Biases in International Arabic-Language News Discourse toward Iran: A Comparative Study of CNN Arabic and RT Arabic during the Iran-Israel Military Conflict

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Abstract:
 The study aimed to monitor, analyze, and interpret biases in the international Arabic-language news discourse on CNN Arabic and RT Arabic toward Iran during the Iran-Israel military conflict of 2025, and their relation to the construction of main propositions about Iran. It is an explanatory-analytical study employing the media survey method. The study used a Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) framework, and employed content analysis, argument analysis, and actor analysis tools. These tools were applied to the news published on both websites during the period from June 12–24, 2025, which became known in the media as the “12-Day War.”
found that: The news discourse on both websites constructed a clear narrative toward Iran consistent with their respective states' foreign policy perspectives and reflected their geopolitical interests; in other words, it was strongly connected to the official state political and economic discourse. The news discourse on both websites displayed systematic bias toward Iran, evident in agenda bias (via issue selection, coverage angles, and sources), tone bias (via the use of adjectives), and directional bias (via the construction of main propositions and the attribution of blame). These biases revealed a clear ideology of each website, reflecting their editorial policies and shaping the argumentative pathways of the main propositions of the discourse. Accordingly, the news discourse toward Iran consisted of both text and  context, and the relationship between them revealed the discourse and its direction.
On CNN Arabic, the news discourse adopted a narrative more influenced by the discursive moment. It presented a main proposition that "Iran represents a source of regional and international threat" and maintained a negative orientation towards Iran versus a positive one towards America and Israel. This proposition shifted to “Iran is a diplomatic player seeking to end the conflict,” in conjunction with U.S. diplomatic efforts to achieve a ceasefire. Thus, the narrative maintained the positive role of the U.S., downgraded Iran from an “enemy” to a “diplomatic adversary,” and even presented negative sub-propositions about its strategic ally Israel due to its preference for a military solution.
On RT Arabic, the news discourse adopted a stable narrative toward Iran. It presented three main propositions: "Iran is a victim of American and Israeli aggression and influence," "Iran is a powerful state exercising its legitimate right," and "Iran is a diplomatic player seeking to end the conflict". The site maintained a positive orientation toward Iran, which the political discourse described as a "neighbor and ally". The site also maintained a negative orientation toward Israel, and an orientation influenced by the discursive moment toward the U.S., focusing on its negative role as Israel’s supporter and its positive role in supporting diplomatic efforts with Iran.