Structural Media Capture

Structural Media Capture challenges the ways we think about media freedom around the world. Media systems have long been judged against a liberal Western model of a free press. Countries are ranked, compared, and labeled based on how closely they resemble this ideal. But what if this framework misses deeper forces shaping how media actually operates?

Bouziane Zaid argues that the complexities and constraints of media systems, especially those in the Global South, fail to be captured through a simple free-versus-not-free lens. Instead of focusing only on censorship or press laws, Zaid explores how journalism is shaped by long-term political histories, economic structures, state-media relationships, and the growing power of global digital platforms. Structural Media Capture shifts the focus from abstract ideals to the structural conditions that shape media autonomy over time. It shows how journalism has been shaped by state structures and ownership patterns as well as regulatory frameworks, and is increasingly driven by the invisible logics of digital platforms. In contemporary media systems, influence is rarely sudden or absolute. It is embedded in the conditions that determine what media organizations can afford to produce, how they reach audiences, and what becomes sustainable over time.

Drawing on Morocco as a case study and speaking to wider global realities, Structural Media Capture reframes and de-westernizes the study of media systems. It moves beyond imported models and offers a grounded framework for understanding how media operates and how meaningful reform must be designed within these structural conditions.