Using framing theory and content analysis, Saeed Abdullah & Mokhtar Elareshi investigate how Al Jazeera and Al Arabiya TV networks cover terrorism. This paper focuses on how the two networks differ or are similar in covering terrorism and identifies factors that may influence each network’s news selection processes and the framing of terrorism stories. This work represents an initial effort to expand research on terrorism coverage by pan-Arab media.

In an effort to elucidate the legal structures governing the media in Egypt, as well as the country's declared obligations according to international law, Mostafa Shaat offers a breakdown of the existing frameworks, highlighting inconsistencies between the legal concept of freedom of the press as delineated in international law and Egypt's national laws. He further discusses some of the current reform efforts underway.

Nour Halabi asks why the social democratic aims of the January 2011 Revolution have not been advanced in the four years since. Halabi posits that private media ownership structures established during Mubarak's neoliberal economic reform initiative are largely to blame, arguing that despite the popular demands for social justice, the structure of Egyptian commercialized media inhibited the translation of social justice demands into discussions of economic policy.

Muhammad Y Gamal makes a compelling case for the establishment of an Egyptian Audiovisual Translation Authority. Laying out a short history of translation in Egypt, Gamal argues that the country has not laid the groundwork to keep up with changing modalities of translation and communication in the information age. This, he argues, is critical for the proper development of several sectors, including education, tourism, entertainment and foreign affairs.

President of the Egyptian Radio and Television Institute Gamal El Shaer presents unique insight into the current Egyptian media landscape. Grounded in historical discussion of the evolution of broadcast, print, and digital media in Egypt, El Shaer offers lucid description and analysis of how we have arrived at the current post-Revolution media environment. This article also tackles some of the challenges currently facing the country’s media in terms of the relationship between the state and the media, ownership structures, research, and professionalism.

As part of an ongoing body of literature on audiovisual translation in the Arab World, Muhammad Y Gamal examines barriers to localization in an increasingly digital world. Gamal posits that closing the regional gap and developing local expertise requires a multi-pronged approach, targeting both pedagogy and practice.

Miriam Berger reports on change and stagnation at the Egyptian Journalist Syndicate, Egypt’s only official journalist union. Through interviews with syndicate members and media observers, she paints a granular picture of how efforts to reform the syndicate remain blocked by entrenched political, economic and state interests.

At a time when Hollywood movies are a global commodity, Mohamed Satti studies the extent of their impact on cinema and television in Kuwait. He shows that while American films dominate the movie theaters, local production of television content continues to be strong.

Nabil Dajani critiques the perception that Lebanon enjoys one of the freest media systems in the Arab world, showing how its foundations in confessional politics and business interests prevent it from functioning as a public service, a control on power, or a voice for the voiceless.

Focusing on the role of social media as a tool for both framing and offline organizing, Felix Tusa compares the Iranian election protests of 2009 with those of the Egyptian revolution of 2011. Unlike Egyptian netizens, Iranians engaged in far less framing and over-relied on social media for organizational purposes, thus partially contributing to the failure of their movement.