Why Repressive Qatar Broadcasts Progressive TV

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Sources: pastebin.com/xZ50yb3u
Twitter: / polymatters
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Music by Graham Haerther (www.Haerther.net)
Audio editing by Eric Schneider
Motion graphics by Vincent de Langen
Thumbnail by Simon Buckmaster
Writing & Direction by Evan
This video is not sponsored by, affiliated with, nor did it involve any employees of Al Jazeera or the Qatar government.
This includes a paid sponsorship which had no part in the writing, editing, or production of the rest of the video.
Music by Epidemic Sound: epidemicsound.com
Video supplied by Getty Images
Select footage from the AP Archive

[@PolyMatter]

★ Since this video was uploaded, the CuriosityStream + Nebula Bundle went on sale for just $11.59 for a limited time. This is an amazing deal at less than $1/month for bonus videos, top-notch documentaries and the ability to support creators like myself. curiositystream.com/polymatter

[@shzarmai]

I find it so ironic that an Authoritarian Regime uses Liberal rhetoric lol, also this reminds me of Alexander I of Russia; ''As prince and during the early years of his reign, Alexander often used liberal rhetoric, but continued Russia's absolutist policies in practice. '' - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_I_of_Russia

[@anotherguycalled6253]

5:00 Practicing their religion,preferred government, and culture is the problem??

[@IxoraNera]

That's why I go for DW News. It's pretty unbiased as far as news go, with expectation when it comes to Russian politics, other than that they make very good documentaries showing both sides of the problems without onesided blaming one side(like vice news).

[@YgramNolles]

Please add ideal payment almost nobody in the netherlands has a creditcard, i'd love to spend money and get the extra content but it is unavailable

[@userMB1]

You haven't answered why Qatar Broadcasts progressive TV! What does Qatar gain from that? You haven't explained.

[@prepor584]

I remember a saying like "The BBC tells the truth 364 days of the year so that they can lie on the one day that matters". I don't know about the current sentiment about BBC, but the main idea seems to me like it would fit Al Jazeera perfectly.

[@lSeKToRl]

Been watching them since Arab Spring and their reporting has never been anything other than factual when comparing with other sources.

[@mydearfriend007]

True they always have a clear Muslim bias. Just see their reporting on Charlie Hebdo incident, their main concern at that time was what people would think about Muslims in Europe, the growing "Islamophobia" as they call it, instead of showing sympathy for the people killed and strongly condemning such act.

[@lSeKToRl]

@@mydearfriend007 Well reporting on growing islamaphobia is reporting. Saying it's that they were wrong in doing so may be seen as bias. If you hate Muslims then hearing the word islamaphobia may trigger you and make you think it's bias. When in reality it may exist and just isn't reported by other media.

[@mydearfriend007]

@@lSeKToRl I am not saying that's wrong. I am just mentioning what their priorities are. And enough Islamophobia is reported. Many a times in places where there isn't any. The tensions between two communities with one of them being Muslim is almost always mentioned from an angle of Islamophobia.

[@tonyhuang2594]

@@lSeKToRl that is really naive. First of all, all media have biases. Al Jazeera has a Muslim bias because it is from an Islamic country and have many Muslim writers/reporters. 2nd all media is influenced by money. Al Jazeera gets funded by Qatar so they have to shape their message to get funding. And no, governments are never altruistic. If you follow any geopolitics channels, you would know that.

[@Quantum-1157]

Al Jazeera never reports anything negative about Qatar: the coup in Qatar and the father-son squabble, the horrific conditions of migrant labour workers in Qatar, etc,

[@Fun_Dips]

It's the same with RT. RT does a great job covering global and US events though, especially when it comes to sending out video reporters to get footage. With the Portland riots, they were the only news network that captured footage of "mostly peaceful protesters" throwing homemade IEDs at police.

[@BigBoiiLeem]

Yes, but because we know that, we can counteract that bias in our heads. We know that the vast majority of their reporting is high-quality and unbiased, so we can go to other news orgs for the few topics that Al Jazeera doesn't cover.

[@ezradominic5200]

As a black ,Afro-European, catholic living in Qatar, it’s often said that the two pillars of the country are Al Jazeera and Qatar Airways. Shows u how important those two companies are to the country. P.S - Despite not having a democracy, the monarchy functions similar to a tribe in some aspects due to the small amount of citizenry. The Royal Family has exerted pressure from within the family itself and amongst the most influential Qatari families(sort of like an aristocracy) with the rest of the citizenry functioning like a bloated upper middle class. They really don’t need democracy as Qataris directly work in government. Therefore all policies that could harm the Qataris citizenry that stem from the royal family can’t actually go ahead as they rely on the citizens to carry them out. Furthermore, due to Islamic law, the emirs have multiple wives and therefore multiple children(which is why MBS in Saudi Arabia carried out a purge to secure his power) The risk of a coup is too high and therefore in the Emirs best interests to stay on good terms with his citizens. Just something I’d like to share. Great video BTW

[@ablebodied175]

How is discrimination? I've heard that all middle eastern countries are pretty discriminatory and Qatar especially used slave labor to build the football stadiums for the upcoming world cup

[@DopaminedotSeek3rcolonthree]

Really appreciate you sharing. Quite fascinating!

[@yayayayya4731]

@@ablebodied175 slave labour is not the right word. More like immigrant labour, but some companies do something to the passports and stuff

[@peterwang5660]

This is similar to China but on a small scale.

[@LucidFL]

I don't understand how being black, Afro-European, and Catholic is relevant to the second half of the sentence.

[@BobScheuren]

Judging from Aljazeera English and especially AJ+, I've always felt that Qatar was just trying to appeal to useful idiots in the West by hypocritically adapting its political agenda to their values and narrative.

[@obedrodriguez9074]

Bingo!

[@alexdunphy3716]

Because the kind of message AJ+ peddles is undermining and destabilizing to ones enemies. Western populations are viewed as an enemy/competitor by the oligarchs of other countries as well as the ones who run ours

[@satyakisil9711]

Same with RT, which attracts a different spectrum of useful idiots in the West.

[@eliaschevette]

are you on the conservative side of the spectrum. Let's start with are you white? Male? Middle class?

[@MobiusCoin]

Literally the opposite of what this video said.

[@EarthB00]

It's honestly easy to understand: appear neutral and reliable for news which doesn't actually matter so that you build credibility to do the real propaganda you actually want.

[@ReubenJBrown]

put yourself in the shoes of an Al Jazeera journalist, though: it would be a moral question over whether the Qatar red-line made your work unethical, but equally your reporting and journalism is some of the finest in the world on issues that really do matter to billions of people, just outside the nation that your network is based. it's a great deal for the Qatari government, but it's also a pretty good deal for everyone serviced by Al Jazeera around the world.

[@lukesutton4135]

When did we start talking about the US?

[@EarthB00]

@@ReubenJBrown I mean signing up to be a journalist for an organization which isn't independent means signing up to do someone's propaganda, no matter how sophisticated the disguise. So I assume you can clear your conscience that you aren't that different from your peers in the legacy media. Just don't say the Q word.

[@EarthB00]

@@lukesutton4135 How is what I said just limited to the US? It is a pretty general statement. If you're part of an organization, you do what you do to keep your job.

[@erdood3235]

@@EarthB00 what's the Q word?

[@technetium9653]

9:53 it's actually pretty insane how small Al Jazeera goes, I like researching obscure topics and on KZbin it's probably either the associated press, France 24 or Al Jazeera, they have highlights of Sudanese unionist in the 2011 referendum, Thai Malay separatist , and pro government Egyptians during the Arab Spring which are topics rarely talked about or given its proper highlight

[@AxxLAfriku]

OH NOOOOOO!!! Most people agree that my vids are the worst on KZbin. I agree to disagree. Please agree to disagree with the haters, dear eha

[@bloxracer3627]

@@AxxLAfriku stop begging ya beggar

[@suggestiveguy]

@@AxxLAfriku 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂🤣😂🤣

[@aturchomicz821]

Interesting huh

[@sm3675]

That's what I love about Al Jazeera. They are willing to be specific and cover important problems that many Western outlets would label as "insignificant".

[@nawarelsabaa]

While you mentioned this, it bears repeating: Aljazeera Arabic is one of the most biased news sources out there. Their stance on everything from regional politics to the LGBTQ community is almost 100% informed by the official stance of the Qatari government. The other major news network in the Arabic-speaking world, Alarabiya, is no better, with a similar bias towards the views of the Saudi Arabian government instead.

[@nafrost2787]

I just wanted to say that the fact that you include your sources is extremely appreciated. Even if I don't read them, it's still important that you do that because for me it still increases your credibility, and it gives the more curious viewer extra material.

[@legrosroger]

Small mistake - you frequently included Bahrain in your Qatari borders

[@NoNameAtAll2]

probably not that small for bahrain people themselves

[@LegendNinja41]

@@NoNameAtAll2 yup. big enough mistake that he shouldn't visit the country in the next time, if he ever had any plans to do so.

[@michaeltamke8542]

So this is the gathering point for geography nerds? Count me in

[@LukSter18998]

@@LegendNinja41 ah damn

[@ProfAzimov]

As it should be

[@p00bix]

Worth noting that Afghanistan was given that 27/100 freedom score and Myanmar given that 28/100 score based on *2020*, not *2021*. They have yet to be updated to account for the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan or the Coup in Myanmar; their updated report should come out in February or March.

[@souvikrc4499]

I won't be surprised if both of those countries rankings drop like a stone.

[@Jack-he8jv]

@@souvikrc4499 shitty statistics, it has zero relations to people quality of life. nobodies cares about illusionary democracy, do you call for democracy when your boss at work doesn't give you the same percentage raise he gives himself? also non-citizens, aka residents should be judged based on their original country circumstance and life quality, they are workers not refugees. do you call out a european way of life because its better than a central african?

[@Jack-he8jv]

also arab gulf monarchies have no need for democracies since our system of government work in a way that achieve the theoretical objective of democracy without being a stupid gimmick to trick a bunch of serfs that their voice matters. The Royal Family has exerted pressure from within the family itself and amongst the most influential families(sort of like rothchilds and their lobbyists) with the rest of the citizenry functioning like a bloated upper middle class. They really don’t need democracy as the citizens directly work in government. Therefore all policies that could harm the citizenry that stem from the royal family can’t actually go ahead as they rely on the citizens to carry them out. Furthermore, due to Islamic law, the emirs have multiple wives and therefore multiple children(which is why MBS in Saudi Arabia carried out a purge to secure his power) The risk of a coup is too high and therefore in the Emirs best interests to stay on good terms with his citizens.

[@p00bix]

​@@Jack-he8jv this is one of the most ridiculous things i have ever read, and as a PolyMatter viewer, you should already know why. Hydrocarbon-rich countries like Qatar don't face public demands for democracy because they can give their citizens a ton of money in return for obedience, an advantage which other dictatorships lack. But that's not a sustainable system--oil and gas reserves do gradually run out--and it's not a good or just system either--human rights abuses are extremely common and corruption runs rampant, despite all the wealth. Gonna overlook the goofy 19th century Rothschild conspiracy theory in your comment, and finish my comment by reminding you that Qatar is not communist. The people don't own the government, and most don't even work for it. Framing Qatar as some sort of socialist state, wherein the government is run for and by the workers, is so completely removed from reality that I struggle to believe you could point to Qatar on a labelled map, let alone understand its political system. I really hope that you're trolling or 15 years old, because if you're an adult who believes that JFC.

[@Jack-he8jv]

@@p00bix that is some prime straw-man argument. i never claimed it will work everywhere nor is it sustainable. but it does work and the people are more than happy compared to competing systems in other countries.(sub-africans and americas)

[@XER0GRAVITY]

Another great explanation about a complicated issue from PolyMatter, I've always been wondering why Qatar has taken it upon themselves to publish balanced reporting on international issues.

[@AsimoTan]

they aren't balanced whatsoever.

[@thebananas6483]

@@AsimoTan I'm sure, with an accusation like that, that you have some sort of proof? Examples? Any evidence whatsoever?

[@a2pabmb2]

@@thebananas6483 Their feelings got hurt when their propaganda bubble got popped by someone telling the truth. That's all the proof they need apparently

[@AsimoTan]

@@thebananas6483 My proofs keeping getting deleted, but just google criticism on Al Jazeera.

[@sotch2271]

@@thebananas6483 when do they actually cover something from quatar ? Never

[@malekzin4788]

The first rule of Al-Jazeera is you do not talk about Qatar. The second rule of Al-Jazeera is you do not talk about Qatar ….

[@user-iu4se2ps7d]

You mean you talk negatively about Qatar.

[@darylteo9983]

This actually reminds me of The Straits Times (Singapore's newspaper) and CNA (Singapore News broadcaster). Both are technically government run/mouthpieces, but I was surprised by how liberal the content can go, given how our nation is kinda conservative. I know it's not a direct comparison, but I feel that there are some parallels.

[@aronseptianto8142]

yeah, straits time is suprisingly neutral, you can tell it doesn't talk about Singapore in (too) negative light, but overall, it's quality

[@PerryKobalt]

All Thanks to PAP (People Action Party)

[@Snowman_0690]

dislike all media in Singapore is controlled by the government

[@kicapanmanis1060]

Strait Times and CNA are more or less govenrment mouthpieces though. Polymatter had another video that mentions that.

[@GierlangBhaktiPutra]

Yes but the news and documentaries are well researched. In neighbouring Indonesia, we are more democratic but sadly journalism quality is also bad.

[@aalhashmi90]

For Aljazeera English, the red line is not only not talking about Qatar but fight Qatars fight against anyone who is opposing Qatar

[@seadkolasinac7220]

give specific examples

[@user-sd4fx7gh4j]

@@seadkolasinac7220 when Egypt and most of gulf countries blockade Qatar .. Al-Jazeera posted like hell anti all these countries -governments (the Arabic version especially) news I don’t think they missed one mistake or anything suspicious they didn’t report about

[@GrigRP]

@@user-sd4fx7gh4j Blockading a country over news coverage is unjust, they were right to talk about it constantly.

[@RobbieH1998]

Used to live in qatar and interesting little things; people would literally have jaguars, panthers, etc in their super cars. Also if anyone crashes with a native arab, regardless of whos fault it was, you would be at fault as an expact

[@granthurlburt4062]

Prob. true. But I was in a minor accident with someone from India and we were treated quickly, fairly, and efficiently. The native Qataris are 100,000 of a country of 3 million.

[@maevethefox5912]

This was very fascinating, thank you! A friend worked as a journalist in Doha for years and I always found it confusing. She lived in an expat compound and was somewhat separate from day to day life there but still shared so many stories, and this helps explain a lot.

[@granthurlburt4062]

I lived in Qatar for 4 years in a downtown apartment building. Some people live in gated communities where delivery drivers and others easily come. It is quite easy to travel all around Doha and Qatar. You're not isolated the way you might be in Saudi. Women dress as they want except the shoulders and knees should be covered. Women drive and go about on their own day and night. I dealtt with people from Pakistan, Palestine (my mechanic) and the Philippines (most retail outlets) and saw the construction workers board busses in hundreds on the building sites near my building and so did she. 2.8 million of the 3 million in Qatar are from other countries, mostly not Western countries, and send 100's of millions of dollars home when they could NEVER earn that much at home. They build houses and support families at home. I saved $250,000.0 and that after paying off debts. It's not perfect but VERY FEW countries are. We are LUCKY in the developed world.

[@Epilon]

The video is well made and quite informative, but hardly answers the question posed in the title. The diplomatic incentives of Qatar are well presented, as is the reach of Al Jazeera, but it doesn't feel clearly presented as to why having such a notable entity is useful to Qatar. If their goal is to be the world's middleman, it almost seems counter intuitive to fund an entity that has so consistently pissed people off. Maybe it is just the editing, but I think the argument is missing a few premises before the conclusion.

[@MinedMaker]

I felt the same way exactly. +1

[@benedictlee4973]

Most of his videos are like this, even his Singapore Healthcare video hardly answers the question

[@columbus8myhw]

I think this is the point: if Al Jazeera publishes crap, then no one will care about Al Jazeera. And if no one cares about Al Jazeera, no one will care about Qatar. They aren't buying propaganda; they're buying credibility. It's a different sort of reputation game. EDIT: This is basically said at 12:14. "The greater [Al Jazeera's] perception as independent, credible, and high-quality, the better it fulfills its original mission: to keep the spotlight on Qatar."

[@l1mbo69]

Their aim is to be relevant so that they aren't forgotten and end up being like Kuwait and have Saudi Arabia invade it just like Iraq invaded Kuwait, Al Jazeera is what's giving them relevance

[@Epilon]

Note, I'm not saying I can't fill in the blanks myself. I'm saying the video as a self contained argument is incomplete. It's like looking at a half finished bridge. I can see the foundations, and I can see a bit of the picture, but I can't see how it comes all together and holds itself up. The viewer shouldn't have to finish the bridge through their own conjectures when promised a complete structure.

[@tomm5663]

I had been wondering exactly this question for a while now. Thanks polymatter!

[@subpoena.]

A man who ponders

[@klm9440]

A man who ponders

[@moeomeohuyenmeo1883]

can you explain it for me in simple language?

[@tohapka]

Me too

[@NevaehBeatez]

As an English speaker in North America, Al Jazeera used to be my go to source for international news. Now that I use a news aggregator however I've been getting stories from many sources. Google News is great for showing you how different companies are covering the same story

[@pehash]

Moral of the story: always get your news from multiple sources

[@wilfredpeake9987]

So basically by giving all sides a say they make sure they can recieve a favor from anyone if they need it without having to worry about their population. That is actually quite brilliant

[@AsimoTan]

lol, they don't give all sides a say. They just make it seem like they do.

[@wilfredpeake9987]

@@AsimoTan still better than the media companies that are blatantly biased

[@yayayayya4731]

@@AsimoTan they actually do. How can you say they don't?

[@AsimoTan]

@@wilfredpeake9987 No, they fund terrorist groups, so no.

[@AsimoTan]

@@yayayayya4731 Because they never cover the terror attacks done in my country since they fund it. So no, they cover unbiased news in countries like yours, not mine.

[@redheesh]

Every thing should be progressive and liberal , but not within our borders 😂😂.

[@agmuntianu]

they are exporting all the freedom of speech they have, so nothing is left for Qatar :))

[@minhaj23227]

@@agmuntianu 🤣🤣😅

[@HinduPAGANcowpissdrinkerRAKESH]

Human beings are biased in nature! For example, indian want secularism liberal govt in western countries but hindooo rule in india.

[@gazz01]

@@HinduPAGANcowpissdrinkerRAKESH lol,you are misinformed I'm Hindu and No one want Hindu rule. India has much freedom and it is world largest secular democracy. India hosts 3rd largest population of Muslim more than any in middle East. But Al Jazeera always exaggerate any reporting on muslim. Basically show India is anti-muslim Country. Don't ever compare India to any Middle eastern country.

[@shesh32]

@@gazz01 Exactly, he missed this in the video. They're not completely unbiased.

[@osf5441]

I'm Iranian and at least in the case of news relating to my country, AJ's reporting isn't remotely close to the truth.

[@Fun_Dips]

Polymatter just just praising AJ as unbiased and of high quality because it covers "woke" topics. This is one of the videos where polymatter is clearly out of his realm and doesn't know what he's talking about.

[@Ryan-qv1xs]

Great video as always, keep up the good work.

[@ngelosevs3201]

One thing people should consider; the Al Jazeera Arabic and English broadcast a polarizing view of what network really stands for-usually relaying a polarizing points from each other despite being in the same network. That alone, already shows the facade and masks that has been playing for a while now.

[@IxoraNera]

Remember when they suddenly aired french colonial documentary days after the french prime minister said something after a teacher got decapitated for showing a picture.

[@3MAR443]

They are more smarter than CNN for sure

[@warpdrive9229]

Accepting Holocaust in the English broadcasts but denying it in the Arabic ones.

[@BLY99]

That's because they're actually 2 separate organizations with separate leaderships.

[@sm3675]

Al Jazeera Arabic appeals to Arabs. Al Jazeera English appeals to Muslims. Islam is a religion, not politics. That's why they are different.

[@Thebreakdownshow1]

Lol so Qatar wants to be trending at all times and Aljazeera is their way of building clout. Them not reporting local issues is just a small price they have to pay as journalists.

[@808void]

Trust me there is nothing to report locally on a day to day basis lol

[@itr8247]

Good journalists dont compromise....

[@Thebreakdownshow1]

@@itr8247 no they compromise all the time,

[@TheSm1thers]

I don't see the lack of sensationalism. To me it's a lot like RT where it criticises other governments, often unfairly, and defends its own.

[@Lizerator]

Your channel is so valuable. Just started listening. Balanced, important, informative

[@kantemirovskaya1lightninga30]

Nice explanation. As one who was formally an expat in Qatar working for their government, I really like the way you explained that in simple terms... I have struggled explaining to people in the past. Thanks again for a great video.

[@ronanyomu5967]

Let's keep in mind their "human rights" reporting does not include lgbt issues

[@Tinil0]

@@ronanyomu5967 It does in the english version. You can check out their LGBTQ tag. It obviously won't mention anything from Qatar, but it covers LGBT rights issues for elsewhere in the world. I don't think, for example, the notoriously transphobic BBC has articles on the lived experienced of being Trans in Nigeria for instance.

[@liuner2479]

@@ronanyomu5967 do pedos fall under the category of human rights?

[@liuner2479]

@@Tinil0 are those the same people who want kids to mutlitate their genitalia?

[@samb2459]

If you’re talking about trans people, I can say as someone who has been trans since five that A) Our medical procedures drastically improve our quality of life, far from “mutilation”, and B) Very few of us support children receiving surgeries :)

[@ulaalu4356]

The most important bias is the mother tongue. I speak Spanish and usually watch news channels in different languages and countries. I sometimes don't understand anything but it clearly show the difference in perception on some topics in the images they show, attitude and comments. All channels just show news that can be sold to their region and repeat again and again the same bias their readers or subscribers have. People only watch things that are similar to their ideas or ideologies.

[@obidean3964]

Couldn't agree more

[@utsavbhalla8163]

u have hit the nail on its head! i am from india and thats what i am observing here

[@NotADuncon]

"People only watch things that are similar to their ideas or ideologies." - This is generally wrong. This is much more complicated. Sometimes people watch stuff that shares their axioms but sometimes it's more an approach to telling news, sometimes people watch channels because of their reputation. Not to mention you can scare people into watching. There are many different avenues to get viewers. Also Language should not introduce any bias. The story will be told differently but it won't skew you towards one political party or anything

[@sambotros1918]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/n3zSc6ignq-snMWcttps://kzbin.info/www/bejne/n3zSc6ignq-snMU

[@DieAlteistwiederda]

Spanish is my third and definitely weakest language. I often watch news from different Spanish speaking countries to improve my vocabulary and just over all comprehension. I also watch news in other languages and from multiple other countries. The style of news is very different even within the same language group. After a while you can also clearly see how some are more for sensationalism than actual at least more or less neutral news coverage. Compared most news channels in the US to the UK or Australia for example, kind of weird to be honest and even Australia and the UK have a difference and I don't just mean the dialect of English.

[@kgw72]

Yeah, we have noticed how Qatar is trying to be everywhere, doing everything. As the saying goes: "have people talking about you, even if it's bad". Btw, my cousin was an expat in Qatar and told us how higher-ups qataris employed non-Muslim workers just to use their "alcohol licenses" for themselves. If their driver buys an expensive whiskey bottle, sometimes he won't be drinking it…

[@granthurlburt4062]

Yes they do this. But frankly, after living there for 4 years, I am deeply glad there are such restrictions on drinking. The driving is the most dangerous part of living in that otherwise very safe country.

[@bigfatbreakfastboy7137]

"Al Jazeera is super progressive, and also unbiased!" 😂

[@aesyamazeli8804]

I think every news source have biasity that's why it's best to read widely and not exclusively. Also it's good to know what the other side is talking about. Watching propaganda helps you to understand the intentions of various world leaders.

[@red_Sun24]

biasity isn't a word it's bias

[@yohaneschristianp]

@@red_Sun24 come on now

[@red_Sun24]

@@yohaneschristianp what

[@fetchstixRHD]

It's pretty much impossible to be unbiased unless you're omniscient and perfectly logical (if that can even be defined at all!) All you really can do is be on guard I guess...

[@GL-iv4rw]

@@fetchstixRHD or live in the wilderness away from all civilization😆 but what you should really be weary of is claims of being neutral

[@jamestk656]

First time I saw a video documentary from Al Jazeera had something to do about China and the people who live there. It was a huge contrast to what I was used to and I was extremely impressed at how they managed to get real people to express actual criticisms about their own government and the state of things. How did they accomplish that as a foreign news source? They did the apparently genius level move of using all Chinese reporters. It shouldn't be a big brain move but I guess to CNN it is because ordinary Chinese citizens clam up or are even actively hostile to western news organizations especially if it's a white person talking to them through an interpreter. The video interviews were so good that it cemented my respect for Al Jazeera (well, as long as I don't need news about Qatar).

[@svankensen]

Could you find that video for me please?

[@yohaneschristianp]

CNN and BBC aren't doing that good either. Still biased. Once you get used reading news from these, you can feel the patterns too. So it's essentially still kind of CGTN kind of feeling, but better disguised.

[@ronanyomu5967]

Let's keep in mind their "human rights" reporting does not include lgbt issues

[@damonferrara3637]

Yeah, and honestly, I'm okay with them ignoring Qatar if that's what it takes to keep them funded. They provide a great service for everywhere else, and I can read about Qatar on other sites. And I'd certainly rather they ignore it than publish propaganda.

[@jerry3790]

@@ronanyomu5967 why has this commenter made the exact same reply on several other comments?

[@gregosullivan6000]

Brilliant video, wondered this since a long time

[@naztar4323]

As an arabe this may be true for Aljezera english but arabic idk about that

[@Muslim-og3vc]

AJ+: “Why LGBT is good for America” Al Jazeera English: “Is the LGBT movement good?” Al Jazeera Arabic: “How to stone Gays 101”

[@yayayayya4731]

Memri tv vibes

[@LegendNinja41]

funny meme but not really a good respresentation of these 3 networks.

[@uzochiokeke4328]

@Timur Sayfullah based cringe

[@Muslim-og3vc]

@Timur Sayfullah yes based indeed

[@aakashbishnoi7947]

😂😂 petty much sums up Al Jazeera

[@LebaneseBaron]

Hipocrisy is the best foreign policy

[@asirnewazkhan4172]

Source: history

[@genosypheus]

AJ: we do real news Israel: Nope.

[@mbn9672]

Lmao imagine appealing to the genocidal ethno-state entity for moral guidance 😂😂😂😂 you’re truly lost

[@Ferrari333SP]

I love how the channel provides a free stream of their channel on KZbin; in the US it's one of the best ways to find out what's going on around the world

[@PutXi_Whipped]

Jimmy Dore: CNN shows the missiles taking off and Al Jazzera shows the missiles landing.

[@minhaj23227]

Except CNN had a female reporter in AFGHANISTAN in literally a BURQA........😌😌😌😌

[@shayan_idk]

@@minhaj23227 and?

[@PirateCat822]

@@shayan_idk I think that was sarcasm

[@usecriticalthinking243]

Jimmy dore is propaganda

[@kiwitrainguy]

@@minhaj23227 A BBC reporter did that a few years ago as well.

[@nerdy_crawfish]

I think you should use authoritarian vs democratic instead of conservative vs progressive. 'Conservative' means wildly different things in different countries because the status quo that is being 'conserved' and the values they are based on are wildly different. Technically the CCP is the 'conservative' party of China but you would be hard pressed to find many conservatives (outside from a few corrupt hypocrites in politics or business that only really care about their own money or career) from a western country that agrees with the CCP or Qatar's government. Edit: After reading some of the replies to this I think I need to clarify something. There is a reason I included the 'hypocrite politician' as an exception. Politicians always have and always will lean more authoritarian because it's in their own self interest to do so. The more power they have to more they can force others to 'play ball' with them and extract wealth from others. If you think that your 'side' is better about that than the others then you haven't looked hard enough. The real divide is between those with power and those without it. Using authoritarian vs libertarian/democratic reflects that real divide far more accurately and is what Polymatter should use instead.

[@eyesofthecervino3366]

That's a really good point.

[@a2pabmb2]

Have you not been watching the USA for the last half-decade? We've got like a quarter of the country foaming at the mouth begging for authoritarian bullshit like the CCP or Qatar or Russia have, and calling themselves 'conservative'.

[@JB-gv7pt]

@@a2pabmb2 Are you stupid? Yes the biggest conservative talking point which is anti-vaccine mandates is so authoritarian.

[@rdablock]

@@JB-gv7pt ...how about stuff like anti-abortion laws and the like?

[@SD_Says]

@@a2pabmb2 This has to be one of the dumbest comments I have ever read. I didn't know whether to shake my head or laugh. Was this comment an attempt at sarcasm?

[@R.U.1.2.]

They make great documentaries, and their news seems fairly balanced and informative.

[@ChristianJiang]

This was so much more enlightening than NAS Daily’s superficial coverage

[@bryngriffiths1441]

As someone who used to live in Qatar, it was pretty insane the queues at the one off-license😂

[@sm3675]

Is it hot in April?

[@abith_peter4317]

One of the worst country

[@GrigRP]

@@abith_peter4317 Says the Mumbai slum dweller.

[@maazin2782]

@@GrigRP lol

[@AJ-le8op]

@@GrigRP 1000x times better to live in a slum, rather than living inside a tent (burka) my whole life, and be treated as a second class citizen plus being married to men that already have 12 wives.

[@Aiham]

But the issue is. There are two Aljazeeras. The arabic version is far more conservative and religiously oriented than the English one. They are pretty unbiased supporting the Islamic Brotherhood organization against most states in the middleeast.

[@AsimoTan]

this 👆👆👆👆 they are just plain low-key propaganda channel who know how to sweet talk to different audiences.

[@bigmacdonald9696]

8:37 umm he says it in the video

[@kimofrosty]

You haven't watched the video before commenting, he does mention it

[@kantoorhandook6595]

Watch world news--->al-jazeera Watch qatari/gulf news----> not al-jazeera Its a win for us as long we still properly swift between news outlet in each condition

[@rabbidcrazy787]

Al Jazeera is very biased because they constantly try to portray Israelis as evil people.

[@Nabutuki2010]

Well researched video, great content

[@Baamthe25th]

Congrats I've been watching this channel for a while, and this is the first time it genuinely made me wish to subs to nebula.

[@TheOpalHammer]

America: "Tone down that reporting" Qatar: "lol no" *airlifts cows*

[@sof8670]

As an ex Qatari resident this was the fastest I clicked on a Polymatter video

[@Wakeuptorealityman]

I am currently a Qatari resident while the country is so good their media isn't

[@ahmadbitar3819]

@V J Some things about the video are overexaggerating how evil the government is. They are not good people to non-Qataris but regardless, the country is not the repressive.

[@Robopi3.14]

@@ahmadbitar3819 well considering most residents are not citizens, id say its pretty repressive

[@yayayayya4731]

@@Robopi3.14 most people there are expats.

[@trevorsam2647]

@@yayayayya4731 well 60 % of population is south asian who are mostly workers so ...

[@wadafik]

That sore thumb animation is top-tier lol. Love it!

[@Mohd-dn6nq]

very nice and informative, please do more videos about qatar, maybe the effect of the world cup on it,history of its wealth, and relation ships

[@DC9848]

Fascinating video. Your graphics guy(s) deserve a raise

[@kanekiken2002]

2:12 The problem with data is that they can be wrong as well. There have been various instances when Al Jazeera reports very biasedly. Anyone who has watched Al Jazeera would agree that this news channel preaches equality and secularism to those countries who are already relatively much equal and secular, just like France, while it fails to report on various violation of human rights going on Islamic nations. It's biased.

[@Cecilia-ky3uw]

Indeed

[@fucky889]

So true, I watch it just to laugh at how dumb some people are

[@mrvan3491]

Just like every single news Station in the West

[@artemegorov9190]

PolzMatter totallz missed the amrk here. Whz is it that MSM Agancies reward the titl of reliabilitz onlz to those that spout the same propaganda about the world. But label the others as propaganda. One should reallz start following the monez here.

[@hndrwn]

Yes, and it is Polymatter that sounds biased

[@nuke___8876]

Al Jazeera has a very willing blindspot and there are multiple reasons employed that rationalize the blind spot. I think the most used blind spot is: "Stuff doesn't really happen here." And that's kinda right. It's a tiny country in population and territory. On the other hand, if I were a journalist and people were literally dying kilometers from my home from malice -- that's a story no matter how insignificant the place. That's just the worst of it too. There are also the poor living conditions and exit-visa debacle for foreigners as well. If you want tight immigration policies -- ok, whatever. But people should be allowed to leave whenever they flipping want -- doubly so for foreign nationals. Oh, and the most obvious blindspot is the hand that feeds -- the Qatari government and its policies. This has been an ethics problem in news media for ages now. How to criticize the financiers? Some organizations just do it because that's the zeitgeist. PBS and, to a lesser extent, BBC come to mind. Other organizations should probably opt for using more methods to separate themselves from a single or a few controlling interests.

[@reganovich]

it is an excellent channel..some absolutely great documentaries on it and a decent hourly news with a unique perspective

[@kylethecreator]

Great work! I am always blown away with your graphics and how well you do maps. What programs do you use to do this amazing work? I want to learn how to do these for my videos.

[@MiloTheFirst1]

He has a course on how to make videos like his on skillshare

[@FlightMate]

Motion design is what you're looking for. If you have a Mac, Apple Motion is an easy yet powerful tool for that. On PC/Mac, After Effects is probably the most popular albeit a bit harder to learn IMO.

[@maybeanonymous6846]

@@FlightMate aw man linux has neither

[@simulping4371]

@@maybeanonymous6846 either run with wine or set up a windows VM using QEMU/KVM

[@vandp7043]

@@maybeanonymous6846 eww linux user

[@steveelrino1339]

The idea that NPR is unbiased is very questionable

[@Hocksta]

and BBC lol

[@akumaking1]

Does anybody have the dislike add-on? Because it would be nice to see the like/dislike ratio

[@Distress.]

@@akumaking1 its 782.

[@juliancohen9561]

NPR is absolutely not unbiased with it comes to domestic US issues.

[@syxepop]

@@akumaking1 - I have it (It's on the Chrome Store for the browser) and it states as 19 / 1 (17,132 / 898), so the audience tends to favor this video...

[@jaredspencer3304]

I would contend that being independent is not the same as being objective. Like you say, they are known as a liberal station. And though I'm also a liberal, it's easy to see times when AJ takes the liberal position without support. Basically every news org does this, and perhaps AJ does it less. But I would still rather see the case made for the liberal position instead of assuming the audience will take it for granted.

[@echosmith5256]

al jazeera is never liberal or objective when it comes to islamist vs non Muslim conflicts. It always projects the islamists - due to qatar's alignment with the Muslim brotherhood. Using the vocabulary of liberals does not make one liberal.

[@ryhanzfx1641]

what the f are you trying to say here?

[@zzzzoot]

A pro-human rights pro-democracy globalist POV is always going to be considered liberal in the context of the middle east today. Liberal is subjective and does not always mean 'left'; liberal can refer to a conservative leaning position in some countries political climate for example. Considering it's one of the only reputable new sources in the Middle East that isn't rigidly oppressive or religiously conservative I think most viewers are grateful it's considered a liberal outlet.

[@Jose04537]

@@zzzzoot There's a thing called lying by omission (been one sided). A news channel will always have a framing. In the case of Al Jazeera is zero criticism of Qatar (conflict of interest), been pro Muslim (obviously), anti Israel, and put in a negative light libertarian/right ideologies (except monarchy, also for obvious reasons). That's why you use politically diverse sources, with a clean fact check record, to get the whole picture. Al Jazeera also have a mixed Factual Record (failed fact checks). I suggest reading the full analysis from All Sides & Media Bias Fact Check (indexed below). What people also doesn't know is, Al Jazeera owns AJ+, a clearly left media channel. They plan to launch a right leaning channel called "rightly". Who controls the narrative controls the world. mediabiasfactcheck.com/al-jazeera/?amp=1 www.allsides.com/news-source/al-jazeera-media-bias

[@sambotros1918]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/n3zSc6ignq-snMWcttps://kzbin.info/www/bejne/n3zSc6ignq-snMU

[@joeshmoe8345]

Really interesting post, thanks G

[@Daniel-rh7kh]

I may be wrong, but Qatar itself is kinda unknown in the West, most people wouldn't be able to even point the region it is from, it is easier for a person to identify Al Jazeera than the country itself. It isn't like other media outlets, CNN is american, RT is russian, BBC is british, in all these cases, the home country is by far more known.

[@LegendNinja41]

pretty sure most people know it and know its location, maybe not in the Usa and countries that barely teach about the outside world in their schools.

[@moondust2365]

@@LegendNinja41 True. Here in the Philippines, we definitely know about Qatar (albeit Saudi Arabia is definitely more famous here) but barely anyone could point it out on a map, or heck even point out which flag is Qatar's. It's somewhat taught here, but most people only remember the bigger countries.

[@jbird4478]

I think this is the first time a KZbin video answers something I genuinely had been wondering about.

[@Powaup]

Really nice video essay

[@abhijeetshetty5950]

I still remember during Bangladesh mob lynching on Hindus how they spreaded news stating that " the whole fault of lynching belongs to minority(hindus)" and when it comes to India "they blame the majority "

[@konyaku3072]

When 2 contrasting sides pointed to one similar problem, it is safe to say that the problem is true.

[@abhijeetshetty5950]

@@konyaku3072 can u pls elaborate what ur saying??

[@abhirajsinghrana6809]

@@abhijeetshetty5950 It means peaceful people wants piece -of you 😇

[@abhijeetshetty5950]

@@abhirajsinghrana6809 😆

[@drewdurnilappreciationday1680]

@@abhirajsinghrana6809 lmao

[@joshuatoms7664]

Please keep doing such good work. I look forward to all your videos as they are such well-done, thoroughly researched topics. Amazing channel. Thank you for your hard work.

[@FemaleHachi]

I’ve always wondered this, thanks for explaining

[@Nainara32]

I feel like the central thesis of this video wasn't as well laid out as some of PolyMatter's other content. What I think PolyMatter is arguing: Qatar wants to make itself indigestible to it's larger neighbors by increasing its profile on the world stage. By doing so, it hopes to win the favor of global powers (namely the US) to intervene on its behalf in the event of invasion by regional rivals (namely Saudi Arabia) ala Kuwait in the gulf war. Therefore, running a liberal and relatively unbiased news media organization buys Qatar favor with said powers along with global profile and standing.

[@anakinthemannequin69]

AJ is about as unbiased as RT or CNN. They just have more prestige in the West because they appeal to Western progressives while RT appeals to generally fringe elements on the left and right that REALLY hate the establishment of their countries.

[@kareena3147]

I've been wondering about this for the longest time!!!

[@Marylandbrony]

AJ+: Black Lives Matter Al-Jazeera English: These Abeed migrant workers are coming to Qatar for a better life! Al-Jazeera Arabic: Boy for sale!

[@kazlopez3718]

The reality

[@HinduPAGANcowpissdrinkerRAKESH]

Fox news is their ideal 😂

[@ThePowerLover]

BLM is ok with the sale of children...

[@granthurlburt4062]

No such thing as "boy for sale" or anything like it. Take your hate elsewhere.

[@aleasd7905]

All of your videos are amazing, but this is the one that finally convinced me to subscribe to nebula

[@Karthikshettyv]

I seldom comment , but your contents adds so much perspective into my world view and I couldn't be humbled more. Thank you

[@ASLUHLUHCE]

The greatest thing about Al Jazeera (compared to say the BBC) is the fact that they actually cover stuff outside of America/Europe.

[@Carlos-ln8fd]

Great video. Thanks so much for your effort.

[@robertabella1806]

in my country (Cuba) one of the few news channels that is allowed is RT. they have so high production values everything is so shiny and yet 90% of the content is about how the American empire is in decline. They did a report about the upcoming Qatar World Cup ,pretty good stuff about the construction of stadiums and the cultural impact of so many tourists in an ultra conservative environment. then they casually say "the West" is making up allegations about human rights violations and death of migrant workers just like they did in Sochi. that was the real point they wanted to convey

[@BringbackgAmberleafns]

Yeah one thing you can always expect when going to RT is an article predicting the complete collapse of the US Dollar. They've been predicting it for over a decade now. But it's still a good news site for reporting on things mainstream western news won't cover. Their sister/sub channel ruptly also does a lot of neutral without comment live reporting of various protests and riots that the likes of the bbc or other Western news won't dare report fairly.

[@hypenheimer]

BEAT THE BOTS

[@hypenheimer]

Bump, to get ahead of the bot that stole your comment.

[@hypenheimer]

Another bump.

[@hypenheimer]

Yet another bump.

[@YahyeAli123]

New PolyMatter video :)

[@CIG-99]

Anyone notice the mistake with the most watched ? They say 2001 but 2013 is what is written on the video

[@thhomm]

i love polymatter videos so much !!

[@BozheTsaryaKhrani]

so its basically rt where its foreign reporting is more accurate than the news of the countries it is reporting on but not on its self

[@Waverlyduli]

Fascinating insights. High standard of research and presention.

[@granthurlburt4062]

Not very. Women in Qatar need to cover their shouldrs and knees but otherwise dress as they would in any Western country. They go out on their own. I taught nurses there from 2012-2016. Wear headcloths only by choice. Can drive. With a pasport, you can drink in pubs and bars (if not Muslim). Liquour prices are the same as in Canada even with that supposed SIN tax. Women drive and work on their own in publicly in retail, pharmacies and restaurants, & as nurses doctors, receptionists and med techn..

[@Indian_Football_Store]

Stopped video after it said Al Jazeera is reliable and non biased.

[@granthurlburt4062]

Well you're short-sighted. Maybe you should be a little more open-minded and not letting the perfect be the enemy of the good. It is as good as the BBC or PBS in the English service, with the sole exception of local reporting. They report on other Arabian peninsula countries like no other news entity because they speak Arabia. That's why Saudi and the UAE wanted Al Jazeera shut down as part of the embargo. The arabic service is more biased.

[@sephatu6521]

AJ does amazing reporting on topics that CNN and BBC wouldn't be brave enough to ever touch. The Lobby documentary was incredible.

[@rabbidcrazy787]

Al Jazeera is biased against Israel & tries to portray Israeli people as evil.

[@Prasanth-ro4nd]

"Destroy the Powers abroad, so that you can substitute them with your own"- it's a clever strategy by the Qatari regime

[@KR-ff4tu]

Aljazeera is not necessarily progressive. They are selectively progressive in order to put up a progressive face, so they can then take non-progressive stance on select issues and still be taken seriously. Let’s hear them criticising Islam.

[@Seevawonderloaf]

Ha! Never

[@mamalop311]

Why should they cragtize islam?

[@nuke___8876]

Future video idea: you should look into the weirdness and ambiguities of Eastern Europe news media. Of course, most people immediately think of Russia and its laughable reporting quality (if you can even call it reporting). But Hungary, Poland, and Ukraine all have very interesting and compelling stories to tell regarding the news media environment.

[@viharsarok]

As a Hungarian, I agree with you.

[@sambotros1918]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/n3zSc6ignq-snMWcttps://kzbin.info/www/bejne/n3zSc6ignq-snMU

[@flightyriceroll]

yes

[@ggtt2547]

Amazing video. I am truly in awe. Perfect animations, relevant photographs, substance and narration. Bravo!!

[@leoe.5046]

I don't think, Aljazeera will be 'killed' because it is vital in keeping good (!) relations with (especially western) countries as it is quite unbiased etc

[@ofrikirshen3071]

unbiased? its one of the most biased news networks I ever saw

[@Isnapthesky]

I mean you're supposed to be a good hearted person at first before advocating for kindness and peace but you're totally rotten inside yet advocating for human rights and democracy? How come you forgot to look in the mirror, Qatar?

[@user-uz4hx2cg7m]

in the arab world al jazeera is the most viewed and trusted news channel while other channels are losing constantly the only channel managing to bring in good revenue is al jazeera, while some would see this as a bad thing or a good thing isnt my point, its pretty succesful so it wont be going anywhere

[@shayan_idk]

@@ofrikirshen3071 Al Jazeera is the only news source that reports from the perspective of Muslims. says a lot that u think the only non-western news source has to be inaccurate

[@kazegarasu4704]

I still remember Al Jazeera made a documentary about the mistreatment of immigrants in Malaysia during the pandemic. Boy, they just got bombarded by all the dislikes and hate from West Malaysian. Their office even got ran-sack just because this is issue...

[@Don333dr]

Thanks, me and my brother always asked ourselves this

[@Jack-496]

That title makes me think it’s a garden path sentence

[@meowtherainbowx4163]

This answers a question I’ve always had in the back of my mind. I never knew what to make of this weirdly respectable Qatar-funded news outlet. Thank you!

[@yosimekupelet]

What answer did this video give exactly? It asks why Qatar maintains Aljazeera but instead of answering the question it just praises Aljazeera

[@WanderTheNomad]

@@yosimekupelet to stick out as the sore thumb of the Middle East and keep the spotlight on Qatar "Al Jazeera itself has helped Qatar emerge from the shadow of its neighbors and take on a larger role in world affairs"

[@kingbibihabibi]

Al Jazeera is not respectable at all for Middle East coverage. Its reporting on other regions is fine. But anyone familiar with the Arab world can tell it's biased toward the Qatari government position.

[@global_rankk]

Any gov funded media will be biased towards the current gov. It’s like talking badly about your boss while standing on your office desk to say the bad stuff about him. Won’t go down well

[@Asidders]

I just posed this question yesterday. 😂 Brilliant!

[@allensu9363]

This is a question I’ve always wondered. AJ+ is super liberal even though Qatar is conservative.

[@tkdmike9345]

AJ+ is nothing but liberal propaganda

[@ronanyomu5967]

Let's keep in mind their "human rights" reporting does not include lgbt issues

[@guyincognito7979]

@@tkdmike9345 i mean it sometimes leftist if that makes you feel any better

[@guyincognito7979]

@@tkdmike9345 better then conservative propaganda

[@sotch2271]

@@guyincognito7979 so being used like a tool is good for you when your in one side Cool tonknow you like to get used

[@Abdullah-mn6sw]

Unexpected video topic but highly appreciated.

[@shaunaksarker2557]

As a resident of qatar, this video especially hit home.

[@rick-be]

My last stay in Mexico the only English speaking channel was Al-jeezra. I now watch it here in the USA.

[@africa_explained_tv]

2:15, BBC reliable and balanced? What The Actual Fuuuuck?????

[@adamdaniel8909]

...they are... What are you trying to say...?

[@JollyOldCanuck]

The BBC is a reliable source when reporting on news outside the British Isles.

[@africa_explained_tv]

@@JollyOldCanuck probably more reliable as a local news station in the UK. Their policy is very pro American and pro UK. It's obviously easy to see why ratings agencies would rate a Western news outlet positively versus a non-Western one. Al Jazeera just so happens to play into the Western narrative well...

[@petersmythe6462]

"In terms of political and civil liberties, it's not quite the worst" I would argue that pro-western, pro-capitalist biases in the design of the Freedom House Score put China and Qatar in the wrong order. Qatar is MUCH less free for most of its citizens, to say nothing of the 90% of the people there who are not citizens.

[@user-uz4hx2cg7m]

its chaotically bad exclusivly if youre a south asian construction worker (they do make a majority of the population btw) other migrants dont get treated as harsh

[@fatseadoggo1017]

@@user-uz4hx2cg7m yea. UAE has the same. passports confiscated, inhumane living conditions etc. they don't give a damn about those they consider below them. just another slave state. Yet there's still people who ignore that and go there for their holiday

[@Ninjaeule97]

I think the surveillance apparatus of the CCP alone makes China deserving of the bottom spot. Other countries might treat their citizens and migrant workers more poorly but only China has made it their mission to control its population to that point only to make sure that change won't come anytime soon.

[@fatseadoggo1017]

@@Ninjaeule97 may as well put both on the bottom. at least al jazeera doesn't do blatant misinformation like cgtn and their counterparts. while in china... well you know...

[@qjtvaddict]

@@fatseadoggo1017 they are basically a more advanced USA

[@matc8085]

very interesting information and video

[@AnjumulHaque]

Qatar's expertise is on mass communication and UAE's on mass transportation, through their expertise on those they are retaking the positions held by Egypt, Syria, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Iraq with their old order replacing them with a new orders. Qatar and UAE is aware that its conservative generations must not be offended while they go on with their ideals.