Lebanon’s political economy all throughout is considered to be a gigantic complicated mess. When tying this notion to media outlets, a few factors reliant on politics and ownership are largely influential. Almost all TV channels are affiliated to a certain political party, filtering through news to fit their personal biases and subjective attitudes. TV Channels such as: MTV select female news casters to be attractive to their core, Michelle el Murr is the leading representative for MTV (engulfing the ownership of Gulf relations). for example, there was a certain TV show that attacked the Dekwaneh multiplicity minister, and was later on fried from the show entirely. This reveals the power of ownership and their need to always protect political leaders. Overall, the “free speech” that they all preach for, is still reluctant to exist on TV politically-affiliated channels. Al- Manar gained its popularity in 2006 after the war, but is strictly affiliated to Hezbollah, specified and directed their reporting to pure war media coverage. Although this might be somewhat subjective, most of Al-Manar reporting has heavy religious indications throughout every channel ( portrayal of women in hijab with minimal makeup and dark clothing). This could also act as a form of ownership and political affiliation. Internal decisions to what they are allowed to portray and not portray, such as guest appearances on Al- Manar are strictly aligned with the what Hezbollah seems reasonable and acceptable. Additionally, there are certain time shown these politically-affiliated channels attack one another, Hezbollah might attack channels that are affiliated with Al-Tayar and so on. These examples are vital in realizing how media is all filtered through, depending on what the political sect stands for. Additionally, these political sects control the ownership of these channels. Although these notions could coincide with democrats and republican channels in the United States, religion is another factor that comes into play along with sects in Lebanon. These strange religious and political systems are one of a kind in the world, and the harshness that follow these regulations set by certain sects directly influence the public through various channels, but most frequently through TV channels.
References
فيلم تلفزيون وائع . (2018). Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l2ZHGeCLLqA&t=1706s&fbclid=IwAR1j2D4iYxoCTSRCjPGu4h8yEzaIG96s3BjRRmeCU8KNOF1CtVMZHNQXzDM&app=desktop
Media and Society 