On June 4, the Washington Times published a “special section” of articles lavishing praise on Qatar, its institutions, and its global influence. Each of these articles was labeled as “sponsored,” although the Times neglects to say by whom. At first glance, this is a surprising insertion in a conservative paper whose editorial board has previously been critical of the Middle Eastern state.

While Qatari money is everywhere, in previous years its influence had been perceived mostly on the American left. Qatar’s media empire Al Jazeera, for example, operates a social media platform named AJ+, which has partnered with hard left-leaning American outlets such as the Young Turks.