A number of national media organisations in Egypt are expected to face a shake-up soon, following reports that Diaa Rashwan, currently head of the State Information Service (SIS), has been nominated to chair the Supreme Council for Media Regulation (SCMR) to succeed Karam Gabr.
Rashwan, 64, has been head of the SIS since 2017, when he was appointed by presidential decree. He holds a BA degree in political science from Cairo University, obtained in 1981, and a Master’s degree in history from the University of the Sorbonne in Paris, awarded in 1985.
After working for Al-Ahram during the 1980s and 1990s, Rashwan was appointed head of Al-Ahram Centre for Political and Strategic Studies in September 2011, retaining the post until 2017.
In 2013, Rashwan was elected chairman of Egypt’s Press Syndicate for four years. He was also a member of the 50-member Constituent Assembly that drafted Egypt’s 2014 constitution.
In April 2022, Rashwan was selected to be general coordinator of the National Dialogue formed by President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi to discuss Egypt’s political and economic priorities until 2030.
The nomination of Rashwan to chair the SCMR was welcomed in media circles in Egypt, with Ahmed Al-Taheri, editor-in-chief of the weekly Rose Al-Youssef magazine, saying that the appointment was a step forward for media freedoms.
“Rashwan is a liberal-minded journalist who strongly believes in media freedoms and openness in politics,” Al-Taheri said.
Mohamed Al-Baz, editor-in-chief of Al-Dostour newspaper and presenter of the Al-Hayat Al-Youm TV show, said the selection of Rashwan was a very positive step for the development of media freedoms in Egypt.
The SCMR was formed in April 2017 in line with the Institutional Organisation for the Press and Media Law 92/2016 and then the law regulating the press, the media, and the SCMR 180/2018 issued in August 2018.
According to Article 68 of the 2014 constitution, the SCMR is an independent body technically, administratively, and financially and works to organise the affairs of the audiovisual and digital media as well as the print and digital press.
Veteran journalist Ezzat Ibrahim, editor-in-chief of Al-Ahram Weekly newspaper and Ahram Online news website, has been nominated to chair the SIS to succeed Rashwan.
Ibrahim brings a wealth of experience to the SIS, having served in various prominent positions at Al-Ahram, Egypt’s largest press group and one of the most influential newspapers in the Middle East, Egypt’s National Council for Human Rights (NCHR), and the Egyptian Centre for Strategic Studies (ECSS).
Ibrahim has held several positions at Al-Ahram, including as managing editor of Al-Ahram daily (2014-2017) and Al-Ahram bureau chief in North America, covering both Washington and New York (2009-2013).
He is a member and spokesperson for the NCHR. He also holds board positions with the Union of African Journalists and the ECSS.
Distinguished fellowships have further highlighted his international experience over the past two decades. He advised on Middle Eastern issues at the US Congress as a Congressional Fellow and Visiting Fellow at the Brookings Institution (2003-2004).
In 2006, Ibrahim received Yale University’s World Fellows Programme Fellowship, when he started writing a series of articles on the history of Islam and jihad in US newspapers.
He holds a Master’s degree in international relations from Sussex University in the UK and a BA degree in Journalism from Cairo University. His areas of interest include international relations, the relationship between the West and Islamic societies, US-Egyptian relations, US foreign policy, US politics, and the media and cultural studies.
The SIS is a government agency affiliated to the Egyptian presidency. It is the official media and public-relations arm of the Egyptian state and has a number of local and international offices. It is responsible for regulating the affairs of the foreign press and media correspondents in Egypt.
Reports circulating this week say that Abdel-Sadek Al-Shorbagi, head of the National Authority for the Press (NAP), will retain his post in the current shake-up.
According to the 2018 law regulating the NAP, the president of the republic selects the head of the authority, and Al-Shorbagi was appointed by President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi as NAP head in June 2020, replacing Karam Gabr in a decree that reshuffled the members of a number of the country’s media bodies, including the SCMR.
The NAP board includes eight figures from the judiciary, the Ministry of Finance, various national newspapers, and public figures with experience in the print media field.
It oversees the national newspapers in Egypt, including by supervising the editorial, administrative, and financial performance of national press organisations and appointing their board chairmen and the editors-in-chief of their publications.
Member of the Senate Tarek Seida has been nominated to head the National Authority for the Media (NAM) to succeed Hussein Zein. Seida is the current head of the Syndicate of Media Employees.
The NAM is responsible for supervising and running the affairs of Egypt’s state-owned television and radio.
* A version of this article appears in print in the 11 July, 2024 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly
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