Publication

The day after the elections in Iraq, the European media rejoiced: "Millions of Iraqis defy terrorism", was the cover story of the Frankfurter Rundschau on January 31st, 2005. The headlines of Süddeutsche Zeitung, Handelsblatt, Libération, Independent and Financial Times read similarly, while the Guardian commented on its cover page: "Iraq welcomes the brave new world of democracy." Many readers and viewers may have been surprised by those headlines: Only two weeks before the election, the European media had severely questioned its legitimacy and secure organization. They did this in opposition to their colleagues at Arab media organizations, such as Al Jazeera, Al Arabiyah and Al-Hayat, who clearly portrayed the validity of the election more positively.