MEDIA REACTION: INAUGURATION OF PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA

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SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION: INAUGURATION OF PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA

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MEDIA REACTION: INAUGURATION OF PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA


1. (U) Arabic and French dailies and websites gave
superb coverage to the MissionQs innaugural program
which attracted more than 250 guests. However, in the
weeks leading to the event, coverage of the transition
itself was limited reflecting the ambiguity of the
Mauritanian political/intellectual class caught in the
competing demands of the current internal political
crisis and anger at the Israeli offensive in Gaza.
Several independent French dailies covering the
Inauguration remained fixed to themes of interest to
Mauritanians: Iraq, Guantanamo, Gaza, the significance of
Obama as the first black American president and potential
foreign policy shifts towards Mauritania that Obama might
usher in. In a Moslem country with historically complex
racial divides, and mixing, between the equal populations
of Black and White Moors and Afro Mauritanians, ObamaQs
story holds particular appeal, and the excitement on the
street was palpable, if not fully reflected in the press.
End Summary.
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America is not rid of its demons
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2. (U) Considering the heightened media attention during
the election period, the lack of local coverage in the
lead up to the Inauguration is puzzling. It could be due
to national concern over the situation in Israel, a
deflating of hopes that characterized the exciting and
eminently watchable campaign season or a cooling of
relations with Washington alongside the freezing of ties
to Israel. Since the August 6th, 2008 coup, Washington
has most consistently called for a return to
constitutional order and return of democratically elected
president Abdallahi while other European neighbors have
participated in junta-led initiatives thereby giving
tacit support.


3. (U) On January 19th, buried in the depths of local
French papers, Nouakchott Info, L'Eveil Hebdo and La
Renovateur one found coverage of the "Obama Express"
train to Washington, the astronomical sales of tickets to
Inaugural Day events and the "Barack the Magic Negro"
satire controversy. In drawing a parallel to the racial
issues that plague their country, an article in "L'Eveil
Hebdo" explained that this incident "reflects the
difficulty Americans have in supporting the idea of a
black person at the helm...America won't be able to get
rid of old demons in several months." There seemed, in
part, a begrudging quality to the Inauguration coverage,
local press reluctant to shed a positive light on the
United States and unwilling to share the celebratory
cheer felt on the streets of urban Nouakchott and paths
in rural villages.
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"Obama's example is relevant for Mauritania"
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4. (U) State run media relegated the 21st of January
coverage of the Inauguration to a quarter of page 6. This
was juxtaposed with the next page, a full page article on
the response of UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon to the
bombing of the UN building in Gaza on January 15th. The
lack of media coverage and its apparent political
rationale did not go unnoticed in the independent press.
In response, an editorial in "La Renovateur" noted: "It
is pathetic and worrisome to see that our press doesn't
even mention, even briefly, the event of the year, the
Inauguration of the first Black American President".
Instead they note that the same subjects are treated ad
nauseum by NouakchottQs newspapers, such as Israel, the
juntaQs initiatives, and Iraq. Appropriating Obama's
message of progress, the editorial concludes "instead of
looking for what can help our country advance, we
ruminate over racial and ethnic divisions, whether
ideological (Baathist, Nasserist etc...) In our country,
where both whites and blacks live together, only
competence and merit should matter. That is where Obama's
example is relevant for Mauritania." The lack of media
coverage did not parallel the streets of Mauritania,
where locals sporting Obama paraphernalia, t-shirts, hats
and bracelets, represented a population mystified by the
historic moment, and energized by the possibilities.

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QMutual interest and Mutual respect
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5. (U) The common themes that local press did pick up on

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following Obama's speech included race, Iraq, Iran,
Afghanistan and relations to the Muslim world. Obama's
pointed words to the Muslim world, "To the Muslim world,
we seek a new way forward, based on mutual interest and
mutual respect" were picked up in several papers. The
other words of his Inaugural speech that were oft-quoted
in local press included that that Obama "is ready to
lead" and "defeat extremists from around the world."


8. (U) Of the Embassy organized Inauguration event,
papers picked up on, and copied the ChargeQs remarks
prior to the swearing in, and his immediate reaction to
ObamaQs speech. The panel debate that included civil
society leaders was also covered by many papers. One
French website, CRIDEM, noted the "absence of official
representatives of the Mauritanian state" and most Arabic
dailies fixated on the fact that Mauritanians were not
represented at the event. Another respected French daily
chose not to cover the event at all and instead took a
page on Guantanamo.


9. (U) Comment: In the lead up to the Inauguration, there
was a general reluctance by local press to share in the
continent wide euphoria of the first Black American
President. There is reason for this - Washington does not
recognize the junta leadership and has stopped important
military and non-humanitarian assistance funding.
Another reason is the timing. Dual events of the
increasing death tolls of Palestinians in the Middle
East, combined with the attempted return of ousted
President Abdallahi, brought to light policy differences
with Washington - viewed as a supporter of Israel and
President Abdallahi. On January 23rd, the Department of
State issued a Press release criticizing the juntaQs
impeding the return of President Abdallahi to Nouakchott
and again demanding a return to constitutional order.
Both these policies have provoked violent and
unprecedented protests in the streets of Nouakchott and
help explain why the Inauguration, once the biggest
story, was now relegated to final pages - if not absent -
in local press. However, local excitement couldnQt be
hidden. In the wake of the EmbassyQs event, the pulse of
the Mauritanian people came to light in the papers with
Arabic papers printing pictures of invitees with the
Obama cut out and French sites showering compliments on
the US Embassy for the event. ObamaQs election and
inauguration provided post heretofore unopened channels
of communication. Despite the stagnant and repetitive
state the coup has engendered in local media, this
transition has provided an avenue of common, new and
positive discourse in a 100% Muslim and multicultural
society. It remains to be seen, six months post-coup,
whether the optimism engendered in the local population
towards Obama can revive the press or whether it will
stick to the state-run pro-junta party line.

WALSH