Philip Seib, professor and director of the USC Center on Public Diplomacy at the Annenberg School, wrote a Sept. 27 Foreign Affairs article about the future of Al Jazeera after the recent resignation of Wadah Khanfar as its managing director.
Seib wrote that the most intriguing intriguing question surrounding Khanfar's departure is what comes next for Al Jazeera, which has grown "by leaps and bounds" since its founding in 1996. "But despite its expanding global reach, the Arab world's flagship 24-hour satellite news channel must now face the fact that Arabs' dependence on it is decreasing," Seib wrote. "As more and more of the region gains access to the Internet, a proliferation of information providers is eroding Al Jazeera's dominance. Meanwhile, the revolutions that the network helped drive have unleashed a cascade of largely local news outlets, which provide more direct competition. There is no doubt that Al Jazeera will remain a major force in the region for years to come, but its singular role as a unique provider of open, honest content may already be a thing of the past."
CNN also ran a copy of Seib's article.
