There was a National Geographic article on Qatar a few years back. The Emir is trying to hold his country together while implementing small, incremental democratic reforms. So far, so good.
Much as I despise Al Jazeera, it's one of the few media outlets in the Arab world that's not state-controlled. Wrong or not, they're the Arab version of Fox News.
"Much as I despise Al Jazeera, it's one of the few media outlets in the Arab world that's not state-controlled. "
Al Jazeera is totally state controlled - and funded.