Torun International Studies
Email this article 
NEW MEDIA-NEW ALGERIAN ARAB SPRING?
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.12775/TIS.2019.005
Abstract
The paper presents events in Algeria that led to fall of the long-term president of the country, Abd al-Aziz Bouteflika in April 2019 and examines the role of the new media in this process. The analysis explains the reasons of the failure of the Arab Spring in this country in 2011. Critical discourse analysis of Algerian new media conducted by the author shows that despite lack of active actions in 2011, youth movements appeared in Algeria and led the protests in 2019 not only in the Internet but also in the “offline” world. Currently, the discussion about political impact of new media focuses mainly on a question whether the power of protesting societies is sufficient to overthrow a government. According to the author of the paper, it is a single-dimensional approach to the problem, what has been proven by the example of Algeria. New media have become an inseparable part of contemporary societies and their discourse, serving as a platform for disseminating information, mobilizing and participating . In Algeria, despite the fact that social media "have not yet reached maturity" (among others, because of illiteracy, mismanagement, lack of freedom of speech and true democracy), they are gradually becoming political and media public spaces for those excluded from the mainstream politics and media. The social media have caused a situation where the Algerian government has to meet growing demands of society for a greater degree of democracy, justice and freedom of the press and freedom of opinion. With their help, people learned the techniques of social mobilization, developed structures of social movement and civil society. Effects of this activity can slowly be observed not only in Algeria but throughout the Arab world.
Keywords
Full Text:
PDFReferences
CIA. (n.d.). Algeria, The World Factbook. Retrieved June 16, 2018 from https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ag.html
Anbarani, A. (2013). Typology of Political Regimes in North Africa before Arab Spring. Case Study of Egypt, Tunisia and Libya. International Journal of Asian Social Science, 2013, 3(5).
Arab News. (2019, March 6). Social media breaks ‘wall of fear’ for Algeria protesters. Retrieved June 30, 2019, from http://www.arabnews.com/node/1462191/media
Aziz, A. M. (2019, March 26). Protesting Politics in Algeria, Middle East Report Online. Retrieved June 10, 2019, from https://merip.org/2019/03/protesting-politics-in-algeria/
Barney, D. (2008). Społeczeństwo sieci, Warszawa: SIC!.
Bayat, A. (2010). Life as Politics: How Ordinary People Change the Middle East. Stanford: Stanford University Press.
Bessadi, N. (2019, March). Algeria: social media and public sphere building, Algiers Herald Magazine. Retrieved June 9, 2019, from https://www.algiersherald.com/algeria-social-media-and-public-sphere-building/
Blog „Algerie-politique”. Retrieved June 10, 2016, from http://ffs1963.unblog.fr/
Blog „Bilad Telmesan”. Retrieved June 10, 2016, from http://bilad-13.maktoobblog.com/
Blog „Dahmani Blog”. Retrieved June 10, 2016, from http://dahmani.canalblog.com/
Blog „F jak Facebook”. „Algieria-instrukcja obsługi”. Retrieved June 16, 2014, from http://algierski.blog.pl/tag/facebook/
Bouzid, B. (2019, April 14). Communication divide fuelled Algeria’s protests, The Arab Weekly. Retrieved May 5, 2019, from https://thearabweekly.com/communication-divide-fuelled-algerias-protests
Burke, J., & Michaelson, R. (2019, March 15). Algeria protests grow as elite distances itself from ailing president, The Guardian. Retrieved May 3, 2019, from https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/mar/15/algeria-protesters-bouteflik-movement
Castells, M. (2013). Sieci oburzenia i nadziei. Ruchy społeczne w erze Internetu. Warszawa: Wydawnictwo Naukowe PWN.
Dahlberg, L. (2001). Computer- Mediated Communication and The Public Sphere: A Critical Analysis. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, vol. 7, Issue 1.
Diamond, L. (2010). Why are there no Arab democracies? Journal of Democracy, vol. 21, (1), pp. 93-104.
Dodge, T. (2012, May). Conclusion: the Middle East After the Arab Spring, w: After the Arab Spring: Power Shift in the Middle East?, LSE Ideas, Special Report. Retrieved June 6, 2016, from, http://www.lse.ac.uk/IDEAS/publications/reports/pdf/SR011/FINAL_LSE_IDEAS__ConclusionsTheMiddleEastAfterTheArabSpring_Dodge.pdf
Fandy, M. (2007). (Un)civil war of words: Media and Politics in the Arab World. London, Westport: Praeger Seciuruty National.
Goldfarb, J.C. (2006). The Politics of Small Things: The Power of the Powerless in Dark Times. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Górak-Sosnowska, K. (2011, September 12). Arabska Wiosna niejedno ma imię, Liberte! Retrieved June 10, 2016, from, http://liberte.pl/arabska-wiosna-niejedno-ma-imie/
Habermas, J. (2007). Strukturalne przeobrażenia sfery publicznej. Warszawa: Wydawnictwo Naukowe PWN.
Hafez, K. (2006). Arab Satellite Broadcasting: Democracy without Political Parties? Transnational Broadcasting Studies, 15.
Howard, P.N., & Hussain, M.M. (2013). Democracy's Fourth Wave? Digital Media and the Arab Spring. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Internet World Stats. (2019). Algeria. Retrieved 10 June, 2019, from https://www.internetworldstats.com/africa.htm#dz
Kawakibi, S. (2011, February). Tunisia’s Revolt: the Impact on Arab Media, Arab Reform Initiative. Retrieved June 10, 2016, from, http://www.arab-reform.net/tunisia%E2%80%99s-revolt-impact-arab-media
Kottoor, N. (2015, May 9). Barakat activists challenge Algeria's status quo, Deutsche Welle. Retrieved June 25, 2016, from, http://www.dw.com/en/barakat-activists-challenge-algerias-status-quo/a-17619212
Lynch, M. (2006). Voices of the New Arab Public. Iraq, al-Jazeera and Middle East Politics Today. New York: Columbia University Press.
Matarese, M. (2014, March 14). We have managed to draw the Algerian regime into a confrontation with its own people, interview with Sidalim Kouidrim Filalim, openDemocracy. Retrieved June 6, 2016, from, https://www.opendemocracy.net/arab-awakening/sidali-kouidri-filali-m%C3%A9lanie-matarese/%E2%80%9Cwe-have-managed-to-draw-algerian-regime-into-,
Mekki, S., & Fiorentino, M.R. (2019, March 7). Why are people protesting in Algeria?, Euronews. Retrieved May 7, 2019, from, https://www.euronews.com/2019/03/01/why-are-people-protesting-in-algeria-euronews-answers
Morozov, E. (2011). The Net Delusion: The Dark Side of Internet Freedom. New York: Public Affairs.
Niedziela, Sz. (2012). Konflikty i napięcia w świecie arabskim. Warszawa: Dialog.
Oumansour, B. (2019, February 29). Algeria: What’s fuelling the country’s mass protest movement?, Retrieved May 8, 2019, from https://www.iris-france.org/131442-algeria-whats-fuelling-the-countrys-mass-protest-movement/
Petré, Ch. (2014, April 14). Grassroots movement without ideology challenges Bouteflika, Your Middle East. Retrieved June 6, 2016,from http://www.yourmiddleeast.com/features/grassroots-movement-with-no-ideology-challenges-algerias-bouteflika_22868
Pintak, L. (2010). Arab Media and the Al-Jazeera Effect. In T.L. McPhail (Ed.), Global communication. Theories, Stakeholders and Trends. Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell.
Porter, G.D. (2019, March 7). Political Instability in Algeria, Council on Foreign Relations. Retrieved May 10, 2019, from https://www.cfr.org/report/political-instability-algeria
Rabah, S. (2012-2013). Social Networking Platforms as a Virtual Public Sphere in the Arab World. Global Media Journal, Arabian Edition Fall/Spring, vol. 2, Nos. 1-2, p. 47-62.
Rayan, Y. (2009, September 21). Algerian Bloggers Feel Threatened by Proposed Law, The New York Times. Retrieved June 6, 2019, from http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/21/technology/21iht-censor.html
Rinnawi, K. (2006). Instant Nationalism: McArabism, Al-Jazeera, and Transnational Media in the Arab World. Lanham: University Press of America.
Reed, J. (2019, March 3). Algerian protesters rally, connect through Facebook chain messages, Deutche Welle News. Retrieved June 15, 2019, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RP5XYmL0iDM
Romero, C. (n.d.). Algeria – media landscape, European Journalism Centre. Retrieved June 6, 2016, from http://ejc.net/media_landscapes/algeria
Sawicka, Z. (2017). Wpływ nowych mediów na przemiany polityczne wybranych państw Bliskiego Wschodu. Warszawa: Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Warszawskiego.
Shirky, C. (2011). The Political Power of Social Media: Technology, the Public Sphere, and Political Change. Foreign Affairs, vol. 90.
Speech of the President of Algeria. (2011, April 15). Retrieved April 5, 2016, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QwiL4ROWWt4,
Statcounter Global Stats. (2019). Retrieved March 5, 2019, from http://gs.statcounter.com/browser-market-share/all/algeria
TVN 24. (2019). Protesty w Algierii. Raport specjalny. Retrieved June 30, 2019, from https://www.tvn24.pl/raporty/protesty-w-algierii,1348
Urbanowicz, M. (2011, May 11-17). Mała stabilizacja, Polityka, 20.
VOA. (2019, July 5). Algerians Protest, Celebrate Independence Day Amid Tensions. Retrieved July 6, 2019, from https://www.voanews.com/africa/algerians-protest-celebrate-independence-day-amid-tensions
Zdanowski, J. (2011). Bliski Wschód 2011: Bunt czy rewolucja? Kraków: Oficyna Wydawnicza AFM.
Zoubir, Y.H. (2016, February 9). Algeria After the Arab Spring, Foreign Policy. Retrieved June 10, 2016 from https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/algeria/2016-02-09/algeria-after-arab-spring
___________________________
ISSN: 2391-7601 (online)
ISSN: 2391-4920 (print)
(old ISSN: 1689-8168)