A study released this morning by a research centre stated that youth-driven media in Saudi Arabia — particularly platforms using modern publishing tools across social media — is confronted with one of three unavoidable trajectories:
▪️ Either it is absorbed into state-aligned institutions.
▪️ Or it is subjected to security control.
▪️ Or it collides with the structures of power, capital, and cyber security.
The study presented numerous examples of youth-led media projects that once functioned as alternative media platforms within the Kingdom.
Particular attention was given to the youth-focused media company “Thmanyah” and its flagship programme “Fnjan”, which shifted cultural and social debate from traditional television into digital platforms.
The study described Thmanyah as an instrument for re-engineering public discourse, portraying it as a model of “elite soft power” built on calm language, long-form conversations, the shaping of youth public opinion, and the redefinition of identity. According to the report, this aligns with what has been termed “modern public diplomacy”, which relies heavily on media and culture. In this context, the programme evolved from an independent podcast project into a quasi-institutional media arm.
Founded in 2016 by Abdulrahman Abu Malih, Thmanyah quickly emerged as one of Saudi Arabia’s most prominent “new media” ventures. From the outset, the company adopted a model distinct from traditional media, centred on long-form and relatively in-depth podcasts, narrative documentaries, newsletters, and culturally analytical articles, alongside the cultivation of a youthful identity removed from the official tone of state media.
The programme “Fnjan” marked a major turning point, helping introduce podcasts into the Saudi public sphere as a mainstream product rather than a niche elite format.
However, the decisive transformation came in 2021, when the Saudi Research and Media Group acquired a 51 per cent stake in the company for approximately SAR 33 million, later increasing its share to 75 per cent. The acquisition gradually altered the nature of Thmanyah from an independent start-up with a distinct identity into a media institution linked to a broader media and capital structure.
Accordingly, the study argues that Thmanyah was never merely an independent media company, but rather part of Saudi Arabia’s transition from a discourse of preaching and mobilisation to one centred on narrative and persuasion. From this perspective, the acquisition by the Saudi Research and Media Group, followed by the resignation of Abdulrahman Abu Malih, represents not merely an administrative development, but a shift in alternative media from the stage of the “independent margin” to that of “integration within the system”.
In other words, the state initially required a space that appeared independent, before later seeking to institutionalise and absorb it — a pattern commonly observed in states rebuilding their soft power structures.
For reference:
🔗 Official study website:
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