Jordan's Queen Urges Dialogue on YouTube

Mon Mar 31, 2008 6:55 PM EDT

AMMAN — Jordan's media savvy Queen Rania has launched an appeal on YouTube for a global dialogue to dismantle stereotypes of Muslims and the Arab world, the royal palace said Monday.

Rania vowed to work to break down such preconceptions and wants people to "know the real Arab world ... unedited, unscripted and unfiltered."

Her YouTube page invites viewers to give their opinions of the Middle East and talk about stereotyped images that they may have of Arabs and Muslims.

In the palace statement, Rania was quoted as saying she wanted young people everywhere "to see the personal side of my region, to know the places and faces and rituals and culture that shape the part of the world I call home."

Although traditionally conservative and tribal-oriented, Jordan strives for a degree of modernity that distinguishes it from some other countries in the Middle East.

YouTube is popular among Jordanian youth, who make up more than half of the country's population of nearly 6 million. There is also easy access to the Internet, unlike in some parts of the region, such as Saudi Arabia, Iran and Syria.

"In a world where it's so easy to connect to one another, we still remain very much disconnected," Rania said in her YouTube video.

The Palestinian-born Rania, who married King Abdullah in 1993, promotes education, micro-credit financing and other efforts to lift Jordan out of poverty.

___

On the Net:

Queen Rania's YouTube page: http://www.youtube.com/queenrania

Queen Rania's Web site: http://www.queenrania.jo