JEDDAH — Saudi Arabia has some of the highest adoption rates of social networking sites in the world with Facebook, micro-blogging website Twitter and photo-sharing site Instagram claiming the bulk of users who share anything from political views to favorite recipes. The Kingdom also has a high adoption rate of smartphones which means sharing words, photos and videos has become even easier for the country's legions of social networking users. The latest social networking social networking craze to hit the country is the video-sharing service known as Keek and just like any new technology trend, Keek can be used positively or negatively. A free online social networking service, Keek allows users to upload 36-second video clips called keeks. Users can post their keeks using a webcam or via mobile phone apps for Android and iPhone. Users can also reply to posted videos via text or video comments known as keekbacks and share content to other major social media networks such as Twitter. Recently, Loujain Al-Hathloul, a Saudi student who lives in Canada, created controversy after appearing without hijab on her personal Keek account in which she criticized the religious discourse in Saudi Arabia and its social manifestations. Through her keeks, she stated that she does not see a problem in not wearing the hijab and cited verses of the Holy Qur'an to tell people what is permissible and what is not. Her videos were received with mixed reactions with many mocking her. Women are not the only users who have garnered controversy — videos showing men doing anything from dancing to making fun of others and discussing taboo subjects have also aroused debate on whether Saudi youth are prone to abusing new technology or creating controversy simply for attention. Blogger Khaled Yeslam believes Keek is a relevant social networking site for a time where visual communication methods are in greater demand than print media outlets. Yeslam, who has posted around 17 videos on the site under different subjects, believes it can be used in a good or bad way. “The reason why Saudis tend to overreact to unusual material online is that we live in a society deluded with privacy and false pretenses of virtue and these online platforms have taken the veil off this illusion. We have finally realized that we are just like any other society in the world and are by no means the saints we often portray ourselves to be,” he said. Commenting on inappropriate material on Keek and videos such as Al-Hathloul's, Yeslam believes the only reason her videos created so much controversy is that she is Saudi. “Although we claim that the reason of our objection is related to religion, we ignore the appearance and opinions of Muslim women from other nationalities,” he added. Explaining the popularity of social networking websites and their misuse, Yeslam said Saudi youth have few recreational activities and outlets to express themselves. “The Internet has provided a platform for self-expression, something society has failed to do. This young society hasn't been able find outlets where it can release its energy due to the fear of traditions and censorship. Hence the excessive use of social media sites such as Keek and YouTube. We don't have movie theaters or other censorship-free channels of artistic expression so it is expected that these new media channels will be abused.” Yasir Al-Saggaf, a radio presenter, enthusiastically embraced Keek and posted 15 video clips to the site before deactivating his account due to the misuse of the application he witnessed. “Keek started out as a new positive potential in social media. It contains 36 powerful seconds to underline or highlight a very important subject by video but I don't approve of its rampant misuse. Twitter has escaped this sort of abuse as we have seen great movements trying to change Saudi society's views,” he said. Despite the high number of users and viewers on Keek, many of the videos uploaded by users in the Kingdom contain what would be considered inappropriate material in Saudi society such as partially-clothed girls dancing provocatively. Al-Saggaf also attributed this to boredom. “I guess the most views were on videos that reflect the negative aspect of this society such as a pretty face showing up and saying something irrelevant or a girl dancing. People are fed up of being bored and were waiting to explode. Without the right guidance, our society will always be prone to abusing social media and technology in general,” he added. Echoing Al-Saggaf's words, Waleed Samoum, presenter of the YouTube show “What happened on Twitter,” said the country's youth needs to be educated on the proper usage of social media websites. “Abuse of technology can happen anywhere but what is happening on Keek is considered over the board. It's weird that the most viewed videos list usually contains unsuitable videos of girls dancing, for example. One of the reasons could be due to the fact that Keek's developers care more about the number of users rather than the content unlike YouTube which has content control,” he said. “Saudi youth have a lot expendable energy but unfortunately they don't have the right guidance,” he added.
