Media Habits of MENA Youth: A Three-Country Survey

This pilot study surveyed 2,744 university and high school students in Jordan, Lebanon, and the United Arab Emirates. It asked about their media consumption and production habits, and about their attitudes towards certain media. Among the significant findings, the survey found the participants highly adept at using new media. They spent considerable time consuming new and traditional media, but much less time producing media content. For instance, the vast majority of participants indicated that they had never blogged. In addition, those who did produce media content, through blogging or otherwise, tended to do it in a language other than their native language. Indeed, with the exception of news, the majority of surveyed youth consumed and produced media in English, rather than Arabic. In addition, the participants used media predominantly for entertainment, for connecting with others, and for work or schoolwork, but less often for current affairs, for expressing their opinions, or for political activism.