Radically Polarized Publics and the Demise of Media Freedom in Egypt

Dados Bibliográficos

ID15034787
AutoresKai Hafez (0009-0000-1339-5089, University of Erfurt, autor correspondente)
Ano2015
Volume12
Páginas37-49
Data de publicação2015-01-01
Peer ReviewedSim
Open AccessSim
TipoARTICLE
PeriódicoÉgypte/Monde arabe (JOURNAL)
Identificadores do periódicoISSN: 1110-5097 • E-ISSN: 2090-7273
EditoraOpenEdition (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.4000/ema.3397
OpenAlexW247613286
IdiomaEN
Citações recebidas8
Referências citadas7

This paper seeks to analyze both the achievements and the failures of the Egyptian public sphere on the basis of the theory of comparative media systems and transformation theory. The fact that new military rulers introduced harsh censorship is proof that media are vulnerable to political manipulation. However, the reasons for the regression of the Egyptian media system are manifold. Media capital, largely concentrated in the hands of old elites, exerted pressure against the democratic transformation. During the Arab Spring transition radically polarized media and audiences did not enable the creation of democratic consensus and pluralist public spheres. The journalistic profession as well as audiences can be considered co-responsible for the neo-authoritarian downswing of the public sphere that followed the military coup

Authoritarianism · Censorship · Demise · Democracy · Democratization · Media studies · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Public sphere · Sociology · Globalization and Cultural Identity · Jewish and Middle Eastern Studies · Law · Media Studies and Communication