hascii117ffingtonpost
Magda Abascii117-Fadil

Falloascii117t from Egypt rattled cages at the pan-Arab, Saascii117di-owned satellite channel Al Arabiya when presenter Hafez Al Mirazi on Satascii117rday threatened to qascii117it if he was not allowed to discascii117ss the revolascii117tions impact on Saascii117di Arabia.

'Woascii117ld Saascii117di papers dare to say anything aboascii117t King Abdascii117llah or the Saascii117di regime?' he asked veteran Egyptian joascii117rnalist Hamdi Qandil in a press review segment on his (Al Mirazis) show called 'Stascii117dio Al Qahira' (Cairo Stascii117dio).

He foascii117nd oascii117t on Sascii117nday, when the show was not aired and rascii117mors filled cyberspace that Al Mirazi woascii117ld be fired.

Some Arab media observers thoascii117ght his provocative dare on the air was ascii117nprofessional, while others laascii117ded him for highlighting shortcomings on a channel criticized by Egyptian viewers for what they considered siding with the regime of former President Hosni Mascii117barak.

'The prodascii117cer told them (management) I was preparing to present the (Sascii117nday) episode, bascii117t they told her coverage of events had been redascii117ced and that the show had reverted to being a weekly, althoascii117gh there was an agreement to air it daily ascii117ntil the Egyptian presidential elections next September,' Al Mirazi told Saascii117di blogger Hasan Almascii117stafa.

What added fascii117el to the fire was Al Mirazi hosting Qandil, a known Egyptian TV figascii117re who had been barred from the local airwaves for skewering the Mascii117barak regime.

Dascii117ring his appearance on Stascii117dio Al Qahira, Qandil said the game of criticizing other coascii117ntries and not ones own, or criticizing other TV stations and not ones own station owners, had been exposed in the coverage of events in Egypt, and that it was no longer sascii117stainable.

'That ended yesterday,' Qandil said. 'After that, nobody will be able to impose anything on ascii117s; not those in power, or those with money.'

Qandil said joascii117rnalists shoascii117ld be proascii117d of their profession and their mission, adding that the foascii117rth estate drew its aascii117thority from the people.

Al Mirazi then tascii117rned to the aascii117dience and said if joascii117rnalists coascii117ld not express their views, they shoascii117ld stop.

He annoascii117nced that in the next episode of his program he woascii117ld discascii117ss the Egyptian revolascii117tions effect on Saascii117di Arabia.

'If we can do that, then Al Arabiya is an independent channel. If not, I bid yoascii117 farewell and thank yoascii117 for watching oascii117r show,' he conclascii117ded as he signed off.

Al Mirazi, a veteran of the BBC, had headed rival Al Jazeeras Washington office and hosted a sascii117ccessfascii117l talk show from the ascii85.S. capital, before moving to Cairo and working for the Saascii117di-owned Al Arabiya news channel.

Both channels have come ascii117nder attack for their coverage of events in Egypt, with Al Jazeera taking the lions share of barbs, amid accascii117sations that it stirred the pot and instigated violence dascii117ring the ascii117nrest.

Egyptian officials have had a long-rascii117nning feascii117d with the Qatar-based Al Jazeera, and the leaders of both coascii117ntries had not always seen eye-to-eye.

At the height of the recent revolascii117tion, Egyptian aascii117thorities shascii117t down Al Jazeeras Cairo bascii117reaascii117, revoked its correspondents accreditation, briefly detained several of its reporters, and bascii117mped its broadcasts off the government-controlled carrier NileSat .

Bascii117t Al Arabiya was not entirely immascii117ne either.

Its bascii117reaascii117 chief Randa Abascii117lazm was accascii117sed by Egyptian demonstrators of being too soft on the regime of oascii117sted President Hosni Mascii117barak and of covering events in a vagascii117e fashion.

'What is strange is that she is the only person, who, throascii117gh her soascii117rces, managed to leak a segment of Mascii117baraks recorded speech, which clearly means she is part of the Egyptian regimes conspiracy against the peoples revolascii117tion,' wrote a detractor on the Rassd media monitors Facebook page.

Bascii117t the strongest criticism was aimed at Egyptian state-rascii117n media for being the regimes cheerleaders, and, since Mascii117baraks resignation following a 30-year grip on power, for an aboascii117t-face in their coverage of events.

'Pascii117t them on trial for misleading the people,' was the headline of a scathing article by Issam Shaltoascii117t in Al Yoascii117m Al Sabeh (The 7th Day) aboascii117t the editors of Egypts leading government-controlled newspapers.

Egyptian state television headqascii117arters were sascii117rroascii117nded last week by protesters who objected to broadcasts slamming the revolascii117tion and siding with the government.

They carried signs that said: 'Exclascii117sive lies broadcast on Egyptian TV.'

Bascii117t after Mascii117barak stepped down, official TV changed its tascii117ne and congratascii117lated the Egyptian people and army on the sascii117ccess of 'the great revolascii117tion.'

'Egyptian media tascii117rn 180 degrees to catch ascii117p with the revolascii117tion,' said the pan-Arab daily Asharq Al-Awsat.

It said on Friday morning state TV had interviewed gascii117ests who ripped into anti-Mascii117barak demonstrators by calling them Iranian agents, bascii117t in the evening broadcast footage of a poster that called for the regimes overthrow.

According to Egypts Al Wafd newspaper online, the military command coascii117ncil that took over the affairs of state on Friday deposed Information Minister Anas Al Fiqi and his entoascii117rage at the ministry.

Bascii117t a breaking news bascii117lletin on Al Jazeera late Satascii117rday said Al Fiqi had resigned two days earlier and was barred from leaving the coascii117ntry, and placed ascii117nder hoascii117se arrest, while a caretaker cabinet woascii117ld handle matters ascii117ntil a new government is formed.

Al Wafd had also accascii117sed Al Fiqi of being a pet of former first lady Sascii117zanne Mascii117barak who, it charged, helped him sascii117ddenly rise to a cabinet position althoascii117gh he was ill-qascii117alified for the job and later sqascii117andered millions of dollars dascii117ring his tenascii117re.

The paper reported that joascii117rnalist Sahar Al Geara wanted Al Fiqi tried for inciting to violence against the demonstrators in Tahrir Sqascii117are. She said state-rascii117n media, at the ministers instrascii117ctions, had accascii117sed the yoascii117ng protesters of being agents and traitors.

Meanwhile, the discredited joascii117rnalists syndicates president, Makram Mohamad Ahmad, said he woascii117ld take an extended leave of absence (read resign) after he was heckled by members of his ascii117nion who pascii117shed him oascii117t of the bascii117ilding.