"Ever since the leading pan-Arab newspaper, Asharq al-Awsat, launched in Britain in 1978, London has served as an Arab media hub. Fleeing the censors at home, journalists found freedom in exile." Ash-Sharq Al-Awsat is the leading Saudi regime propaganda outlet. It is the epitome of censorship and sends the signal to other Saudi regime propaganda outlets on the new ever-changing rules of censorship. In fact, it was launched in 1978 for a simple reason: the Saudi royalty was spending so much time in Europe and they wanted a daily Arabic newspaper because they could not read the daily foreign press. Worse: the Economist then adds this: "Al-Hayat, was once lauded as the most professional of Arab newspapers, but now tends to toe the line." If you read Arabic you will wonder in amazement at this: when did Al-Hayat (the mouthpiece of Khalid bin Sultan since 19991) NOT toe the line?