🇪🇬 Al-Masry Al-Youm

About Al-Masry Al-Youm

Al-Masry Al-Youm is a privately owned daily newspaper, founded in late 2002 by Egyptian businessman Salah Diab and first published in June 2004. It is published by Al-Masry Al-Youm for Journalism and Publication, with Salah Diab as the individual owner and his brother, Kamel Tawfiq Diab, serving as honorary president. The board of directors includes several prominent Egyptian businessmen.

Al-Masry Al-Youm operates within Egypt's severely restricted media environment, which is characterized by an authoritarian government and heavy self-censorship among private outlets. Despite its founding as a liberal and independent newspaper, it has faced accusations of self-censorship, notably in 2011 when its English-language supplement, Egypt Independent, had an opinion piece critical of the military censored. In 2018, the newspaper's editor-in-chief was dismissed, and the outlet was fined by the Supreme Council for Media Regulations (SCMR) for its coverage of the presidential election, highlighting significant state pressure on editorial content. The broader Egyptian media landscape sees journalists facing arrests, detention, and smear campaigns, contributing to a culture where media outlets often align with official messaging to avoid repercussions.