Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, November 2006, page 71

Waging Peace

Paradox of the Free Press in Egypt

THE UNITED STATES Egypt Friendship Society and the George Washington University Arab Student Association co-sponsored a panel discussion on contemporary media in Egypt on July 26, 2006 at George Washington University. Les Janka, founder and president of Les Janka International, moderated a lively discussion with panelists Tarek Atia, assistant editor-in-chief of Al-Ahram Weekly; Adel Iskandar, author of Al-Jazeera: The Story of the Network that is Rattling Governments and Redefining Modern Journalism; and Howard Schneider, local business editor and former Cairo bureau chief of The Washington Post.

Speakers addressed the fact that there is a consensus among close observers of the Egyptian scene that Egypt is “in transition”; however, progress on reforms is unbalanced. While economic reforms are moving ahead, progress on political reforms appear to have stalled. Government-sanctioned human rights organizations speak out against perceived government abuses, while at the same time bureaucratic and other official obstacles prevent the growth of the civil society sector. 

Through this often confusing picture, one important reform factor is very clear: the Egyptian media will never be the same. The press, although constrained by various laws, apparently is forging ahead to become increasingly open, independent and critical.

One example of the legal constraints placed on the media by governmental reforms is the new government-drafted bill, which won preliminary approval in parliament on July 8, which eliminates imprisonment as a penalty for some media offenses, but continues to allow judges to impose jail terms for journalists in many other instances.

Iskandar opened the discussion by examining al-Jazeera’s impact on domestic Egyptian politics during the recent presidential election, and Egypt’s press laws. He noted a tendency in the West to mischaracterize the Egyptian media and Arab press as juvenile and elementary, with little journalistic tradition, but pointed out that Egypt’s regional press dates back to the 1920s and 1930s. The Egyptian press is not monolithic, Iskandar said: “In the last decade there has been an explosion of oppositional and independent media in Egypt—varying in type, form, affiliation, denomination, allegiance—all reflecting a desire to explore information and news from a variety of perspectives.” This has had a negative effect, Iskandar declared, because with so many independent and oppositional media sources, each paper tends to be under-funded and with low readership.

Most Egyptians and observers of the Egyptian press are aware of three different categories of press, Iskandar explained—“media agent organizations that are operated, funded, and sponsored by the government; media agents that are affiliated with political parties and following those ideologies; and, lastly, the independent press.

“Egypt is dominated by three colossal presses: al-Ahram, al-Akhbar, and al- Gumhuria,” he continued. “These organizations’ budgets overshadow independent and smaller presses, which are vulnerable and weak, often presenting the opposition and bringing a new dimension to topics. One side of the independent press is profiteering, drawn to sensationalism, which I call the ‘party press.’ The other side can be associated with the paper parties or the weak and defanged presses, and these papers have little to no impact on political atmosphere.“

Iskandar warned, “There is a steadfast consensus that Egyptians do not want to take directives or instructions from abroad and that the media is independent. This reaction to criticism not only enhances camaraderie but it is something that may create further reform. Most reactions to free press law are held on the basis that it is premature and not far enough along. There is a desire to create accountability in Egypt,” he concluded, “but the circumstances remain shadowy and vague.”

         —Delinda C. Hanley

< Prev		Next >