What do you really want?

[Nadine Toukan]

Fact: No one can take your freedom of thought and expression away from you. If you feel stifled and silenced, you're doing it to yourself.

My point is that if individuals, and specific to this post, Jordanians, shed themselves of the fear that shrouds their hearts, minds and actions, the world, and Jordan, would be a better place. I guess that pretty much applies to anyone anywhere.

Over the last few months there has been an insane ramble across media about censorship, freedom of speech, journalism parameters, watch dogs, cans and can nots, haves and have nots, yet very sparse good, let alone great, journalism. For a bunch of people who seem to want it so badly, talk about wanting it so much, dream of achieving it, there's very little practice to show for it.

Where are the enlightening examples of what is meant by this sought freedom in journalism & media?

There's a loud fumbling with communications (tools) and little, no almost non existent, communication (strategy). So basically, I really don't know what these freedom fighters want and what they are fighting for because I haven't seen the proof. And the number one rule of any fight is to be clear about what you stand for and demonstrate it (if you're fighting to win that is). Only then can you amass a following, and only then will your fight be sustainable.

Where are the great orators and their volumes of intriguing and thought provoking words, pictures and sounds?

If one was to curate Jordan's multiplatform chatter of the last three months, one would be mangled with social commentary and a gaping void about what is it that this noise is allegedly fighting for. It is no wonder that a progressive media policy doesn't exist. It is no wonder that the government is stuck in a reactive rut feeling compelled to respond to this and that commentary. If you're not saying much, you can hardly expect your public servants to do much for you. And if you're not showing them what you mean, consistently, how can you prove to them that you're right and they should listen?

When there's not much there, enlightening change will not happen.

I believe that if you speak your mind with substance, provide facts that are substantiated, theories that are thought through, engage in thorough investigations, and work with tact, you can say anything. And you can provoke, reveal and debate political, social, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, environmental, technological issues, while being heard and engaged with. Jordan can be a far more unprejudiced place than we perceive it to be. The outbound conversation does not do it justice.

Yes, there are outrageous things that happen here. Crimes of dishonor against women and the soft judicial and legal stand towards them. Threatening corruption and actions of bad intent towards issues that impact society, economy, security. Lethargic and frustrating fiscal and economic policies. Archaic education curricula, blindly being enforced. The growing threat of unemployment. Violations of building codes deeming people's only abode unsafe. A sorry state of parliament. Politically unengaged communities. A disconnect between ministries that confuse the wits out of citizens with their conflicting statements. Negligent citizens. And the list goes on. Bad will always exist. We cannot reform an evil mind if that mind wants to be evil.

But we can fight evil by creating a strong environment of integrity, courage, love, reason, truth and progressive action. And when this becomes the norm, evil will be dwarfed and eventually shunned and expelled. And this norm must embrace diversity and the numerous colorful and unconventional elements that make up the Jordan of today. This norm is not monotone, it is not a single harmony, and it is very fluid with time.

Good eventually trumps evil, but it's diligent, fearless work. And yes, there will be roadkill because most life changing actions require sacrifice in some form; whether through a governmental anti-corruption committee, or outstanding journalism, or a fearless blogger, or engaged citizens, or a combination thereof.

A rebuttal of my point is easy. Some will say: you speak in an ideal situation, don't you know what happened to this journalist and that, didn't you hear what the government said about this, don't you know what security did about that? And so on.

Yes, yes, I heard, and it's sounding like chatter about nothing by a bunch of fear gripped people in my humble opinion. And for those who believe that journalism is about social commentary over a fadi7a, you are sadly mistaken and should get out of the way. If you really want to converse about something controversial, you will have to do a lot of exploring, learning, understanding and listening before you lash out. And when you do, go ahead, lash out boldly, don't hold back, take that stand you believe in, and make sure you have the energy to go the distance. If you get punched, get back up on your feet and keep going. If you get knocked out, make sure your believers are around and will step in. If you get annihilated, be sure to have left behind a tribe of fearless people who will continue fighting for that cause.

Media today, be it legacy, traditional, new, or social, is a conversation. And no one can shut you up. Censorship does not stop anything, never has. It just turns passionate voices into strong movements in underground alleys, and interesting minds into pirates. There will always be a way to say what you're thinking, access what you need, and do as you please. It's your choice.

So, what does Jordan really want?

Go ahead, blog about Jordan - share what you love, what works for you, and what else you want...with no holds.
Speak your mind about the Internet environment you want, teach your readers and viewers something we don't know, demonstrate why open matters.

[Nadine Toukan]

Syndicate to probe alleged kickbacks to journalists, JordanTimes 2/2/2012

Is the imminent media revolution around the corner this time? 

[Nadine Toukan]

One year later.... where are we today on the scorecard?

[Walid Zou'bi]

I've been complaining about self-censorship since early 2000, it's so ridiculous. I mean at some point we have to say enough! And if people don't like what they read discuss it rationally instead of hysterically over-reacting as is wont in this part of the world....
I've worked in many magazines and the funniest expressions heard to date are the ones that contain the words:
"We can't write that!"
"We can't print that!"
"We'll get into trouble if we publish that!"
Funnily enough they were always in conjunction with an article that was not embellished or exaggerated!
It is a disease this self-censorship.

Unfortunately I do see a lot of editors points, they could get into some serious trouble (sort of spending time in jail trouble) for publishing articles about corruption, and freedom of speech, O and one better LGBT rights (or lack thereof) You catch my drift....

[Deena Dajani]

Yes our freedom of expression is our own to own and to use; yes it is ours and no one else's to 'give' or 'take'; yes Jordan is a more tolerant place than this fracas presents it to be and yes little concrete progressive demonstration has followed or materialised. But this is not about stifling conversation at the level of political dissidence only, it is a wider social process that extends to the school, the home and the family. I expect that most of us will accept the notion that many Jordanians are brought up to believe their yearnings to express themselves are insignificant at best, and outright 3eib at worst. You are either too young to speak, or what you are saying is outrageous. Thus, when many of us grow up, and are suddenly faced with space to express political opinions and ideas (after being denied their genesis and maturity in our growing up years) that form of expression is reactionary and shallow at best, trying to make as much noise as possible without much room for sustainability. It's like a little boy who has been denied chocolate all his life (not by the chocolate gatekeepers necessarily) and then is old enough to make his own decision on whether to enter a room full of chocolates. He decides to enter, naturally, and devours as much chocolate as he can handle... without enjoying the taste or really appreciating chocolate.
It doesn't make it right, but my point is, conversation, while a natural instinct, is also, arguably, an acquired art. It needs to experiment, through trial and error, in order to find itself, set its own boundaries, and mature.
And this brings me to my second point; censorship is a wider concept than state (or self) regulation of journalism. Sometimes censorship is about constricting information, but other times it can materialise in forms of expressing public pain. Take nabil sawalha and co.'s famous satirical plays, or mahjoob's evocative cartoons. It can be argued their depictions are sometimes more scathing than the most controversial commentaries or articles on online news sites, even when they do not relay researched or investigated information In fact, their form of expression is very subjective, building on sentiment, emotion and frustration but doing so in a coherent manner. To create an inclusive and diverse conversation, online and offline, we need to beware of monopolising 'right ways' to express one self. Yes, many people don't get it, but that doesn't mean its right to shut them up. Answer them back, even if its social commentary on a fadi7a, let the better argument win the day. I don't know about Jordan, but I like want to make my own mind up, without anyone telling me which forms of expression are right and which are wrong. I may own my capacity to reason, but I want a Jordan where that capacity can be exercised, practices, and retuned, a million times a day when possible.

[Tanya Kasim]

There is indeed, Nadine.

[Dawser Al Hadidi]

Great article, and I agree with all your points, well said! the censorship is only hiding away from the truth! If you say your true opinion without being extreme no one can argue with that!

[Nadine Toukan]

@Tanya You bet. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion about anything, but you are not entitled to your own facts. This is absolutely fundamental! There is a huge responsibility about what people say/write in the public sphere.

@Feras Excellent points! You're so right, the Daba7touna movement is a great example. There aren't many like that.

This sense of entitlement you note has taken over, and is dangerous. It makes people wait for an answer/solution from someone, usually the government. For example, one of the critical issues is the unemployment challenge we face - people are waiting for the government to come up with the miracle solution to this! They can't and shouldn't. Gov's job is to create an environment conducive for business to grow, encourage innovation, facilitate process, develop incentives, improve legislation, etc.. creating new jobs is up to the business community and entrepreneurial minds.

So why do you think we have this sense of entitlement? Where did it come from? How did we get here?

[Feras Hilal]

I loved your post. I think that in Jordan (and in countries with semi or total authoritarian regimes), we tend to believe that freedom of speech is a birthright, in an attempt to replicate the Western discourse. However, we tend to forget that democratic societies went through a process in which freedom of speech was fought for, and thus acquired. Whereas in the Arab world, we have a bizarre tendency to expect our governments to grant us freedom of speech.

It really doesn't work that way. I cannot recall any instances in which a human right was handed down to a population.

I think that the greater public needs to understand, witness, touch and feel the merits of freedom of speech and democracy before they buy into the entire concept, and sadly, our media (offline and even online at times) painted a terrible picture of such concepts. I think that freedom of speech needs to translate into tangible benefits that would encourage people to follow; otherwise, it would be completely irrational to fight for something that is perceived as futile.

When the Daba7touna movement began, it garnered a wide following because it was something that people connected to. It wasn't some esoteric concept, but something that people related to and felt a need for. I'm not saying that a more open online environment is an added luxury, but I think that before we fight for it, I'd like to see bloggers talking about something more valuable (and interesting) than discussing what's been already written in the Jordan Times and discussing tweet-ups.

Had one blog or forum successfully touched the hearts and minds of Jordanians, I don't think we'd be discussing this topic in the first place.

[Tanya Kasim]

You bring up some very valid points about freedom of speech, Nadine, one of which is do your research before you write or say anything. It's very easy to jump on the bandwagon about issues we know little about.