Sourcing and Bias in the Study of Coups: Lessons from the Middle East.

This article examines reporting bias in coup d'état datasets, focusing on the post-colonial Middle East cases of Syria, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia between 1949 and 1968. It finds that while successful and most failed coups are generally well-documented in Western media sources commonly used by scholars, coup plots and rumors are frequently underreported or omitted, especially in datasets relying predominantly on English-language international news such as The New York Times and Keesing's Record of World Events. The study highlights the importance of incorporating regional media, specialized scholarship, memoirs, and declassified archives to capture a more comprehensive and accurate record of coup-related events. It concludes that reliance on Western sources alone risks systematic bias, particularly for less visible coup activities, and recommends broader source triangulation and regional expertise to improve the quality of coup data for research on political violence and authoritarian stability.