The Arabic Palestinian Press between the Two World Wars

This chapter discusses the development of the Arabic press in Palestine during the years 1929–39, a period that saw the emergence of the Palestinian national movement in its struggle with the Zionist movement and the administration of the British mandate to prevent the fulfilment of the programme for a Jewish national home. The press played a critical role in this process, from its beginnings in the mid-1920s through a period of growing strength following the events of 1929 which peaked during the Great Strike of April–October 1936. In its examination of the development of the Palestinian national movement and its cultural and social characteristics, the chapter addresses the background of the growth of the press, the reading public, the operating political forces and the extent of press influence in the shaping of public opinion in Palestinian society.