The George Mitchell Appointment

Media coverage of the George Mitchell appointment as special U.S. envoy to the Middle East has been remarkably similar in Western and MENA media, almost giddy. Al-Jazeera says, "Mitchell is by far the most high-profile, skilled negotiator to tackle the US role in the Middle East since Henry Kissinger." ABC news argued that Mitchell is the best person suited for the job. Others, such as Gamal Abdel Gawad, a senior political analyst in Cairo, share this sentiment: "You can't believe the change. People are beginning to entertain the idea of the U.S. as a force of good, not evil."

The message is clear; now its time for substance. One of only a few MENA reporters who are hesitant, Kareem Fathi of Kuwait T.V. asked, "Where is the policy? Is it just words?" It's still early to ask for momentous change but things need to start happening before the message of the U.S. as a friend gets stale. Al-Jazeera's appreciation for Obama's attention to Muslims and the Middle East will not last forever. As it reports, although President Obama has shown a priority to the Middle East, Americans are more concerned with the economy, not foreign policy. Obama must make the change he speaks of tangible or the hope of his message will be lost.