Can a heavy web presence boost opposition electoral fortunes? Do individualistic bloggers make it impossible to deliver a coherent message? Pete Ajemian looks at the Internet strategies of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood and the Islamic Action Front in Jordan.
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Taking Stock
Why was 2007 one of the deadliest years for Middle East reporters since World War II? Publisher and Co-Editor Lawrence Pintak looks back at a year of troubling trends for journalism in the region.
Read More »Bravely Stating the Obvious: Egyptian humor and the anti-American consensus
Co-Editor Walter Armbrust puts anti-Americanism in Egyptian comedy in historical and comparative perspective, arguing that current U.S. public diplomacy efforts can do little to change prevailing anti-American sentiments. (Features Video)
Read More »BOOK REVIEW | Cairo Cosmopolitan: Politics, Culture, and Urban Space in the New Globalized Middle East
Cairo Cosmopolitan sets the tone and the standard for future work on the relationship between Cairo’s people and its urban space, yet it remains to be seen whether the broadly-conceived 'Cairo School’ will be taken as a bold new direction in urban studies, argues Managing Editor Will Ward.
Read More »Speaking the Unspeakable: Personal blogs in Egypt
George Weyman gives an in-depth look at the popular Egyptian blog Two Pairs of Eyes, and argues that its bloggers seek to re-formulate but not reject dominant social values.
Read More »Sexual Healing: How big is Kalaam Kibeer?
Al Mehwar’s Heba Kotb is not just any sexologist; she’s the Arab world’s first celebrity tele-sexologist, and a devout Muslim sexologist to boot. So how does the Doctor of Sex reconcile her performance on satellite TV discussing sexual pleasure with her strictly Islamic principles? Anna Swank investigates.
Read More »Does the veiled look sell? Egyptian advertisers grapple with the hijab
It seems obvious that for an ad to be effective it must represent a prettier, cleaner, better version of reality and yet at the same time feel natural. So why is the hijab such a sensitive topic in Egyptian advertising? Contributing Editor Sharon Otterman investigates, and finds a puzzling mismatch between the hijab in TV ads and the hijab on the street.
Read More »Censorship: What you didn’t see
Do Arab newspapers say one thing in Arabic and another in English? Egyptian journalist Mona Eltahawy thinks so. She was a columnist for the Saudi-owned pan-Arab daily Asharq Alawsat until she was abruptly dropped last year. One reason may have been her complaints about how her articles were being edited for the Arabic edition. Here's your chance to read one of her original op-eds alongside the edited version.
Read More »Blogging for reform: the case of Egypt
The future of political blogging in Egypt greatly depends on its fostering links with mainstream independent media, says Rania Al Malky. But what, if anything, has the blogging-led reform movement achieved to date?
Read More »Publicizing the private: Egyptian women bloggers speak out
The real-world impact of blogs in the Middle East remains to be seen. But women bloggers stress that there is agency and empowerment in just being able to write, reports Sharon Otterman.
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