Journalism and New Urbanity in the Arab world: A View of the 19th Century

Abstract

It has been commonplace among Arab scholars to look at the relationship with the West, since Napoleon's invasion of Egypt, as being a continuous struggle against hegemony and colonial interests. In his most influential book, Orientalism , Edward Said provided the foundations and theoretical tools for this prevailing mode of thinking. This dominating trend, however, has obliterated the fact that in the 19 th century many Arab intellectuals as well as the majority of the general public have embraced the West with open arms despite their colonial agenda. In their enthusiastic engagement with the new ideas of the French Revolution, Western hegemony and colonial interest were issues of minor concerns. Their relentless drive for scientific advancement and modern urbanity overshadowed all else in their active interactions with the West. This paper focuses on the emergence of Arab journalism, as an outcome of Arab-European interactions, and its agency in the promotion of Western thinking and modern urbanity in the Arab world.