Al-Wasat

Al-Wasat, also "Alwasat", is an Arabic-language daily newspaper in Bahrain. It was founded by Dr. Mansoor Al-Jamri and leading personalities from the Bahraini private sector. Al-Jamri is the editor-in-chief since the foundation of the newspaper in 2002. He was temporarily forced out of his position between 3 April 2011 till 4 August 2011 during a government's crackdown. Al-Wasat is one of the most popular newspapers in Bahrain and is generally regarded as one of the only dailies that does not take a loyalist stand to the Bahraini government. Al-Wasat was ranked as the top newspaper in terms of circulation and impact in the kingdom of Bahrain by the Pan-Arab Research Center in its survey in 2012 . Al-Wasat was ranked of the top of index of credibility by the "Media Credibility Index" issued by Next Century Foundation in London on 5th May 2012 . Mansoor Al-Jamri is recipient of the CPJ International Press Freedom Awards in 2011 and the International Media Peace Award 2012 . It is the first Bahraini newspaper to reflect opposing viewpoints. The newspaper was established after the early reforms adopted by King Hamad bin Isa in the early 2000s. Allowing a key oppositional figure to establish this newspaper was seen as a key event in the opening up of society. Before Al-Wasat was established, Bahrain had only two Arabic newspapers, Akhbar Al Khaleej and Al Ayam, both of which were viewed as extremely pro-government.