Executive Summary Since the 1993 Press and Publications Law, which granted significantly greater freedom to Jordanians to establish newspapers, the rules governing the print media have gone through a number of changes. Under the current 1998 Press and Publications Law (PPL), as amended, a number of dailies – both public and private – have flourished alongside numerous other publications, although this sector now faces major financial headwinds. In addition to creating a basic framework in which the print media can operate, the Law provides strong protection for confidential sources and an early set of access to information rules for the print media. At the same time, there are a number of ways in which the Law could be brought more fully into line with international standards. The scope of the Law is very broad indeed. It covers not only periodicals (newspapers and magazines) but also electronic publications, specialised publications (which may not be periodic), news agencies, printing presses, publishing houses, distribution houses, bookstores, public polling centres, advertising agencies, translation businesses and research centres. All of these bodies need to obtain licences from the government to operate and are subjected to various other rules. While there is some debate about the idea of registering periodicals, there is no need to licence all of these types of entities. International standards call for regulation of the media to be undertaken by independent bodies. The Media Commission undertakes a number of regulatory functions and the idea of transforming this body into a more independent body is canvassed in some detail in the analysis of the Audiovisual Media Law. However, a number of regulatory roles – including licensing of news agencies and press publications – are undertaken by the Council of Ministers, while others – including licensing and approving the experience of the managing director of specialised publications, approving foreign correspondents, and approving financing of research and polling centres – are undertaken by the Minister. In terms of the print media, under international law licensing systems, which allow for discretion to refuse to issue a licence, are not legitimate although technical registration systems may be. The PPL appears to create a licensing regime, while doing away with discretion to refuse permission would essentially transform it into a registration system. It would also be preferable if the deposit obligations for specialised publications, nonperiodicals and books were transferred from the Director of the Media Commission to the National Library, as a form of archiving. A number of other licensing restrictions – such as the requirement for research and polling centres to obtain approval from the Minister before receiving funds, restrictions on specialised publications changing their topic of specialisation, and the complete ban on foreign funding, including investment funding for the print media – are also problematical from the perspective of international standards. Jordan: Analysis of the Press and Publications Law, 1998, as Amended - 1