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Independent media continues to face obstacles and setbacks in the Middle East, particularly in the Gulf region where there are major legal restrictions against operating independent media outlets. Most governments in the region exert tight control over radio and TV broadcasting, and in recent years journalists have reported increased harassment and fear of arrest or detention. But online media's influence and impact is steadily growing in the Middle East and, with exceptions such as Egypt, has proven to be a safer forum for free expression and a reliable source for disseminating independent information to the public.

AmmanNet, a nongovernmental Jordanian media organization, has been a leader of innovative and independent media in the Middle East and a pioneer of internet-based radio. In the fall of 2000, AmmanNet launched the Arab World's first internet-based radio station whose audience has continued to grow every year. Its website, www.AmmanNet.net, receives an average of 30,000 hits each day and has become an important source of unbiased information.

Providing news and information, AmmanNet has also focused on monitoring and reporting on the work of the Jordanian Parliament and local government. A NED grantee since 2003, AmmanNet develops, produces, and airs a weekly Internet-based radio program called Rua Barlamania (Parliamentary Views) that includes commentaries and general information about the activities of the Jordanian Parliament, interviews with Members of Parliament (MPs), and discussions on a wide range of topics concerning the work of Parliament.

AmmanNet also posts profiles on each of Jordan's 110 MPs on its parliamentary monitoring section, Marasad. In this section, AmmanNet closely tracks the activities and voting records of 10 men and women MPs of diverse ethnic, regional, and political backgrounds. The website includes links to draft laws, newly-approved legislation, and a "Contact Your MP" feature. In view of the recently revitalized role of the Senate in Jordan, AmmanNet expanded its site in 2006 by launching a Senate monitoring section called Ain al-Ayan (Eye on the Senators) .

After five years of broadcasting over the Internet, AmmanNet was granted an FM broadcasting license and Rua Barliamania is now aired over the radio and reaches a wider listening audience in the greater Amman area as a source of Parliamentary coverage.

AmmanNet has demonstrated that, with technical know-how and a small investment in equipment, it is possible to produce and broadcast high-quality independent media content and avoid media censorship. In 2004 and 2005, the AmmanNet experiment was introduced to six other countries in the Middle East through training workshops for journalists in Syria, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Yemen, Tunisia, and the West Bank/Gaza Strip. AmmanNet staff and trainers familiarized the participants with internet radio concepts, hardware, and software, and mentored their efforts to establish similar media.

Building on the success of these trainings and an additional online journalism training program with 13 Saudi journalists, AmmanNet further promoted the growth of online journalism in the Middle East. In 2006, AmmanNet launched one internet-based radio station each in Kuwait, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Oman, and Yemen and three internet-based radio stations in Saudi Arabia. AmmanNet provided extensive training for staff, initial hosting of the stations through the AmmanNet website, and technical and equipment support.

AmmanNet has created a unique forum in which Jordanian citizens, and now citizens throughout the region, can access unbiased and reliable information. Much work remains to be done to ensure freedom of speech and freedom of expression in the Middle East, and AmmanNet will continue to promote independent media through its innovative work in radio and Internet programming.