Social Media in Saudi Arabia

ORIGINAL RESEARCH Agency, Expression, and the Virtual Sphere: Social Media in Saudi Arabia Fiona Hayman[1] Abstract This paper seeks to address the question of why so many Saudi Arabians use social media. Prior literature investigating social media usage in the Saudi Arabia is either too broad or too narrow. This necessitates academic inquiry that addresses the “middle ground”. Saudi Arabians' markedly high rates of social media usage appear incongruous with the traditional, highly restrictive nature of Saudi Arabian society. Given social media's status as a relatively new phenomenon, and its recognized ability to engender civil engagement and political participation, its foothold in a conservative, undemocratic society appears unusual. Thus, this paper investigates the motivations behind Saudi Arabians' social media usage. Qualitative and quantitative data from NGO reports, statistical databases, case studies, news articles, and social media accounts demonstrate a causal link between state repression and social media usage. The evidence indicates that Saudi Arabians use social media to circumvent societal restrictions. Keywords Social media, Saudi Arabia, society, civil society, repression [1] Department of Political Science, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA. Corresponding author: [email protected]. © 2017 Fiona Hayman. Some rights reserved, licensed under CC BY 4.0 Global Societies Journal Vol. 5 (2017) 4 1. Introduction recognized ability to “encompass civic engagement, political participation, In this paper, I seek to determine entrepreneurial efforts, and social change” why so many Saudi Arabians use social (Mourtada and Salem, 2012), its strong media. I argue that Saudi Arabians use foothold in a conservative, undemocratic social media to circumvent societal society seems unusual. Saudi Arabia, to restrictions. In developing my argument, I which Freedom House recently bestowed a categorize Saudis’ social media usage score of “least free” in the criteria of according to the type of repression it seeks political rights, civil liberties, and overall to circumvent: political or social. Using freedom rating (Freedom House, 2016), qualitative and quantitative data collected hardly seems a welcome host for social from NGO reports, statistical databases, case media platforms full of potential for studies, news articles, and social media political, cultural, and social transformation. accounts, I demonstrate a causal link An absolute monarchy influenced by the between state repression and social media conservative Wahhabi sect of Islam, the usage. Saudi government operates under Islamic (sharia) law—which, according to critics, is 1.1. Research Question and its used to justify widespread abuses and denial Motivations of human rights (Taylor, 2015). In one dimension, it restricts its citizens’ capacity This question is worthy of to participate in the political process and investigation because Saudi Arabians’ limits access to freedoms of speech, press, markedly high rates of social media usage expression, religion, and fair trial. In appear, on the surface, to be incompatible another, it exercises tight control over with the traditional, restrictive nature of societal structures and interactions, Saudi Arabian society. Compared with especially through subjecting women to a nations around the globe, Saudi Arabia strict set of rules regarding their behavior, stands out in terms of its social media usage. lifestyle, and appearance. In 2013, Saudi Arabia ranked first in the Investigating the motivations behind world for Twitter penetration, meaning that Saudis’ use of social media and the purposes the highest percentage of the country’s total for which it is used may shed light on Internet users were active on Twitter important developments in Saudi Arabian (Almashabi and Nereim, 2015). Two years society. Such investigation can reveal the later, nearly half of Saudi Internet users had implications widespread use of social media become members of Instagram, while the holds for Saudi Arabian society and its global average trailed at only 23% (ibid). political, social, and cultural evolution. When compared with nations in the region, Insights gleaned from the case of Saudi Saudi Arabia’s social media usage stands Arabia, in turn, may help scholars out as significantly higher. Twitter users in investigate how social media usage can Saudi Arabia alone generate 40% of tweets impact other societies. In an age when from the Middle East and North Africa, and technology continues to transform political, Saudi Arabia has consistently been home to social, and cultural life across the globe, it is the highest number of Facebook users in the important that the role of social media is Middle East (Mohammed Bin Rashid examined, and its role in transformative School of Government, 2014: 36, 23). processes understood. Focusing on the case Given social media’s status as a of Saudi Arabia in particular can contribute relatively new phenomenon, and its Global Societies Journal Vol. 5 (2017) 5 to our understanding of how social media 60%, a positive correlation exists between can facilitate social and political change in levels of state-imposed repression and social countries that limit civil discourse and media usage. I then present evidence that exercise censorship over the conventional supports my argument. I draw upon both media. quantitative and qualitative data from case studies, think tank and watchdog reports, 1.2. Paper Outline datasets, news articles, and primary sources, such as Saudi Facebook pages and In this paper, I first provide a review Instagram accounts. These sources highlight of prior literature, discussing contributions, Saudi Arabians’ motivations for using social limitations, and areas where further research media to circumvent political and social is needed. The literature review shows that repression. prior scholarship has made significant I conclude with a summary of contributions in discussing the role of social findings. I discuss the limitations of the media’s predecessors—satellite TV and the argument, its theoretical implications, and Internet—as disruptive technologies with the its broader application to cases beyond potential for transforming social and Saudi Arabia. Lastly, I provide suggestions political landscapes in the Middle East, the for further research. role of social media in mobilizing collective action during the Arab Spring, and social media’s role in specific contexts within 2. Literature Review Saudi Arabia, such as its use during a 2009 natural disaster. The literature, however, is 2.1 Introduction either too broad and outdated, or too narrow to adequately address my question. These In this section, I review literature shortcomings result in the need for middle relevant to answering the question I have ground to be covered: for new academic posed. There is a limited body of literature inquiry that is broad enough to illuminate surrounding my question, due in part to the motivations behind Saudis’ social media social media being a fairly recent usage on a country-wide scale, but narrow phenomenon. Most relevant literature was enough to investigate the reasons for usage produced within the past decade. Earlier that are specific to the unique social and literature on emergent information political conditions in Saudi Arabia. technologies such as satellite television and Next, I build the argument, the internet can be useful in setting the stage identifying the independent variable, for further proliferation of technology, yet dependent variable, and causal mechanism the projections and predictions common that links the two variables. I argue that throughout this body of work stray far from societal restrictions impact social media the reality of the present day. Therefore, I usage in Saudi Arabia, due to Saudi have chosen relatively recent literature, Arabians’ desire to circumvent these mostly from the last decade, so that these restrictions. I assert that Saudis use social texts can provide relevant and accurate media in response to two distinct forms of context for my question of study. repression: social and political. Based upon I have divided the literature into my findings in the Saudi Arabian case, I three groups: 1. Usage of New Media in the predict that across countries with internet Middle East, 2. Usage of Social Media in the and smartphone penetration rates of over Arab Spring, and 3. Usage of Social Media Global Societies Journal Vol. 5 (2017) 6 in Saudi Arabia. These groups, descending in which new forms of media have played a in order of specificity, fall short of solving role in shaping the region, this literature the puzzle of why so many Saudi Arabians provides context for how Saudi Arabians use social media. Group 1 discusses the might interact with and use the new tools of interactions of mass digital communications social media. This body of literature, with Middle Eastern social, cultural, and however, discusses general regional political life, but the literature is too broad developments without delving into the and outdated. Group 2 discusses the use of specific case of Saudi Arabia. Furthermore, social media as an activist tool during the its discussion of the impact of new media Arab Spring uprisings, but the literature predates the emergence of social media as a focuses on a limited revolutionary context phenomenon distinct from ‘new’ Internet or where many events and developments were TV media. For these reasons, Group 1 fails not applicable to Saudi Arabia.

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