Egypt, Elsewedy review progress on Ain Sokhna phosphate complex    US employment cost index 3.6% up in year to June 2025    Egypt welcomes Canada, Malta's decision to recognise Palestinian state    Pakistan says successfully concluded 'landmark trade deal' with US    Sterling set for sharpest monthly drop since 2022    Egypt, Brazil sign deal to boost pharmaceutical cooperation    Modon Holding posts AED 2.1bn net profit in H1 2025    Egypt's Electricity Ministry says new power cable for Giza area operational    Egypt's Al-Sisi, Italian defence minister discuss Gaza, security cooperation    Egypt's FM discusses Gaza, Nile dam with US senators    Aid airdrops intensify as famine deepens in Gaza amid mounting international criticism    Egypt exports first high-tech potato seeds to Uzbekistan after opening market    Health minister showcases AI's impact on healthcare at Huawei Cloud Summit    On anti-trafficking day, Egypt's PM calls fight a 'moral and humanitarian duty'    Egypt strengthens healthcare partnerships to enhance maternity, multiple sclerosis, and stroke care    Egypt keeps Gaza aid flowing, total tops 533,000 tons: minister    Indian Embassy to launch cultural festival in Assiut, film fest in Cairo    Egyptian aid convoy heads toward Gaza as humanitarian crisis deepens    Culture minister launches national plan to revive film industry, modernise cinematic assets    I won't trade my identity to please market: Douzi    Sisi sends letter to Nigerian president affirming strategic ties    Two militants killed in foiled plot to revive 'Hasm' operations: Interior ministry    Egypt, Somalia discuss closer environmental cooperation    Egypt's EHA, Huawei discuss enhanced digital health    Foreign, housing ministers discuss Egypt's role in African development push    Egypt reveals heritage e-training portal    Three ancient rock-cut tombs discovered in Aswan    Sisi launches new support initiative for families of war, terrorism victims    Egypt expands e-ticketing to 110 heritage sites, adds self-service kiosks at Saqqara    Egypt's Irrigation Minister urges scientific cooperation to tackle water scarcity    Palm Hills Squash Open debuts with 48 international stars, $250,000 prize pool    On Sport to broadcast Pan Arab Golf Championship for Juniors and Ladies in Egypt    Golf Festival in Cairo to mark Arab Golf Federation's 50th anniversary    Germany among EU's priciest labour markets – official data    Paris Olympic gold '24 medals hit record value    A minute of silence for Egyptian sports    Russia says it's in sync with US, China, Pakistan on Taliban    It's a bit frustrating to draw at home: Real Madrid keeper after Villarreal game    Shoukry reviews with Guterres Egypt's efforts to achieve SDGs, promote human rights    Sudan says countries must cooperate on vaccines    Johnson & Johnson: Second shot boosts antibodies and protection against COVID-19    Egypt to tax bloggers, YouTubers    Egypt's FM asserts importance of stability in Libya, holding elections as scheduled    We mustn't lose touch: Muller after Bayern win in Bundesliga    Egypt records 36 new deaths from Covid-19, highest since mid June    Egypt sells $3 bln US-dollar dominated eurobonds    Gamal Hanafy's ceramic exhibition at Gezira Arts Centre is a must go    Italian Institute Director Davide Scalmani presents activities of the Cairo Institute for ITALIANA.IT platform    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



Ahram journalists lash out at pro-government editorial policies
Published in Daily News Egypt on 14 - 11 - 2011

CAIRO: Veteran journalists at state-owned Al-Ahram newspaper expressed their grievances at the continuation of the pre-January 25 editorial policies that pander to whoever is in power.
Journalists argued that the name of ousted president Hosni Mubarak was removed from the headlines only to be replaced by the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF).
“I found that relatively little has changed,” said Khaled Daoud, assistant editor of Al-Ahram Weekly, who has been working in the state institution for more than 20 years.
“As long as [SCAF] is appointing the editors-in-chief and board chairmen, I think there will be little hope for change in the Egyptian press,” he said in a conference on Sunday.
The outburst came after a speech by Al-Ahram's Editor-in-Chief, Abdel Azim Hamad, in which he claimed that state-run press have always maintained professional standards even under the Mubarak regime and despite the political situation.
Among the many demands of the protesters that took to the streets in January was the purging of state media, usually criticized for ignoring basic professional standards in favor of propagating regime policies.
State press was the focus of the Media in Transition seminar organized by UNESCO, the UN Information Center and Al-Ahram Press Foundation this week. Panelists and participants discussed the transition of state press towards ensuring independent public service. Journalists from Germany, Sweden and the United Kingdom shared their experience.
“What is the relationship with the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces?” journalist Karem Yehia, who has been working at Al-Ahram since 1986, asked the panel, which included Al-Ahram Board Chairman Abdel Fattah El-Gebaly and Deputy Editor-in-Chief Mohamed Sabreen.
Saying that state press has been promoting SCAF policies, Yehia asked: “What is that? A political bribe? What about the military trials of civilians? Not a word was published on that.”
“The state-owned press are only presenting one point of view and that is [SCAF]'s,” he added.
Yehia complained of censorship, citing the time when the most significant information was taken out of an article he wrote about the military trials of civilians, including the number of citizens subjected to the tribunals.
Daoud said, “We've been raised since the 60s that we are government employees. This needs to change; we have to restore our independence and that our allegiance is not to the government.”
He explained that restoring their credibility and regaining readers' trust is accomplished by reporting the truth. “We won't get the readers' trust if we don't report what they see on a day-to-day basis on the streets,” he added.
Daoud, however, remained optimistic. The young generation, he said, will not accept the old taboos.
Sabreen explained that the state press at the moment is at a “crossroads,” gearing up to build a new system, adding that the situation can never go back to what it was before the revolution.
The agenda now is “democracy, freedom and social justice,” he said.
Editorial independence, according to renowned publisher Hisham Kassem, is not guaranteed by private ownership. On the contrary, “the owner is in power,” he said.
“There is no editorial vision [in Egypt]; at the end of the day anyone who can afford it will publish a newspaper,” he added.
With private media mistakenly referred to as independent, Kassem said people should start thinking about a public offering for a people's media, to avoid the situation where one person has a controlling share.


Clic here to read the story from its source.