DIGITAL OUTREACH TO OMAN

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 MUSCAT 001684 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPT FOR IIP, NEA/ARP NFRANCESCHI, NEA/PPD DBENZE DUBAI PLEASE PASS TO MPELLETIER SENSITIVE E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ECPS KISL KPAO OIIP PTER MU SUBJECT: DIGITAL OUTREACH TO OMAN REF: A. STATE 193515 ¶B. MUSCAT 1627 Sensitive but unclassified; please handle accordingly. -------------- SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. (U) In response to Ref A, Embassy Muscat is happy to provide a brief list of popular web destinations for Omani surfers, preceded by some background that we hope will be of use to IIP's new Digital Outreach Team. END SUMMARY. -------------- SKITTISH USERS UNLIKELY TO ENGAGE -------------- ¶2. (SBU) As discussed in Ref B, Oman's most popular Web forum, Al Sablah (which means "the sitting room," or place to chat; omania.net),was closed in late November and remains inaccessible. In its absence, several previously lower-profile sites have seen heightened visitor levels, but no single one has yet emerged with either the popularity or traffic of Sablah (which at times reached up to 300,000 hits per day). ¶3. (SBU) While online discussion, especially on Sablah, has in the last several years proved vigorous by reserved Omani standards, it is still far from the free-for-all Western surfers take for granted and is constrained even in comparison to discussion common online in other parts of the region. Users are quick to caution others for perceived disrespect to authority or for crossing the lines that most Omanis recognize as the boundaries of acceptable expression. It is likely that the declared presence of an official foreign (especially a U.S.) reader/poster on any of these sites could have a strongly inhibiting effect. Post encourages members of the Digital Outreach Team to invest significant time in familiarizing themselves with Omani online norms and expectations before leaping into the fray. -------------- FINDING OMANIS ONLINE -------------- ¶3. (SBU) Al Sablah's sudden absence has sent its readers elsewhere, diffusing the substantial traffic previously focused on omania.net. Among these alternatives are: - Al Sablah (II) (www.omania2.net). Apparently established independently of the closed site (but identical in appearance),this is the most obvious successor to the original Sablah. Discussion of the shutdown of its predecessor at present dominates this site. Overall participation is lower than the original, with participants generally shying away from hot topics. Its homepage is headlined "Omani Youth Can Make 1,000 Sablahs." - Al Majarra (almajara.com): "The Galaxy" hosts forums including Language and Literature, Islamic Thought, Medicine and Science, and Cultural and Economic Exchange, among other topics. Although Al Majarra does have an Economics and Politics forum, its focus is regional rather than local. Discussion is in large part religious; the site's full name is in fact "Al Majarra Al Islamiyya" ("the Islamic Galaxy"). The "Who Are We" page lists propagation of the Islamic faith as one of the site's main goals, and it carries an endorsement from Oman's Mufti, the country's highest religious authority. When PA staff recently visited the site, a counter on its homepage indicated that 387 users were at the time participating in discussion. A small, nearly dormant English-language section carries forums on Islamic Thought and Propagation and on Technology and Multimedia, among others. - Al Saha Al Omaniyya (oman0.net): "The Omani Town Square" hosts forums including on English language, family, education, and sports, but no dedicated political or religious content. The site's pink theme and topics such as "My dear husband" indicate a primarily female audience. - Sa Ahlum (a7lum.com): "I will dream" carries discussion on Travel and Tourism, Freedom, and (drawing on Al Jazeera's popular slogan) The Opinion and the Other Opinion. In the latter forum, discussion about Sablah's closure dominated all other subject threads, garnering 5,907 visitors and 269 replies as of December 10. In general, the site is more regionally than locally focused. - Aashiq Oman (www.omanlover.org): "Oman Lover" has a format identical to Sablah's and carries a notice saying that the site's purpose it to express solidarity with Sablah and discuss the circumstances surrounding its closure. Judging by the numbers of MUSCAT 00001684 002 OF 002 visitors listed, participation is robust, with one thread reaching nearly 5,000 visitors. Responses, however, are comparatively few, generally no more than 30. - English Sabla (englishsabla.com/forum). Unrelated except in name to the Arabic version, this site has comparatively low traffic, a limited number of posters (many outside Oman),and a focus on pop music, consumer goods, personal dilemmas, and local gossip rather than on politics and policy. FONTENEAU