"International law provides robust general protection for freedom of expression, including freedom of the media, and this has been subject to detailed elaboration by international human rights courts and other official bodies tasked with promoting human rights globally and regionally. For the media, some of the key implications of the right to freedom of expression are that the media should only be regulated where this is necessary to serve an overriding social interest and that such regulation should be undertaken only by bodies which are protected against political and commercial interference. Furthermore, an important goal of media regulation should be to foster and promote diversity in the media. International law also places clear limits on restrictions on what may be published or broadcast through the media, while also imposing a positive obligation on States to put in place systems to ensure that individuals can access information held by public bodies. All of the countries in the Arab world are in serious breach of all or most of these standards. While there has been some progress recently, particularly in terms of respect for freedom of expression in practice, the need for comprehensive media law reform in the region remains pressing and very substantial. Unless structural protection for media freedom is provided through law reform efforts, it is extremely unlikely that any gains in respect for freedom of expression will be lasting." (Conclusion, page 64)