The Jordanian Parliamentary in Al_Rai Newspaper: A Comparatire Analytical and Descriptive Study
Atef Al-Rfou’a, Faculty of Arts, Tafila Techical University
Abstract
The study is titled “The Jordanian Parliamentary Elections in Al-Rai Newspaper: a comparative, analytical and descriptive study”. It aims to investigate the role of journalism in the Jordanian Parliamentary Elections through analyzing a targeted sample of the implications of Al-Rai daily newspaper from the end of March 2010 to the middle of July 2010. It seeks to reveal the trends of the newspaper’s implications regarding the upcoming parliamentary elections and their new law of 2010. The study selects the journalistic article as a research sample of these implications. It employs two research methods: the descriptive interpretive; and qualitative analysis of the implications of the research community.
In its theoretical framework, the study tackles procedural definitions of the subjects of: the journalistic article, public opinion, and trend concept. Moreover, it provides an analytical account of the role of journalism in political development; it also provides an introductory description of the new law of the parliamentary elections for 2010 and its new implications.
The study ends up with a number of results, most important of which:
1. The study reveals that the newspaper adopted the principle of ‘one vote’; it defended it and formed it in its articles so as to win the public opinion’s consent and satisfaction. However, the researcher could not find another trend adopted by the newspaper that refuses this principle or questions it. This trend is identified with the government’s official view on this subject.
2. The newspaper presented an opposing trend to the virtual division of constituencies, favoring the geographical division identified by its voters, and another one supporting it.
3. The subject of ‘election machine’ appeared as premises aiming at sound electoral results, and to produce an effective and highly qualified prospective Parliament. The researcher found that there is some harmony between the newspaper’s openings and its writers’ articles, and the government’s vision of the ideas, premises and behaviours that produce a Parliament enjoying a wide public consent, and finally an effective political participation in decision-making.
4. The study proves the influence of the reflection of the trends and attitudes of the public opinion about the election law in Al-Rai newspaper, before its release, on the content of the new law after its release. This means that journalism plays an influential role in making the political decision in Jordan.
The study ends up with a number of recommendations, chief among them:
1. A study should be conducted to investigate the content of the national journalism and its attitude toward the performance of the prospective 16th Parliament after the parliamentary elections.
2. The newspaper should increase the number of articles that deal with subjects such as one vote, electoral constituencies, women quota, and should account for the different viewpoints about these subjects.
3. The newspaper should continue its openness to the public opinion in all its trends, and its openings and articles should reflect the public opinion’s diversity about parliamentary elections’ issues, without constraining them to match the government’s viewpoint.