Classification of texts

Classifications of texts in AWR

AWR aims to provide objective and independent documentation, reporting, interpretation, analysis, and commentary on cultural, social, and religious issues concerning the Arab world and the West. All texts in AWR contribute to realizing our mission statement.

Texts resulting from our daily review of Arabic media

 

Daily Press Overviews

Daily systematic overview of Egyptian Arabic media based on fixed selection criteria and media. Also placed under this category are (Rapid) Mini press reviews, which are abridged and timely review on (daily) media reporting.

Full text and summary translations, excerpts and news

Full text or summary translation or review of an individual Arabic article in English. If deemed necessary AWR adds commentaries to (summarized) translations or excerpts of Arabic media based on standard evaluation criteria. Brief reports of news reported to AWR are also listed under this category. This is not listed separately because the numbers of these brief reports does not warrant this.

 

Full text and summaries from other media

 

Summary translations from non-Arabic media

Arab-West Report sometimes highlights work in non-Arabic media. If written in a language other than English, this could be translated or summarized as we do with Arabic texts.

Untranslated original text from other publication

Texts taken from other sources and placed as full text in AWR

 

AWR reporting and analysis

Texts written for AWR must meet our criteria. See in particular our guidelines for document submissions. All texts written for AWR with the exception of Arab-West Papers are called “special reports.” The difference between “special reports” and Arab-West Papers is in the second category text being longer and reviewed. The “special reports” can be distinguished in background analysis, media review or critique, or rapid-response reporting.

Background analysis Egypt/Middle East

Analytic report providing context for a specific topic or event in Egypt or the Middle East. Most background analysis is related to how media reported a specific event and the background analysis providing additional information:

o      Chronological overview of the development of a tension or conflict. Clearly mention where information received was contradictory and identifying the parties that provide contradictory information.

o      Description of Muslim-Christian tensions as reported in Arab media, but placing reported tensions in the wider context of developments in society with concrete examples that illustrate the background of these tensions.

Example: Media reported that police officers did not protect the onslaught against Christians at the St. Mina church in Imbaba (2011). Explanation that AWR could add: Explaining WHY this happened. The security had not yet returned to the street. Officers who tried to stop theft or violence in other areas were killed by the people they were trying to stop.

o      Book reviews, film-reviews, or reviews of YouTube videos that add to background analysis are placed under this category.

 

Background analysis-world

Analytic report based on how Arab media/internet reported about an event outside the Middle East. Examples are AWR reports about Arab reporting about Breivik (2011) and the attack on a Jewish school in France (2012).

Provide chronological overview of Arab reporting, differences in reporting and linking this to the possible ideological convictions of  authors and/or media.

 

Media Critique

Analysis that has resulted in a critique on the conclusion of the author of the article. Critique is needed if conclusions of the article under criticism are not or are insufficiently backed up by empirical, verifiable, facts. Sometimes facts are incomplete or used selectively, resulting in conclusions that are not justified by the empirical facts that have been found. Conclusions that are not or insufficiently backed up by facts have the capacity to poison debates.

Media critique includes commentary on media reporting including analysis of the author, publication, subject, and content. Possibly highlighting differences between Western and Arab reporting on the same subject. For the criteria of writing media critique texts click here

The difference between background analysis and media review or critique is that the focus of background analysis is on context and in media  critique on comments on particular media reporting.

With empirical facts we understand anything for which we can provide verifiable sources such as:

      • Description of an event that all parties agree to
      • Opinions of people (not to be confused with what actually happened)
      • Description of situation/location that would not be disputed by local people

 

Rapid response reporting

Reporting on scene within 48 hours on current events and reported tensions in society. If this concerns a media critique and this was written within 48 hours then this is to be classified here. Distinguishing between rumors and facts, explaining why a certain claim is a rumor, and what the evidence is for this. Rapid dissemination to a wide public.

 

Interviews

Transcript/report of aninterview conducted with well-informed people who can provide a good insight into the background of tensions and conflicts that have taken place.

 

Investigative Reports

Report, usually more than 5 pages, composed of firsthand accounts and interviews on location pertaining to an event or phenomenon, often adding background analysis, distinguishing between rumors and facts.

 

AWR Developments

 

Articles about developments around AWR, staff, and board members, not related to forums.

 

Opinion

Articles expressing a personal opinion of the author without providing evidence and references in the text as to how that opinion was formed.

 

Editorial

Articles reflecting the opinion of AWR, usually written by the editor-in-chief. These texts reflect the editorial policy of AWR, our opinion about creating mutual understanding by people of different convictions and respecting pluralism in society. If an analysis strongly reflects AWR’s opinion it is placed here.

 

Workshop and Forum reports

Reports on workshops and forums organized by AWR. Reports will inform the reader about the subject discussed and different opinions that existed in the discussion. Opinions are linked to people expressing them.

 

Biographies  (currently not in drop-down menu)

Biographies are usually supervised reports written by interns and provide information about the life history and thoughts of one person in relation to one or more subjects covered by AWR.

 

Arab-West Papers

Papers that provide background analysis, media review, investigative reporting with references. These are usually reviewed by a scholar who is specialized in the area the author has written on. These are longer texts placed in pdf format in our database. For our criteria of writing larger papers click here. We prefer to receive papers that contribute to conflict resolution. For our methodology click here.

 

Under the category of Arab-West Papers we also place:

  • Student notes

Incomplete data. Texts that are preferably avoided but can be used if a student brought interesting information together without being able to write a report or paper.

  • Listing

Text listing articles on one subject, either a list of titles only or a list of titles and brief notes on one subject

  • E-books

 When studies are truly long and might consist of chapters belonging to different authors they could be classified under e-books.

 

AWR Newsletters

Update sent via e-mail using the iContact program informing subscribers to AWR about activities/highlighting major articles in AWR.

 

News clippings

Newsletters made with summary translations of Arabic media, placed in a pdf format and mailed to subscribers of AWR (for the time being not working since iContact does not support mailing texts in pdf format). Content could also include selected English and Arabic articles that could be placed into our database untranslated. Keywords will be added to aid later searches for these articles.

 

Arabic

Each of the above categories also exists in Arabic. Most own articles on the Arabic website are either translations from articles in our English database or they were written in Arabic and later translated for our English database.