Publication

Contrary to conventional wisdom about democratic deficits, most countries in the Middle East seem to suffer from a problem of national identity. More than three-quarters of a century after the disintegration of the Ottoman Empire from whom most of them emerged, these states have been unable to project a national identity that is both inclusive and representative. None of the countries of the Middle East are homogeneous; they consist of numerous ethnic, religious, cultural, and linguistic minorities – a diversity that is reflected in Middle East media.