Women vs. Traditional Media

The fact that women's perspectives and views are limited in the old forms of media is not anything new. Whether it is the glorification of violence against women, demeaning stereotypes or a lack of voice, women continue to struggle to find a place within the media spectrum that not only represents their point of view but also honors the issues they face. This is perhaps the biggest reason why women have embraced new media as their gateway to the world. Blogs, podcasts, websites and videopodcasting have provided a method for women to cast their opinions and expertise into the public while allowing them to prove their talent and capabilities.

Blogging: The Gateway to Citizen Journalism

Blogging has taken the Internet by storm, as millions of people continue to take advantage of the opportunity to provide a glimpse of their world to an endless audience. The global community has united through the blogosphere where any experience is possible to share and every issue is given a voice. Perhaps the most influential contribution from blogging is due to its capability to allow citizen journalism. Where the corporate and national mainstream media fails to cover the issues most crucial to its audience, ordinary people are picking up the slack by reporting what goes on in the underbelly of their society. A person sitting at their personal computer writing from their bedroom now has the power to compete with the largest of networks for viewership and influencing political policies through advocating awareness.

Blogging in Egypt

Egypt is one of blogging's greatest examples. Violence against women in Egypt has infiltrated the majority of mainstream programming, and the social influence has become both evident and increasingly hostile. Women have complained over such negative connotations and organizations have held meetings to confront it but to no avail. When women could not get the media programs to shift their stance fast enough, they simply took the media into their own hands. Now thousands of blogs are pouring out of Egypt.

However, despite the Egyptian government's amendment of The Press Act last year, journalists continue to face harsh censorship and brutal intimidation. Just this past February, 22-year-old Kareem Amer was sentenced to four years in prison for his blogging. He was a law student who worked for human rights and the gender equality in Egypt and his detainment has set off a firestorm of both international criticism and domestic fear for other journalists. Amer is but one of many Egyptian bloggers that have been harassed and arrested on such charges as "defaming the president of Egypt" although Amer carries the heaviest sentence so far. The Egyptian Interior Ministry has even set up a special unit to go after cyber-dissidents called the Department for Confronting Computer and Internet Crime.
(Please read "Bloggers Against Torture" by Neger Azimi in The Nation.)

Women Facing Police Brutality in Egypt

Women and Torture

Scenes such as this woman (who was at the time believed to be a murder suspect) being tortured by police helped launch an international outcry against the Egyptian regime. The Egyptian media, which is controlled by the state, failed to air any of the videos of the countless torture victims caught on tape. Many bloggers began to post them on the web via YouTube and were then able to catch the eye of international media channels such as Al Jazeera. While some police officers identified in the more extreme cases have been suspended, the reaction of the government has been anything but swift. In the case of this woman, the Interior Ministry has issued a public call for the names of both the woman and the police officers involved with her torture. However, such abuse by officials is still widely practiced and feared.

The Growing Violence Against Women on the Streets

Women Pushing Back

The mistreatment of women in Egypt has evolved into the birth pains of their cyber revolution. With the safety of anonymity and audience of millions offered by the Internet, Egyptian women have found their megaphone to the world. Many women have begun to report and record their own experiences of surviving modern Egyptian society. From sexual harassment and torture to job discrimination and rape, more and more women are saying "no" to the cultural standards of what is permissible while forming a global network that pushes their plight past the sloughing misogynistic lens so they may no longer be silenced.

The following blogs by Egyptian women are but a taste:

• Wounded Female From Cairo
  
• Freedom for Egyptians
• being an egyptian girl
• A New Beginning
• A step towards some change
• A New Road For A Gypsy
  

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