East is now available for purchase and online access. For more information about the handbook, click here to access its website.
