Saudi Bloggers and Media Symbiosis

In the New York Times, news of a Saudi blogger, Fouah al-Farhan, who has been detained for questioning for reasons the government won't divulge, except to say they "are specific violations of nonsecurity laws". From the article:

“An incident like this has its effect,” Mr. Omran said by telephone. “It’s intimidating to think you might be arrested for something on your blog. On the other hand, this means that these voices on the blogosphere are being heard. But it’s really sad that a blogger who is writing about important issues out in the open would get arrested, while there are extremists who call for violence and hate, and the government is not doing much.”

The story, and the meta-context of the story, gets at the wierd symbiosis of the old media and the new. No old media is capable of the threat to power posed by people like al-Farhan - getting out the truth, or at least a destabilizing response to government propaganda, in an society that is truly repressive and controlling. The mere willingness to post those messages is a heroic, dangerous act.

Then again, you can't discount old media's role in amplifying the story. By merely reporting this item the New York Times is contributing to a growing (well, one hopes it's growing) sense of shame that these dictatorships should feel among the community of nations for denying their citizens basic freedoms.