The Representation of Qatari Nation on Television: The Qatari Nation as Traditional in Two Local Channels

Abstract

This paper is a part of MA thesis, "The Representation of Qatari Nation on Television: Tradition, Modernity and Islam in Two Local Channels". It examines Qatari national imagination in Qatari local television channels, are Qatar National Television and Al-Rayyan Channel. "National imagination" means here an imagined perception of the Qatari nation in which the social and the political factors are integral. The image of Qatari nation is continuously produced in Qatari television channels as a part of national building project. It is presented on television as traditional nation, modern nation and Muslim nation. For the representation of Qatari nation as traditional, there were two television programs chosen for research are Al-Sagar, and Fatah Al-Khair programs. This part contains anthropological and cultural analysis of the traditional television content. There were also numbers of people interviewed to understand the content presented in these television channels. This research aims to contribute to the literature of media, culture and nationalism.