Cultural and Communication Problems in Colonized Islamic Countries (Case Study: Tunisia)

From among 51 Islamic countries whose majority of population are Muslims, 41 countries have the experience of being a colony in their history. Passing through the colonialization era has left behind a heritage that – although it can have similar and sometimes different characteristics, its effects on culture and communication of these societies more or less have enjoyed similar features. After explaining the concept of “social problems” in order to review the media problem in Tunisia, as the case under study, the paper reviews relationships between the two institutions of “sovereignty” and “media” at three junctures of colonialization era, post-colonialization era and the recent era known as “Arab Spring”. The paper shows that vertical and unilateral relations of governments with Tunisian media, during the colonialization era, have turned them into tools for achievement of colonializataion goals of the colonizers. After gaining independence, with respect to the existence of severe encounters of despotic governments, reinforcement of these vertical relationships never gave the media the chance to play a role in the development of the country.