Washington has asked Qatar to rein in the influential and editorially
independent arabic Al-Jazeera television station. This was comfirmed by
Sheikh Hamad Khalifa al- thani efter meeting with the U.S secretary of state
Colin Powell i Washington. The U.S feel aggrieved by al- Jazeera coverage of
the crisis. U.S is not the first to feel provoked by the al- Jazeera, the
station has in the past provoked anger from Algeria, Morocco, Saudiarabia,
Kuwait and Egypt for giving airtime to political dissidents.


The question is, should the station be rein upon as Colin Powell put it?

I personally donīt think so, how about you.

Below is a test of what al- Jazeera is creating in the arab-world.It is all
about technology.  For more information and alternative view of the crisis
visit( bbc.co.uk/low/english/world/monitoring) or WWW. mediachannel.org
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Hi-tech outlets for Arab anger

Anger has spread across the Arab world

By Caroline Hawley in Cairo

The Middle East crisis has aroused profound feelings of anger across the
Arab world, and new technology is providing an outlet for such wrath.

Many in the region were disappointed that their leaders did not take a
tougher stand when they met 10 days ago in Egypt. The plight of the
Palestinians is now relayed to people's homes via the internet. Photos of
children being shot are now being passed around Cairo's computer users.
Everybody is so mad... now we can see through satellite communications, we
can see what's going on. Madiha Safty
Public opinion in Egypt and the rest of the Arab world has been galvanised
by the continued bloodshed, and e-mail, satellite television and mobile
phones are all playing a role in people's responses.

Al-Jazeera television, broadcast from the Gulf state of Qatar, beams the
conflict into Arab homes day and night. Madiha Safty, who teaches sociology
at the American University of Cairo, says she has never seen Egyptians so
angry.

Qatari Al-Jazeera TV reaches homes across the Arab world

"Everybody is so mad at what's going on. I don't think there is any
exception in this case. And definitely one factor here is the developments
in technology - the fact that now we can see through satellite
communications, we can see what's going on," she said.

"The feeling is it's not Israel per se, but it's more the US that is in
support, and if the US would take away its support, then definitely Israel
wouldn't be so sure and so confident to behave in the way it is."

Boycott

Anti-American sentiment has now given rise to grassroots calls for a boycott
of US products. Khaled Mahmoud is a member of a new, unofficial committee
trying to encourage people to buy Egyptian instead.

"We have three steps. The first step is to identify the goods that are
coming from the States. Second one is to publish the names of these goods.
Step number three is to call people to boycott them," he says.

Powerful images of the uprising are also on the internet

Several such lists have already been circulated - in schools, in the Cairo
underground and on the internet. Messages have been left on mobile phones,
urging people to save the women and children of Palestine by not buying
American and Israeli goods. There have also been calls to avoid the UK
supermarket chain Sainsburys, after rumours spread that it was sending money
to Israel. Sainsburys has vigorously denied the suggestions, but Mark
Ibbotson, the store's retail manager in Egypt, says it has been a difficult
time.

My sense is that companies here are extremely worried about [the boycott
call]... I think it has had some significant impact

Neil McDonald, US Chamber of Commerce
"Three weeks ago it was a major impact. We're still having an impact now...
"We have got 5,000 employees that are obviously very concerned, very upset
by it, and are explaining to all their friends and families. The message is
starting to get home now," Mr Ibbotson says.

In the stores themselves business continues. It is difficult to gauge
exactly how hard these boycott calls will bite. But Neil McDonald of the US
Chamber of Commerce says they have been widespread and well-publicised.

Fast food habit

"My sense is that companies here are extremely worried about it. I think it
has had some significant impact," he says. It is easier to find a seat now
at the McDonald's next to the American University in central Cairo. Like
other American fast-food chains, it is feeling the effects of the boycott
call.

Calls for a boycott have been sent via mobile phone. But a McDonald's
customer noted that such chains are popular in Egypt. "Young people go to it
like every day, and eat every day," she said.

"I really love it, and anything American. Yes, McDonald's, Kentucky, pizza,"
said another customer. Many young Egyptians who can afford it have, it
seems, developed a habit for American fast food that they do not want to
break.

Egyptian-US ties

But there is another problem for boycott organisers - globalisation.
McDonald's in Egypt is now an Egyptian-owned franchise employing thousands
of Egyptians. Economist Gouda Abdel Khalek says US and Egyptian business
interests are often intertwined. "Franchising and the fact that it's very
hard to find a totally American or Egyptian business concern is a
complicating factor definitely, because you're getting so many parties
entangled together."

The boycott movement is very much an unofficial one. It is not supported by
the Egyptian Government, which receives around $2bn of US aid each year. But
it is a sign of a wider public frustration that Arab leaders have not taken
a tougher stand in the current crisis.

Satellite television viewers across the region continue to see harrowing
images of the conflict that their governments may wish they did not see. The
sense of frustration could well increase.




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