The Clash of cultures represented by conservative Islam on the one hand and modern telecommunications on the other appears to be escalating. On Tuesday, five female news readers on the satellite Arab news channel al-Jazeera walked out after the broadcaster's deputy editor-in-chief reprimanded them over their dress. They had appeared on camera without a hijab, or headscarf, and wearing makeup. An internal panel that looked into the matter sided with the editor. Meanwhile, in Saudi Arabia, religious authorities are demanding that three Saudi youths stand trial for "openly declaring sin" on an MTV show last month. One of them had remarked on the show, True Life Resist the Power, Saudi Arabia , "We are not free to live as we like." His remarks could result in 60 or more lashes with a whip and a lengthy prison sentence. And in Pakistan, the government has lifted its ban on Facebook, saying that it has received assurances from the social networking site that it would block "sacrilegious material" on the website in the future. Facebook had hosted a site that encouraged users to post cartoon images of the Prophet Muhammad.

02/06/2010