Justmoi - I don't think it's so much about not wanting the rest of the world to know what's going on, but more about not wanting Qataris to know what's going on. Bad news reflects badly on the government. There's far less likely to be trouble if everyone thinks everything is going well.
On another point, while I agree with you that culture, religion and tradition are closely intertwined here, I think you're putting too much emphasis on Islam being the reason for the lack of freedom of press. For example, things like the trouble the banks are in not being reported properly here has nothing to with Islam.
Justmoi - I don't think it's so much about not wanting the rest of the world to know what's going on, but more about not wanting Qataris to know what's going on. Bad news reflects badly on the government. There's far less likely to be trouble if everyone thinks everything is going well.
On another point, while I agree with you that culture, religion and tradition are closely intertwined here, I think you're putting too much emphasis on Islam being the reason for the lack of freedom of press. For example, things like the trouble the banks are in not being reported properly here has nothing to with Islam.