Analysis of the Role of the Press in the Egyptian Revolution of 2011


  •  Sam Mohammadpour    

Abstract

The Egyptian Revolution of 2011, in fact was the result of crises in the Egyptian society; such as increasing social inequality and corruption and Mubarak’s efforts to inherit the presidency. These crises by the help of the media –from the press to the social networks- provided the grounds for shaping anti-Mubarak social movements and eventually led to fall him. In this regard, one of the most considerable point, was the salient role of the press and the print media in the process of the revolution. Traditionally, there have been three types of journalism system in Egypt: the state-owned, independent and partisan (party-run) press. In this context, the researcher has tried to answer this question: how was the role and position of each type of these press systems in Egypt in the process of the revolution -especially since January 25th until February 11, the day that Mubarak resigned-, and how effective were these roles and positions on the Egyptian Revolution of 2011?

In this regard, in addition to detailed introduction of the newspapers of each press, the emphasis is to observe their views and positions accurately and portray the main discrepancies between the state-owned press with the independent and partisan papers.

As the findings of the research show, it seems in the Egyptian Revolution of 2011, the relative freedom of these traditional media in expressing their own views with the growth of the middle class, enabled Egypt to pass the Mubarak's thirty-year dictatorship by mobilizing their demands and forming powerful social movements.


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