Online News Censorship in Jordan
October 16, 2013
Well, this is disappointing. New Europe draws our attention to another case of government censorship in, “Jordan Blocks 304 News Websites.” Searching for news can be tough when countries filter streams.
Jordan’s Department of Press and Publication (which used to be blatantly titled the Censorship Department) insists it respects the media as “one of the most important pillars of modern democracy,” but maintains that the blocks are necessary to prevent verbal attacks on groups and individuals. As of last year, new Jordanian websites are required to register with the Department. They must also appoint an editor who will take the fall if anything deemed slanderous makes it onto the site, comments sections included. The article tells us these regulations were implemented after several incidents in which:
“… online media were blamed for inciting religious or social prejudice and inaccurate reporting involving public figures. Targets of some of the articles claimed that some online editors sought bribes in return for halting publication of false rumors.”
That may be, but to our way of thinking the response seems unreasonable. Consider the locale, though; Jordan may actually be moving forward overall. We also learn:
“Since the Arab Spring uprisings that unseated four Arab leaders two years ago, Jordan has taken steps to ease restrictions on freedom of expression, opinion and assembly. The government also introduced special courts to deal with media cases, presided over by specialized civil judges. However, other constraints remain. That includes a ban on criticizing the king in public, punishable by up to three years in jail. King Abdullah II holds final authority in most matters.”
Well, that’s kinda what one would expect in a (traditional) kingdom. Big changes most often take place slowly, and journalists and bloggers in Jordan must still be very careful what they write. However, we can hope that this one step back is part of a generally forward progress.
Cynthia Murrell, October 16, 2013
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