The Associated Press finally picked up the story about Jordan’s banning "Al Shatat" program. This particular paragraph caught my eye:

Waleed al-Hadidi, Mamnou’s board chairman, stated that the series "was stopped for technical, not political reasons." He declined to say if the Jordanian government had pressed him to stop broadcast, but maintained that the series, which his firm had bought for $1.25 million and aired as part of an experimental broadcast, is likely to be shown again following the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, when the station goes into regular broadcast.

Source: [AP via Aljazeera or Haaretz]

It seems Mr Al-Hadidi is insisting that the show was stopped for "technical reasons," although the official Jordanian statement pointed out that the show was stopped after the intervention of "responsible Jordanians."

I think it’s about time that officials in Jordan stop giving contradictory, illogical statements. After all, we are supposed to be living in the age of transparency. In this global age, nothing can be kept secret, as average citizens have access to alternative media sources like the internet, international publications and satellite dishes. Relying merely on the government-controlled press is becoming a thing of the past. So Mr Al-Hadidi, a message: Please don’t underestimate our intelligence.