Innovation in Legacy Media Institutions: the Case of the Al Jazeera Media Network

This research explores how legacy media institutions can facilitate an environment where innovation is possible. Using media innovation and the dynamic capabilities theoretical framework, the research looks at the specific case of the Al Jazeera media network, a pre-eminent broadcaster in the Middle East. The paper uses the case-study approach combined with personal interviews with media professionals and experts to understand the way innovation unfolds for a legacy media institution. While media transformation and innovation research is predominantly located in the western world, this research provides an empirical perspective from the global south. It finds in resource management and corporate adaptability the mechanisms of innovation adopted by Al Jazeera, and these mechanisms are not specific to the global south.