The results for Media Use in the Middle East, 2019 by Northwestern University in Qatar are based on 7,303 face-to-face and telephone interviews across seven countries, conducted under the direction of The Harris Poll in conjunction with Pan Arab Research Center (PARC). The survey was conducted among the general population 18 years and older in seven countries: Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, and the United Arab Emirates. These seven countries represent a broad spectrum of populations across the Arab region.
The fieldwork for six of the countries in this seventh annual edition of the Media Use in the Middle East survey took place June 20 to August 20, 2019. Bureaucratic hurdles in Egypt delayed data collection in that country, so fieldwork in Egypt took place September 02 to October 06, 2019. Data in all countries were collected via face-to-face interviews, except in Qatar, where telephone interviews were employed via random-digit dialing. Multi-stage random probability sampling was used in Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, and the UAE.
The 2019 survey replicated many of the questions included in the 2013, 2015, and 2017 surveys; longitudinal comparisons are provided when applicable. The 2014, 2016, and 2018 surveys focused on entertainment media in the Middle East and are only referenced in a small number of questions. The 2018 and prior iterations of the survey are available at www.mideastmedia.org.
Some figures in this report do not include Egypt, Jordan, and Qatar, as officials in these countries did not permit the fielding of certain questions in some years of the Media Use in the Middle East study—Egypt and Jordan in recent years and Qatar only in 2013 and 2015. Excluded items mostly relate to censorship, government, politics, and religion. Additionally, Jordan data are only included for the years it was surveyed, the 2013, 2017, 2018, and 2019 editions of the study, not those conducted in 2014, 2015, and 2016. In all charts that do not include data from Egypt, Jordan, or Qatar, a footnote so reports.
Method
A total of 7,303 respondents participated in the survey with at least 1,000 respondents per country. The fieldwork for six of the countries in this seventh annual edition of the Media Use in the Middle East survey took place June 20 to August 20, 2019. Bureaucratic hurdles in Egypt delayed data collection in that country, so fieldwork in Egypt took place September 2 to October 6, 2019. Respondents were offered to take the survey in Arabic and English in all countries, and the survey was also offered in French in Lebanon and Tunisia. By respondent preference, interviews were completed in Arabic only in Egypt, Jordan, and Lebanon.
A summary of completed interviews and response rates for 2013 through 2019 is as follows:
Survey Design
Interviews lasted, on average, 26 minutes. The total number of questions asked varied based on responses to previous questions. For example, some questions were asked only of internet users or users of specific social media platforms.
Approval of the survey and method were required by governing agencies in Egypt and Jordan but not the other countries. As a result, a subset of questions was omitted in Egypt and Jordan at the direction of the overseeing government bodies. These exceptions are noted in the report where applicable.
Survey Procedures
The following sections describe the detailed survey method and sampling plan in each of the seven countries. While survey administration and sampling procedures varied somewhat by country, the method was designed to ensure representation of the national adult population in each country. Samples in all countries, except Egypt, include both citizens and resident expatriates. The sample in` Egypt includes just citizens due to the small number of expatriates in this country.
Groups that are not represented in the research include: visitors with no residence permit, farmers, servants, mentally disabled persons, and those in army barracks, hospitals, dormitories, prisons, or labor camps. In Lebanon, residents in areas with heavy Hezbollah presence were also excluded.
Detailed Method: Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, and the UAE
Surveys in Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, and the UAE were administered in face-to-face interviews, using multi-stage random probability sampling. This approach was designed to produce samples representative of the population of residents in households in the surveyed areas.
An overall master sample design was applied in these countries. Each country’s governorates or provinces were divided into cities, towns, and villages which were further divided into administrative units or sectors and then into clusters—each comprised of several blocks. A block was defined as the PSU (Primary Sampling Unit). In each block, a starting point was randomly selected, and interviewers followed a predefined random path through the block.
A constant fraction sampling procedure was implemented. The constant fraction sampling procedure can be defined as “a constant small number of interviews per Primary Sampling Unit (consisting of the number of interviews per man-day from each block) which was assigned at the rate of 8 or 10 full interviews per day.”
The total number of Primary Sampling Units per country, except in Egypt and Saudi Arabia, was 125 (total sample: 1000 / 8 interviews per PSU). In Egypt and Saudi Arabia, the total number of Primary Sampling Units was 100 (total sample: 1000 / 10 interviews per PSU).
In each block, a starting point was randomly selected, and a random path defined.
The interviews were conducted at regular intervals (of 4 dwellings) following the randomization as defined below:
The interviewer was directed to the starting point initially defined by the researcher.
The interviewer skipped a number of homes equal to the sample interval (4 houses) and conducted one interview in the next selected household.
The interviewer asked for a list of the household members who were 18 years and older from the eldest to the youngest member and used a random numbers table (or Kish grid) to select the prospective respondent for the interview.
The counting of households was continuous, uninterrupted starting from the top floor, clockwise in descending order, from one building to the next following the random path indicated in advance, and the researcher carefully documented their passage through the block in a detailed Fieldwork Register.
Method in Qatar
Surveys in Qatar were conducted via telephone interviews. Qatar, with a national population of just 300,000 citizens, has a small number of households, and the government reserves household sampling for its own censuses and other research projects. Potential respondents were sampled from mobile lines sourced by local official directories.
Prior to extracting a sample for the survey, the records were reshuffled to keep all numbers in random sequence within each stratum, and a special extraction program selected phone numbers at regular intervals within the structured list.
A multi-stage random probability selection of telephone numbers from the tele-database thereby yielded a representative sample for the interview.
If the prospective respondent was available and accessible immediately the interview would be conducted right away.
If the prospective respondent was unavailable at the first call, five further attempts would be scheduled by the system to call again at different times when the respondent would likely be available. If this failed, the number would be skipped, and another number would be selected at random from the tele-database.
The interviews were conducted in the language preferred by the respondent: Arabic for Arab respondents (as preferred by respondents) and English for non-Arabs.
Data Weighting
Weighting was applied—specifically, rim weighting—in all countries surveyed to bring the data in line with the population in each country. The weighting factors include gender by age, age by nationality, and gender by nationality.
Rim weighting uses a mathematical algorithm to help provide an even distribution of results across the entire dataset while balancing certain characteristics to predetermined totals. It weights the specified characteristics simultaneously and disturbs each variable as little as
possible. The weighting factors used in the countries included:
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Egypt: Gender by age, geography
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Jordan: Gender by age, geography
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Lebanon: Age, geography
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Qatar: Gender by age, age by nationality, geography
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Saudi Arabia: Gender by age, age by nationality, geography
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Tunisia: Age by nationality, geography
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UAE: Gender by age, geography
The sampling plans in these countries, developed based on census data, were designed to be representative of these populations by controlling for age, gender, and region/nationality.
While the data within countries was weighted to be representative, the overall sample of 7,303 was not weighted across countries. That is, we do not claim that aggregated data is “representative,” per se, of the Arab region as a whole. Weighting across countries was not applied due to the variable population sizes across the participating countries.
Margin of Sampling Error
tThe descriptions below show the margin of sampling error based on all interviews conducted in each country supporting a 95% confidence level. For a reported percentage based on the full sample in a given country, one can say with 95% confidence that the error attributable to sampling and other random effects is within the margin of error plus or minus the percentage.
Total Sample
Sample size: 7,303
Gender split: 52% male, 48% female
Mean age: 35 years old
Egypt
Sample design: Multi-stage random probability sampling procedure
Mode: Face-to-face, adults 18 plus years old
Languages: Arabic
Fieldwork dates: September 02 to October 06, 2019
Sample size: 1,007
Gender split: 50% male, 50% female
Mean age: 37 years old
Margin of sampling error: +/- 3.1 percentage points
Representative: Adult population, less visitors with no residence permit, farmers, servants, the mentally disabled, and those in labor camps
Jordan
Sample design: Multi-stage random probability sampling procedure
Mode: Face-to-face, adults 18 plus years old
Languages: Arabic
Fieldwork dates: July 24 to August 09, 2019
Sample size: 1,006
Gender split: 50% male, 50% female
Mean age: 35 years old
Margin of sampling error: +/- 3.1 percentage points
Representative: Adult population, less visitors with no residence permit, farmers, servants, the mentally disabled, and those in labor camps
Lebanon
Sample design: Multi-stage random probability sampling procedure
Mode: Face-to-face, adults 18 plus years old
Languages: Arabic, English
Fieldwork dates: July 09 to August 17, 2019
Sample size: 1,001
Gender split: 50% male, 50% female
Mean age: 37 years old
Margin of sampling error: +/- 3.1 percentage points
Representative: Adult populations, less visitors with no residence permit, farmers, servants, the mentally disabled, those in labor camps, and potential respondents in areas with heavy Hezbollah presence
Qatar
Sample design: Randomized sample within the household using a constant fraction sampling procedure
Mode: Telephone, adults 18 plus years old
Languages: Arabic, English
Fieldwork dates: June 20 to July 20, 2019
Sample size: 1,000
Gender split: 56% male, 44% female
Mean age: 34 years old
Margin of sampling error: +/- 3.1 percentage points
Representative: Adult population, less those in army barracks, hospitals, dormitories, and prisons
Saudi Arabia
Sample design: Multi-stage random probability sampling procedure
Mode: Face-to-face, adults 18 plus years old
Languages: Arabic, English
Fieldwork dates: July 01 to August 05, 2019
Sample size: 1,105
Gender split: 53% male, 47% female
Mean age: 34 years old
Margin of sampling error: +/- 3.0 percentage points
Representative: Adult populations, less visitors with no residence permit, farmers, servants, the mentally disabled, and those in labor camps
Tunisia
Sample design: Multi-stage random probability sampling procedure
Mode: Face-to-face, adults 18 plus years old
Languages: Arabic, French, English
Fieldwork dates: July 19 to August 04, 2019
Sample size: 1,092
Gender split: 51% male, 49% female
Mean age: 37 years old
Margin of sampling error: +/- 3.0 percentage points
Representative: Adult populations, less visitors with no residence permit, farmers, servants, the mentally disabled, and those in labor camps
United Arab Emirates
Sample design: Multi-stage random probability sampling procedure
Mode: Face-to-face, adults 18 plus years old
Languages: Arabic, English
Fieldwork dates: July 11 to August 20, 2019
Sample size: 1,092
Gender split: 53% male, 47% female
Mean age: 34 years old
Margin of sampling error: +/- 3.0 percentage points
Representative: Adult populations, less visitors with no residence permit, farmers, servants, the mentally disabled, and those in labor camps
Margin of sampling error = 1 / the square root of the sample size. Reported margins of sampling error account for data weighting.
Detailed Country Sampling Plans
The sample distribution for each country by geographic area is below.
Egypt Sampling Plan
This representative sample was generated based on the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS) in their “Egypt Census 2006”.
Jordan Sampling Plan
Lebanon Sampling Plan
Note: Sample exclusions included areas with heavy Hezbollah presence (Bent Jbeil, located in Nabatieh, and Baalbek, located in Beqaa).
Qatar Sampling Plan
This representative sample was generated based on the last census in 2010, Qatar Statistics Authority.
Saudi Arabia Sampling Plan
This representative sample was generated based on the statistical book, “Central Department of Statistics & Information”, 2007.
Tunisia Sampling Plan
This representative sample was generated based on the “General Census of the Population and Housing” published April 28, 2004.
United Arab Emirates Sampling Plan
This representative sample was generated based on the UAE 2005 Census.
Data Collection Vendors
The Harris Poll partnered with the Pan Arab Research Center (PARC) to administer interviews.
Harris Poll
The Harris Poll is one of the longest running surveys in the U.S. tracking public opinion, motivations, and social sentiment since 1963; it is now part of Harris Insights & Analytics, a global consulting and market research firm that strives to reveal the authentic values of modern society in order to inspire leaders to create a better tomorrow. They work with clients in three primary areas: building twenty-first-century corporate reputations, crafting brand strategy and performance tracking, and earning organic media through public relations research. Their mission is to provide insights and advice to help leaders make the best decisions possible.
Pan Arab Research Center
Pan Arab Research Center (PARC) is a well-established and qualified research and information systems house based in the Arabian Peninsula with its Regional Center located in Dubai. In addition, PARC operates through a network of full-fledged independent branch offices in each of the following countries: Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Sultanate of Oman, Lebanon, Egypt, Jordan, and Yemen.
PARC was founded in 1976. Born in the Arab World, For the Arab World, PARC is a multi-faceted company with a wide variety of interests. It is an incessant contributor in all areas of marketing: providing timely and accurate information about specific / general marketing problems, building on past experience, introspecting the present situation, and anticipating the probable future; such marketing expertise provides data along with advice and consultancy services that marketing managers can use to make sound decisions.
Their team is comprised of more than 400 full-time staff (research executives, analysts, programmers, translators, and marketers) working together with a large pool of data entry operators, interviewers, and field supervisors.
PARC's team comes together as a professional research body through the training and experience of its members, all of whom share the same vision and goals. Their dedication and professionalism makes it possible to pursue their objectives and continue their growth.
PARC has developed capabilities and methods to handle large-scale multi-market media and consumer research and a specialized line for qualitative research.
This publication was made possible in part by NPRP grant #10-0112-170157 from the Qatar National Research Fund (a member of Qatar Foundation). The statements made herein are solely the responsibility of the authors.
[2] International Chamber of Commerce/European Society for Opinion and Marketing Research