Saudi Arabia’s government intends to invest billions of dollars in its entertainment industry. It’s a counter-intuitive move for the conservative country, but that’s part of the point. The kingdom’s current leader, Mohammed bin Salman, has been trying to make some changes to the country to seem less conservative and more open. These have included allowing women to drive and loosening rules about gender segregation.
Though the changes have been met with praise, they’ve been undermined by other actions taken by bin Salman since taking control. These include forcibly squelching political dissent on a wide scale, a continuing war in Yemen, and the high profile killing of the reporter Jamal Khashoggi, which brought international rebuke. Bin Salman says that he did not order the killing, but U.S. intelligence believes otherwise.
Still, the new investment could mark a move in the direction of joining the international community to a greater extent. It has already included more cultural exchange than Saudi Arabia is used to. For example, the Black Eyed Peas recently performed in the country.
The investment is apparently going to include a wide variety of entertainment, from car races to theater to sports… even a Spanish-style running of the bulls.
