Post 1- History Overview
The history of North Africa is long and intertwined with slavery, political and cultural changes, oppression, and war which have made the emergence of a strong media structure challenging. Due to North Africa’s continued “restrictive legal environments, in which laws concerning defamation, the insult of public figures, and emergency legislation hamper the ability of journalists to write freely” (Ingalls). According to Freedom House, North Africa is listed as “not free” which is largely in part to the attacks on journalists and the continued climate of fear that persists in the nation. In addition the Freedom House annual report said that both the Middle East and North Africa have showed a drastic deterioration in 2010. Only for a brief period between 1989 and 1994 annual reports were parts of North Africa considered “partly free” however it was only two regions; Egypt and Sudan. Then in 1994 Egypt and Sudan were placed in the “not free” category and Morocco and Western Sahara were considered “partly free” until 2004 when every region was placed in the “not free” category and has since then all regions of North Africa have been and remain to be considered not free. “Reversing improvements seen in the last few years, press freedom in the Middle East and North Africa declined in 2006, and the region as a whole continued to show the lowest ratings worldwide, according to a report released today by Freedom House” (Freedom House).
Ingalls, Laura. "Press Freedom Findings in Middle East and North Africa Disappointing after Earlier Hopeful Years." Freedomhouse.org: Home. 2 May 2007. Web. 2 July 2011. http://www.freedomhouse.org/.
Post 2- 1940s
The 1940 were a turning point in North Africa’s history which affected the countries media structure and their press history. Italy declared war on North Africa and then the Allies fought the Axis powers in North Africa for control of the Mediterranean area. This battle was a part of World War II, the Italian troops ended up winning control of Egypt, a region in North Africa, and then later then Italians were pushed back into Libya by the British troops. In 1942 the British counterattacked and pushed the Germans into Tunisia. Then finally the U.S. and British forces moved into Tunisia and forced the surrender of 250,000 Axis troops. (North Africa Campaigns) When the American and British troops landed in North Africa on November 8th, 1942 the media papers focused on this act as a major turning point in the war. “The participation of American troops in the campaign in North Africa signaled a turning point in the war as it became clear that the United States was joining the fight against the European Axis” (Kaufmann). Due to the governmental control over press and media, North Africa’s government pitched the United States involvement as height of the war in North Africa even though the allied forces had successfully pushed back the Italian troops.
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"North Africa Campaigns — History.com Articles, Video, Pictures and Facts." History.com — History Made Every Day — American & World History. Web. 18 July 2011. <http://www.history.com/topics/north-africa-campaigns>.
Kaufmann, J. E., and H. W. Kaufmann. G.I. Joe in France: from Normandy to Berchtesgaden. Westport, CT: Praeger Security International, 2008. Print.
Post 3- 1950s
In 1956, the North Africa Policy was put into action by President Tito (Yugoslavia), the policy regarded East-West relations. Tito paid a six day visit to North Africa to and had a series of conferences with Mollet, the conferences were held with “ guards armed with machine guns” that “patrolled outside the conference room and in the hotel gardens”(Saskatoon Star). This high security detail demonstrates the ongoing hostile situation between these two countries that began during the 1940s. This volatile situation also caused journalists to be under constant scrutiny. The conference was a world-wide exposure yet the media had strict rules and regulations that they were forced to abide by. “The press conference took place after two hours of cloak and dagger maneuvering by French officials. The 34 specially-invited newspaper men were kept under armed guard during this period. They were forbidden to use telephones or leave the room for any purpose” (Saskatoon Star). The presses at this time had a difficult time doing investigative journalism and in many cases were made to view only what the government officials deemed media appropriate for dissemination. Police were in full forced during the conference, which would be expected during any high profile government meeting, however; a photographer did experience “difficulty” when his “flashbulb was exposed” (Saskatoon Star). In regions, which at this time were every region in North Africa, that have little or no free press journalist and media reports even photographers faced extensive regulation.
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"North Africa Policy." Saskatoon Star 9 May 1956. Print.
Post 4- 1960s
Egypt had become a leader in radio broadcasting, and had actually offered private commercial radio in the 1920s and then later the government gave the Marconi Company exclusive right to broadcast in 1934 (Boyd). In 1947, “the Egyptian government declared radio a government monopoly” (Boyd).
Television development was much different, between the late 1960s and early 1970s a few North African countries including, “Morocco, Tunisia and Algeria had minimal access to television broadcast” (Boyd). In Libya citizens were able to watch “U.S. television transmitted by the U.S. armed forces, until the base was shut down after the revolution of 1969” (Boyd). At this point in history, all parts of North Africa had limited exposure to television broadcast. There were not a variety of stations, and the government was in constant control of content.
In 1969, North Africa was exposed to a national radio station. Radio Abu Dhabi was launched on the 25th of February in 1969. This station is now amongst a few stations belonging to the Abu Dhabi Media Company. The station broadcasts on AM frequencies throughout North Africa and has programs that are designed to attract a variety of different cultures, “by preparing programs with different insights on diverse topics” (Alterman). The station is available via satellite, which provides that largest amount of reach through the North African territories.
Alterman, Jon. New Media, New Politics?: From Satellite Television to the Internet. Washington,DC: Washington Institute for Near East Policy, 1998.
Boyd, Douglas A. Broadcasting in the Arab World: A Survey of the Electronic Media in the Middle East, 3d edition. Ames: Iowa State University Press, 1999
Post 5- 1970s
Literacy has been a continued barrier to media throughout the North Africa’s press structure history. Women and young girls have had a significant hardship in regards to learning how to read, which causes them to have a hard time using media. There has been a large increase in literacy between 1970 and 2000; however, the gender gap is substantially large. “Many people- especially girls – are still excluded from education, and many more are enrolled in school but learning too little to prepare them for 21st century job markets. In some countries, access to the secondary and higher education that helps create a skilled and knowledgeable labor force continues to be limited; even where access is not a problem, the quality of the education provided is often low” (PRB).
Morocco and Egypt have the lowest increase for women, averaging at 60% in the year 2000 which is fortunately up from 30% in the 1970s. “North African countries generally have lower levels of women’s education and labor force participation than other regions with similar income levels” (PRB). Woman in North Africa regions, have and still remain under the control of men, “gender discrimination in the North African region is sometimes codified in law, frequently in family laws or civil codes. In many countries in this region, women must obtain permission from a male relative, usually a husband or father, before seeking employment, requesting a loan, starting a business or traveling” (PRB). Currently, there are over “75 million illiterate adults, more than half of whom live in Egypt, Iraq and Morocco” (PRB). This illiteracy rate increases the amount of people that are unable to read newspapers or even billboards, which creates challenges to increase media awareness.
"Empowering Women, Developing Society:Female Education in Middle East and North Africa." Home - Population Reference Bureau. Web. 26 July 2011. http://www.prb.org/.
Post 6- 1980s
During the 1980’s journalist were practicing self censorship, the press structure was completely controlled through the government. The Kingman Daily Miner wrote an article entitled, Censorship Press controls tighten around the world, in 1981 which explains that journalist and the media were practicing “self-censorship, skirting sensitive areas, often to protect their lives” (Hanley). Media outlets in North Africa during the 1980’s were viewed as a threat to government officials and, “military men acting in the name of order cocked off newspapers and other media outlets over the past year, a period of deepening censorship..”(Hanley). The military and government control put so much fear into journalists and media outlets that many media workers choose to silence themselves. An anonymous journalist stated to an interviewer, “there are many skeletons in the closets of the wealthy and powerful, and if you expose them you might not be around for long”(Hanley). This form of hostile media environment censored the majority of journalists and created a heavy slant throughout North African media that rather promoted the government instead of exposing them. “In almost all of Africa, the news media are either partly or completely state-controlled. But even in some of those few nations where Western-style press freedoms have been observed, the past year was a difficult one for journalist”(Hanley).
Egypt, during the 1980s had the, “heaviest crackdown…last September, when President Anwar Sadat ordered the arrest of hundreds of dissidents, including journalists, and shut down a Moslem fundamentalist magazine and other opposition publications”(Hanley). Journalists in North Africa and especially in Egypt at this time faced severe persecution and harassment that in many cases lead to jail sentences or bodily harm. After Anwar Sadat ordered the arrest, he was killed a short month afterwards and his “successor Hosni Mubarak released some of the journalists”(Hanley).
Hanley, Charles J. "Censorship Press Controls Tighten around the World." Kingman Daily Miner 21 Feb. 1982: B7. Print.
Post 7- 1990s
During the 1990s due to globalization, media and communication world-wide became a booming concept that united the world as one global communicative environment. In the early 1990s the Middle East and North Africa joined together to form the Media Development Initiatives Alliance or MENA MEDIA. This alliances was formed to “support media development throughout the Middle East and North Africa”(IREX). There were many aspects in this alliance, the project supported “emerging media leaders, local initiates to improve the enabling environment for media, and initiatives to improve the quality and quantity of alternative news, including new media and short documentaries” (IREX). The United States funded program was to not only increase new media but it also funded the Center for Defending the Freedom of Journalists as well as the Center for Media Freedom.
The push for this alliance began when satellite television became more readily available in the late 1990s, this “demonstrated to citizens throughout the region the power of independent media. However, the stations were not reporting local issues, they often avoided tackling difficult issues in the countries in which they were based, and many preferred a focus on international news”(IREX). Therefore local news tended to fall through the crakes mostly because of the governments constant critical eye. The result of not having local news meant that citizens were unable to have access to information that they would need to take part in their local environment such as political races.
According to MEPI, the U.S.-Middle East Partnership Initiative, the alliance had numerous goals including:
· Support the professional development of emerging leaders in the media sector
· Reform the enabling environmental for media in select countries through support to local media law initiatives
· Encourage the growth of quality alternative media, including blogging, online and interactive media, and short documentaries on underreported subjects.
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| MENA Media Conference |
"Middle East and North Africa Media Development Initiatives Alliance (MENA MEDIA)." IREX. Web. 28 July 2011. http://irex.org/.
Post 8- Early 2000s
In 2000, ABYZ News Links Inc. was founded. This online media guide helped North African citizens in multiple states get news information as long as they had some form of online access. This website has links to North Africa newspapers and news media in: Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, Niger, South Sudan, Sudan, Tunisia, and Western Sahara. The amount of media that North Africa has access to is substantially growing and is significantly different than during the 1990s, even though the government still controls content. The majority of North Africa has access to broadcast, internet, magazine, newspaper, and press agency and the focus has grown to cover business and government in addition to general interest topics. North Africa media is also available in numerous languages which is vital to this part of the world, these languages include: Arabic, English, French, Portuguese and Russian. In the 2005 media sustainability report created by IREX, most of the countries in North Africa had a stronger media presence than in the late 1990s. Libya dominating in media sustainability had grown to 129% with the closest North African location, Egypt at only 26% growth (MENA). Other North African areas also grew such as Algeria growing 16%; however, Morocco decreased in sustainability by -3% and Tunisia by -1% (MENA).
Post 9- Late 2000s
In 2008, a new media sustainability report came out that covered growth in media sustainability, the growth in professional journalism, and the growth in freedom of speech. This report showed that Morocco and Tunisia still had negative growth while Libya continued to grow in media sustainability. Yet, when looking into Freedom-of-Speech, Libya and Tunisia were both rated as unsustainable and anti- free press, and the remaining North African locations including Algeria, Morocco and Egypt being also rated as unsustainable with a mixed system. The media sustainability index in 2008 also showed that there was a decrease in professional journalism in Tunisia; however, in Morocco and in Egypt professional journalism was ranked as near sustainable, which is a distinctive growth from 2005.
The internet during the late 2000s was, “viewed as a safer space for reporting on issues that political authorizes would prefer to bury” (MENA). In addition, “offshore news website provides an alternative to official news sources in closed societies. Libya is a good example of this, with a number of websites operating from London and elsewhere. Libyan panelists pointed to the enormous benefits such sites offer, in particular providing citizens with alternatives to the official line and challenging official media to be more forthright”(MENA). The offshore news websites can serve as a fact checking service for the North African citizens.
"MENA MSI." Www.irex.org. 2005. Web. http://www.irex.org/sites/default/files/MENA_MSI_2008_ExecSumm.pdf.
Post 10- Currently
As the world has become more and more connected through the communicative powers of the internet, North African citizens have become increasingly interested in media news. The threat to journalists within North African borders has unfortunately not changed since the 1940s, and has in fact become much worse due to the volume of media currently available. On July 25th 2011, Journalist Amai Habbani was sentenced to a fine of 2,000 Sudanese pounds and a one-month prison sentence for covering an assault case (All Africa). Arabic Network for Human Rights Information stated that media freedom in Sudan is declining and that authorities are being openly hostile to journalists. Journalists in Sudan and in many other parts of North Africa are still being imprisoned over their printed opinion or viewpoints on political, governmental and/or society current events.
The biggest change to North Africa’s media structure in the past ten years is social media which has completely changed access and barriers to news information to the citizens throughout North Africa. “Social media is key to the revolution taking place in North Africa, and this may actually be the first time a government leader has lost power because of social media” (All Africa). Social media can be used to post news worthy information, plan demonstrations and even build networks of people that will be provide support to media sustainability. The increase in online presence has grown monumentally especially with blogs and twitter accounts. Government still continually monitors media however it is growing difficult to constantly monitor online media, “government controls on social media have not been fool-proofed. In Egypt, CNN’s Ben Wedeman said, young people are very internet savvy and have found ways to get around government blocks” (All Africa).
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| Blog Activity 2011 |
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Twitter Activity 2011
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"Journalist Sentenced for Covering Assault Case." All Africa. 25 July 2011. Web. <http://allafrica.com/stories/201107270722.html>.
