One of the biggest branches of media in Egypt is state-owned media, which, like most things that are “state-owned” look to push a certain agenda, and in this instance, the state’s impact on what the media chooses to report is shown.
During the Arab Spring, Egypt went through a major revolution that began in January of 2011 and lasted approximately three weeks. Essentially, Egyptian citizens rallied against Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak and his administration, which eventually led to Mubarak leaving his office in February of 2011 and being replaced by the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, who eventually relinquished the power to Mohamed Morsi in June of 2012.
During this time, one of the major forces that was able to rise up and make an impact on the Egyptian people was the country’s military, the aforementioned Supreme Council of the Armed Forces. The Chairman of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces at the time was Mohamed Hussein Tantawi (seen below), and it was widely believed that he had presidential aspirations, as he was the de facto leader of Egypt when the SCAF took over.
While the people generally had an unfavorable view of the Tantawi and the military after a demonstration at the Maspero television building in Cairo, according to Egypt Independent, the state-run media instead asserted that the military was not the enemy of the people, but rather that the military was the savior of Egypt.
One reporter discussed the demonstrations, and said that “the state newspapers are of vital importance to those in power because their influence and huge resources, human or otherwise, at their disposal.” He also claimed that ““The ties of allegiance are still strong, and the state media still takes its orders from the military and the old Mubarak institutions like the State Security apparatus under its new name of the National Security Agency,” and that ” the direction is always in favor of those in power, and this is the case even without direct orders from above; this is their natural inclination.”
Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Field_Marshal_Mohamed_Hussein_Tantawi_2002.jpg (Image)
http://www.egyptindependent.com/news/military-and-state-owned-media-one-hand
The revolution is Egypt was a perfect example of how citizens have the ability to change policies and administrations without going through the ‘justice’ system. Social media and other online activism did play an immense role in the uprising and positively utilized the medium to rebel against corrupt and unjust people in power. Also effective and even more successful with social media were the riots, demonstrations, strikes, self-immolation and civil resistance. Demonstrators today are still protesting since their democratically elected president was recently ousted in a military coup. I think the citizens of Egypt are inspiring and incredibly persistent in their revolt against the government.
This recent demonstration in the US intrigued me – http://www.worldbulletin.net/?aType=haber&ArticleID=124546
This entire situation was a result of social media. The uprising began through social media because talking bad about the government is bad, and many people are put in prison or arrested because of it. The were no laws for social media though, and the Arab Spring uprising’s roots can be found in Facebook posts and Twitter accounts. It is amazing to think that something most people use in the world to showcase new clothing or talk about getting coffee can also be used to change a civilization and change the way people live their lives. Social media changed the way a country FUNCTIONS. It has ushered in a new way of living for the people of Egypt.