Mass media in Oman

Television in the Sultanate of Oman, including broadcast journalism, began in 1974 and largely focused on the capital city of Muscat.[3] Coverage expanded to other parts of the country in 1975.[3] Private television companies were prohibited in Oman for 30 years until the Sultan Qaboos bin Said al Said announced a "royal decree" that lifted prohibition on private television in 2004.[4] In 2009, five years after the royal decree, the first private television station began, called Majan TV.[4] As of 2015, Majan TV was the only privately run television station in Oman according to the BBC media profile of Oman, and there were only two other television stations including the most popular Sultanate of Oman Television, Oman TV.[5] It is allowed to use satellites to reach stations from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen.[5]

Oman TV channels are controlled and regulated by the government through the Ministry of Information. Criticisms of the government, or the Sultan, are not taken lightly. In 2004, two Omani intellectuals called the government reforms a way to improve the image of Oman across the globe, on a program on the Iranian TV channel Al-Alam.[6] Following this, the Omani Ministry of Information banned interviews or any sort of publication with the two Omani intellectuals across all media platforms.[6] While it isn't normal for Omani TV to televise political debates, Omani media did cover a political trial in 2005, where 30-to-40 Omanis were accused "of conspiring to overthrow the Sultan's rule by organizing an Ibadi religious group".[6]

Print journalism in Oman has been a delicate business for many decades. Much like many other facets of Omani journalism, print journalism is monitored and necessarily controlled by the Ministry of Information.[7] The Ministry does little to hide the fact, with article 12 of Royal Decree No. 49, created in 1984, stating "Before publishing any[8] publication, the Printer shall obtain permission in advance from the Ministry of Information approving the publication.” Because of this decree, print publications, such as Alwatan and Al Shabiba,[9] have an extremely hard time gaining any credibility.

This fear has come to fruition too, with plenty of journalists being arrested in the 21st century alone. In August 2016, the high-ranking editors of the newspaper Azamn were detained: Editor-in-Chief Ibrahim al-Maamari, Deputy Editor Yousif al-Haj and Editor Zaher al-Abri.[8] The three were detained after being linked to an article on July 26 of that year, in which al-Maamari published an article accusing unnamed Omani officials of influencing the Chief Magistrate of the Supreme Court at the Ministry of Justice, Ishaq Bin Ahmed Al Bousaidi, in a case involving an inheritance dispute. Following a second article being published soon after, the Ministry of Information ordered Azamn to stop all publications. Soon after, the website URL which originally linked to Azamn's homepage was unavailable, and instead redirected to pictures of the three arrested journalists.[8]

Radio broadcasting in Oman began in 1970[10] with the stations Radio Sultanate of Oman and Radio Salalah, partly in an effort to counteract anti-Oman propaganda originating from the Marxist country of South Yemen. Initial plans for a radio station began in the 1950s, with talks between the Omani and British government. These specific plans never came to fruition, limiting the scope of radio in Oman to a single Land Rover used to broadcast important alerts from the city of Muttrah.[11] As of 2000, there were 1.4 million radios in the country, being broadcast from 14 stations. Listeners have access to a variety of programs broadcast in both Arabic and English, ranging from contemporary musical hits to readings of the Quran.[12] Broadcast journalism is another prevalent force over the airwaves, with a 2017 survey reporting that 29.8 percent of journalists sampled work in radio.[13]

Nearly all media is controlled and funded by the Omani government. Radio broadcasts are overseen by the director general of radio, who reports directly to Oman's Minister of Information. Following the Sultan's 2004 royal decree establishing the legality of private radio and television stations, citizens could now apply for a 10-year license granting them the ability to operate independent stations. This led to the establishment of Hala FM, Oman's first privately owned radio station in 2009.[14] The Omani government is strict in what it allows to be broadcast, though it has loosened its grip in recent years. After a period of civil unrest, several call-in programs started broadcasting out of the capital.[15] These programs allow citizens to share their thoughts on what Oman needs.[15]