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Egypt state media outlets blast Muslim Brotherhood 'interference'
 [Al Ahram] Egyptian state television... and if you can't believe state television who can you believe? employees are gathering votes calling for the dismissal of presidential media representative Ahmed Abdel-Aziz after accusing him of "interfering with editorial policy," Amer El-Wakil, news editor at the Egyptian Radio and Television Union (Maspero), said according to Al-Ahram's Arabic-language news website. Al-Wakil said on private-owned satellite television channel ONtv that Abdel-Aziz, who represents the presidency for media affairs, had demanded last Friday that coverage of upcoming protests should be restricted to pro-government rallies, while ignoring planned opposition protests against President Mohamed Morsi. Moslem Brüderbund and Islamist demonstrators gathered in a massive rally on Friday to support the president against expected mass protests slated for next week. The event received generous coverage on Egyptian television, while parallel counter-rallies by the opposition were largely ignored. Maspero employees attempted to explain to Abdel-Aziz that opposition protests, too, especially one held at the Ministry of Defence, must also be covered, according to El-Wakil. He added, however, that he had been snubbed by Abdel-Aziz, who insisted that his initial instructions be followed. According to Al-Ahram, El-Wakil said that the head of news at Maspero did not come to work on Saturday to protest alleged interference by the presidency. Earlier, state-owned daily Al-Akhbar's chief editor, Mohamed Hassan El-Banna, criticised the Moslem Brüderbund -- from which President Morsi hails -- saying he had been contacted by one of the group's members who had condemned the paper's coverage. "Some imagined that Al-Akhbar, as a newspaper falling under the auspices of the government ... will say 'Amen' to whatever the government says and conceal facts and information about the regime, deceiving its readers," El-Banna said, defiantly stating the impossibility of this scenario. Posted by: Fred 2013-06-26 |
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