Qatar was perceived as increasingly rebellious, routinely defecting from the collective and mundane line of Gulf countries’ politics – inviting further pressures from the “big brothers.” In response, under the young Emir’s firm hand, Al Jazeera delivered a more assertive line of criticism against governments, such as those of Egypt and Saudi Arabia, that other Arab mainstream media would do their best to avoid alienating.
这种理想的动机尚不明确，但有几种可能性值得考量。1995年发动宫廷政变罢黜其父后，阿勒萨尼冷不防需要面对充满敌意的沙特阿拉伯和埃及，那些精英更喜欢他胆小怯懦的父亲，而鄙视这位雄心勃勃的年轻统治者。很多人怀疑埃及和沙特人是第二年针对阿勒萨尼军事政变的组织者。于是在年轻埃米尔的铁腕领导下，“半岛电视台”对两国政府发动了长年的攻击，几乎将卡塔尔和这两个国家的外交关系推上绝路。