This report assesses two instances where freedom of cultural expression was violated in Lebanon. While they happened on separate occasions, they have several common underlying themes. Firstly, mid-June 2022, the movie “Lightyear” was prevented from showing in Lebanon as Walt Disney Co. were refused the license to broadcast the film in cinemas. This ban was seen across 14 other countries in the MENA region. The main problem, in Lebanon at least, was a scene where one of Buzz’s female friends married another woman and shared a brief kiss with her.

The second violation occurred on July 7, and it pertains to the banning of a Minions movie called “Minions: The Rise of Gru”. No official confirmation was given for the removal of the movie from cinemas, however there were speculations regarding the rationale. The first reason is a scene displaying two “minions” sharing a romantic stare. It is worth noting that the minions are creatures with no gender. The second reason involves showing an evil nun (a member of the “Vicious 6” villains in the movie), which would be viewed as an affront to religious figures. Regardless, these are not unusual reasons when looking back at the history of censorship in Lebanon. In fact, this censorship comes at a time where LGBTQ+ community in Lebanon is experiencing its most oppressive days while sectarian tensions increase.

SKF monitored the social media reactions, in Lebanon, to the banning of the two movies, with the aim to assess where the Lebanese public opinion stands on key freedom of expression debates. In the endeavor to be as accurate and efficient as possible in the monitoring process, SKF has partnered with Reputell, a data service provision company (Reputell) that has access to large amounts of data as well as the software to sort through it and get the relevant content. This process renders it safer to understand whether or not the discussion around the case study were reflected in the online arena and if so, how. It is also important to note that this study was not conducted as a comprehensive view of the digital landscape but with the aim to highlight prominent actors, the platforms used, and possible patterns as true to life as possible.