A spokesperson for the Guardian refuted on Monday claims by Egyptian media advisor Ahmed El-Muslimany that the British publication has backed counter-revolution in Egypt. "We reject the claims made by the Egyptian presidency's media consultant. The Guardian has always had a strong commitment to reporting from the Middle East and our coverage of the region is just as independent and robust as our coverage of any other part of the world," reads the statement received by Ahram Online via e-mail. El-Muslimany labeled the British daily as "a mouthpiece for the counter-revolution," and said it had "lost much of its reputation among Egyptian readers" because of its "anti-30 June revolution" stance, reported state-owned news agency MENA on Monday. The Egyptian media advisor criticised several headlines in The Guardian in particular, citing an editorial by Jonathan Steele, who wrote: "General Sisi and his followers are condemning Egypt to greater turmoil." "The Guardian... does not know anything about what is happening in Egypt," El-Muslimany said. "All its journalistic ability comes from copying counter-revolutionary websites." "In addition to our extensive news coverage, we work with commentators in Egypt to publish a wide range of opinions that reflect ongoing divisions amongst Egyptians themselves, in order to ensure that our overall coverage is as balanced as possible," the statement adds. "In line with our 'comment is free' philosophy - which operates across all of our editorial output - these pieces will not necessarily reflect the Guardian's own editorial position. We accept that criticism and controversy are inevitable in a situation of profound political polarisation." http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/84989.aspx
