Before Starting:
Tahrir channel on 12th February 2011, a trailer:
We dream of it (Egypt) as a land of justice and freedom. We dream that every citizen feels human.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1qeB1om_SY4&t=2s
Ten Channel – former Tahrir – an episode in 2020, talking about another journalist:
A person who has no honor, with bad manners, impolite, who has no religion or patriotism… etc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4KJjcdGM0MA
How Tahrir was founded, to what it turned when it became TEN?
Introduction :
No one forgot how many media distorted the January revolution in its very beginning, during its first days, and how some TV channels had turned cameras on empty places despite millions of Egyptians on the streets, convincing the rest of Egyptians that there was no revolution. This was the image of the media, it was difficult to say the Egyptian media, because it was not the expression of Egyptians, but rather the expression of Anas al-Fiqi, Mubarak’s Minister of Information, National Party media and Gamal Mubarak, the Saudi media, with all its selectivity and misleading.
The media’s deterioration, lie, disinformation, and lack of freedom of expression were among the causes of the January revolution. The first step was to create a popular channel, a popular media initiative, with the support of a large number of journalists and writers, with the support of people, under the title and slogan, “People_want.” People wanted media and TV channels to express, professional media.
In this spirit, “Al Tahrir channel” was established, and its name was taken from Tahrir Square. The channel’s workers and makers launched a trailer to open the channel on February 12, 2011, the morning of Mohamed Hosni Mubarak’s oust from the presidency, annoouncing their channet to be the first to raise the flag of martyrs of the January Revolution. The channel continued its two-year support for the revolution, 2011and 2012, and then started to lose its revolutionary momentum, and news, which we will then review, came to assure that there is pressure on the channel to reverse its revolutionary position, resulting in the withdrawal of a number of media figures and journalists from the channel successively.
The channel name was already changed to Ten. The channel gradually turned from a pro-revolution channel that opened the way for different opinions to a media trumpet that aims at distorting a popular revolution, accusing many of its symbols and those who participated in it of treason and agency to foreign parties. Al Tahrir channel used to host all those who had a view, whether leftist, liberal, Islamist, or even anti-revolutionary, to express their views. Now, Ten channel only reflects one opinion, one direction, the voice of the ruling authorities, and in an unprofessional manner.
The change in Al Tahrir channel that tried to be a representative of a revolution that demanded dignity, social justice and diversity of opinions, to “Ten channel” that tries to express enmity to the revolution, suppressing different opinions, restricting itself to one voice; that is of the authorities. This change reflects the state of the Egyptian revolution and the changes it witnessed.
How did the channel start? Who were their owners? How were they? How it was sold? How did it become? This is what we will look at in this paper.
FIRST: Al Tahrir Channel:
- Foundation of Tahrir Channel:
The Tahrir Channel was established in the wake of the January 25 revolution. The idea was for the journalist Ibrahim Issa, who was one of the founders: Suleiman Amer, Ibrahim Issa, Mohamed Murad, Ahmed Abu Heba. The first trailer of the channel was made on YouTube on February 12, 2011, in the morning of Mohamed Hosni Mubarak’s removal from the country’s presidency.[1]Mentioned in the trailer, the channel relied mainly on a group of young revolutionaries who did not find an opportunity to express themselves at the time of Mubarak’s rule, and aimed to open up the public sphere and break down the barriers surrounding and besieging the media.
- Owners and Founders
- Suleiman Amer
Egyptian businessman, founder of Sulaimaniya village. He graduated from the Faculty of Engineering at Ain Shams University in 1964, then joined the military College, and graduated as an engineer officer. He founded the project of Sulaimaniya village. [2]
In February 2011, businessman Suleiman Amer co-founded the Al-Tahrir channel in partnership with Ibrahim Issa, Mohamed Murad, and Ahmed Abu Heba. Then he took 72% of the channel’s shares, and finally sold the channel. It is worth mentioning that in June 2011, a sentence was issued to hold the money of Suleiman Amer.[3]Sulaiman Amer’s position changed from revolution in 2013, as he said that the opposition wanted to burn our homeland.[4]
Amer then sold his share of the Tahrir Channel, and a decision in 2015 prevented him from traveling. Finally, Sulaiman Amer ceded 350 feddan from Sulaymaniyah territory and reconciled with the state.
- Ibrahim Essa:
An opposition journalist, writer and founder of the Al-Dostour newspaper, issue 1 and issue 2. The first edition of the newspaper Al-Dostour was closed in 1998, Al-Dostour newspaper was reissued in 2004 and continued in 2010, as was purchased by Mr. Badawi, head of the Al-Wafd party. Ibrahim Issa also served as a media anchor and presented several television programs on Al Jazeera, ONTV, Dream, and Orbit before he participated in the establishment of Al-Tahrir and presented his program “Fil Midan”.
Issa was sentenced to two months in prison in the case known as the
president’s health, and Hosni Mubarak issued a presidential pardon. Throughout the revolution, Ibrahim Issa supported the rebels’ demands through the reporting-based Al-Tahrir channel, which was later sold and then completely closed, selling his 24% stake to businessman Nabil Kamel.
This was caused by the financial crisis that the channel faced, and by the fact that broadcasters and channel workers were not payed for a month. The channel held a partnership with Nabil Kamel and Said Tawfiq, while Ahmad Abu Heba and Mohammad Murad Wahba kept their shares.
Later, Nabil sold his full share to businessman Suleiman Amer, where Suleiman Amer then acquired 72% of the channel’s shares, paving the way for selling it, changing its editorial policies and withdrawing a large number of its broadcasters, starting with Dina Abdul Rahman, then Bilal Fadl, and ending with Mahmoud Saad.
- Ahmed Abu Heba:
He was born in Cairo in 1968 to father who was a colonel in the Egyptian army who was martired in October War 1973 and is one of the founders of Al-Tahrir Channel, and a program presenter to “Leitmaen Qalbi – For my heart to be assured”, which was broadcast in Ramadan 2011 on Al-Tahrir Channel, where he was known for his Islamic orientations.
- Mohamed Murad Wahba:
A decoration engineer and co-founder in Al Tahrir channel. On October 18, a few months after the channel was opened, Mohammed Murad confirmed that the channel was not being put up for sale, and its policies would not change even if they had to submit it for public subscription.[5]
Ten days after this statement, Mohamed Murad, founder of Al-Tahrir TV, confirmed that the channel is not owned by the Muslim Brotherhood, explaining that it is open to all trends and does not have a certain political direction.
Most Important Programs in the Channel at the beginning of its Launching:
Fil Midan (In the Square) Program: Each of Mahmoud Saad, Bilal Fadl, Ibrahim Issa, alternated in its presentation.[6]
Qalam Rossas (A Pencil): Hamdi Qandil[7]
Talk Shoes: Doaa Sultan[8]
Litmaen Qalbi (For My heart to be assured): Ahmed Abu Heba[9]
Gabhet Al Tahyyes Al Shaabia (Raving Popular Front): Nawara Negm [10]
The Change: How did the channel change?:
Al Tahrir channel has gone through several stages as it transformed from a channel that seeks to express revolution to one that supports counter-revolution and distorts revolution, among them:
Phase of Enthusiasm: The state of enthusiasm that continued from the beginning of the revolution until October 2011, when funding problems began to emerge in the channel, Ibrahim Essa was forced to give up his stake and sell it to two businessmen, and one of them sold his share to Suleiman Amer, who was having problems with the state around the land of Sulaimaniya village.
Phase of Withdrawals: After the channel’s shares were sold to Nahbil Kamel and Said Tawfiq, and then returned to Suleiman Amer, journallists began to withdraw one after another, as Mahmoud Saad withdrew from Al-Tahrir Channel, followed by three female withdrawals consequently: Nawara Negm, Doaa Sultan[11]، Dina Abdul Rahman, then Hamdi Qandil, Belal Fadl and finally Ibrahim Essa himself.
Each has a story, but the main headline of all these stories is to gradually change the channel’s editorial policy, and to impose more prohibitions, with unwanted media figures being financially restricted, thus emptying the channel of all its revolutionary and professional symbols.
Phase of Retreat: It became an anti-revolutionary channel by employing program presenters from the Military Council’s supporters, who initially did not seem vigorously hostile to the revolution, but committed to a lower ceiling on freedom of opinion and expression such as Muhammad al-Gaytti and Rania Badawi.
Phase of Transformation: Starting with employing Ahmed Moussa and Fifi Abdo
Phase of Changing the Name: It turned from Tahrir to Ten Channel .
SECONDLY: Ten Channel
- Owners:
Ten Channel، Established in 2015, with trademark of Tahrir Channel, where it was transferred to an Emirati businessman (never named), headed by media man Amr Abdel Hamid, and Nashaat Al-Dehi, as deputy head of the station.
To date, the channel does not allow transparency by announcing the name or names of its owners, and only by declaring the nationality of those owners, the United Arab Emirates! This raises the question of the result or effect of the UAE’s anti-January revolution ownership of a channel that was seeking to express the January revolution.
Despite the attempts to search hard, the real owner of the channel cannot be named, although some veteran journalists say the owners may be:
- Mansour Bin Zayed:
Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, born in 1970 and Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs of the United Arab Emirates, a member of the ruling family, received his general education in Abu Dhabi schools and received a Bachelor’s degree in international relations from the United States of America in 1993.
- Mohamed Dahlan:
Mohammed Dahlan born in 1961, Khan Yunis camp, Gaza Strip. He is a Palestinian politician, former preventive security chief in Gaza and one of Fatah Movement’s most prominent leaders. He resigned as head of the Palestinian Legislative Council’s Interior and Security Committee and the National Security Advisor after Hamas Movement controlled the Strip.
In addition to his positions and the controversy about him, Dahlan is a heavy-caliber businessman with investments in many Arab countries. He is so close to the ruling family in the UAE where he also lives, that some also claim to be an adviser to the prince.
Second, Dahlan is being hosted largely on Ten. The channel did not officially declare its owners’ names and did not prove the ownership of either Bin Zayed or Dahlan to the channel, but the channel itself admits that its owner is UAE, refuses to disclose his name and surrounds his real person with ambiguity and secrecy, which raises questions and doubts.
The sources did not provide evidence of this property, but it is
noticeable that the names are heavily and intensively hosted on Ten. So who are these two sustainable guests on the channel that raised doubts about their ownership of the channel?
- The Channel Administration:
Although the channel’s owner or owners are uncertain, the channel’s management is clear and public, its manager is Amr Abdel Hamid, and the deputy manager is Nashaat Al-Dehi.
- Amr Abdel Hamid:
He started his career in Moscow in 1998, where he worked as a correspondent for the Arabic BBC Radio and presented the BBC’s “What is not said” program in 2012, and Amr Abdel Hamid worked for years as a correspondent for Aljazeera channel in Moscow.
He then joined the Arabic Sky News channel since its launch, where he presented the news, then he became presenting the “Cairo dialog” program in the same channel.
In January 2014, he joined the Al-Hayat channel to introduce the program (Life today) until 2015, which became the “Al Beit Betak – Feel at Home” program on the Ten channel along with presenting his program in the Arab Sky News, starting in March 2017presenting a “Public opinion” program on the Ten channel.
It is remarkable that Amr Abdel Hamid’s performance in the BBC and Al-Jazeera is very different from that of Ten. He used in the BBC to depend on a neutral approach as much as possible, while the “Al Beit Beitak” program is offered in Ten Channel where it only shows one pro-regime view.
Nashaat Al Dehi:
An Egyptian announcer presented many political, news and talk programs in governmental, private and foreign channels such as “Nadi Al-Asma” program on Egyptian TV, “true sentence” on Dream TV, “first Week” on Dream channel, and “Politics Square” on Turkish TV, which ended with his resignation on air in a famous incident. He presents
“A paper and pen” program now on Ten from Saturday to Wednesday at 6 p.m. ”
He didn’t have a name even after a video show of him as he was resigning on air from the Turkish channel “TRT”. But his reputation came from his violation, defamation and insults against opponents and those who differ with the regime in Egypt.
Then some of the latest episodes of the cynical media program “Joe Show” criticizing him revealing his contradictions and swings to support Islamists explicitly and the change to support the current regime.
A financial crisis confronts Tin, but easily recovered:
We talked about a financial crisis that Al-Tahrir channel faced, which led Ibrahim Essa to sell his share to save the channel, yet, the channel’s financial situation remained difficult until the channel’s shares were sold to that mysterious UAE owner.
In December 2019, Ten announced a halt to its broadcast at the end of the month for purely financial and advertising reasons.
Maybe many who were a subject of defamation by this channel were happy to hear the news, but an urgent intervention to save the channel and continue its editorial policy has taken place.
This came within few days after the channel was declared stopped broadcasting. The channel’s statement said that the “crowds” appealed to the channel not to stop, and in fact we found no trace of those masses during the search, except the unconditional support that Al-Dehi received from Ahmad Moussa, where the latter appeared in his program with tears calling to Al-Dehi and telling him: My program is yours. [12]
Most Important Programs on Ten:
Good Morning : Maha Bahnasi – Nour Al Sawaf – Samar Naeim
“A Paper and a Pen”
The Channel describes this program as follows:
“A program seeks to present a different form in reading Egyptian, Arab and foreign newspapers, in addition to analyzing what is issued by foreign research and studies centers”
Anchor: Nashaat Al Dehi
But we will cite some examples of this particular program and the constant incitement against all opponents, and the fabrication of lies.
An Evening with Qasswaa
Talk show: Qasswaa al Khalai
Arbas in Week:
Abdul Rahman Kamal – Nouran Hassan – Suzan Sharara – Mohamed Al Romeihi
Egypt in Week: Abdul Rahman Kamal – Nouran Hassan – Suzan Sharara – Mohamed Al Romeihi
Inciting on Ten:
The anchor of program”a paper and a pen ” deals with most of those who disagree with them as an enemy, there are enemies of family values, enemies of the homeland, they are agents!
Thus, incitement against them has become common, insults and reasons have become a common base and common denominator in his program.
The sentences of against of the young women of Tik Tok, who were sentenced to two years in prison, have caused confusion in Egyptian society, between supporters and opponents of the sentence.
The sentences were issued in July 2020 against Hanin Hussam and Mawadda Al Adham, who were sentenced to two years in prison and fined for violating the values of the Egyptian families.
The two young women were presenting programs on Tik Tok web platform.
It is also worth mentioning that Nashaat Al-Dehi, in April 2020, warned against violating the Egyptian family’s values, and the danger of Tik Tok women on the Egyptian families, specifically mentioning the names of Hanin Hussam and Mawadda Al-Adham, who were arrested and sentenced to prison later after this episode. [13]
- Facing “enemies of the nation”, he violates the law, and commits defamation, insults, and criminalized action in Egyptian law, to the extent that he described a journalist saying that he is “evil liar, with no origin” as he added: “I don’t know what Muhammad al-Nasser, this is? God creates animals, mules and donkeys and He creates unknown creatures.”[14]Describing him as a spiteful and “despicable” and that he has no weight.[15]
- The country’s enemies are many, in an episode in which he talked about some of the human rights defenders who met President Emmanuel Macron during his visit to Egypt, where the French president asked to meet some models of the Egyptian civil society to discuss the human rights situations in Egypt.
In this video[16] We see Al Dehi as he shows the photos of the human rights defenders who met with Macron in broad daylight and with the knowledge of all Egyptian sovereign bodies, the meeting was neither secret nor hidden, and representatives of civil society did not come with fake names for the meeting, and after presenting their pictures, he accused each individual who participated in this meeting by treason and selling the homelands. Whether Mohammed Za’arah, Mohammed Lotfi or Gamal Eid He followed everyone saying: They complained to the Egyptian Macron, because Egypt is bad!
3- He curses journalists, calling Motaz Matar, an opposition journalist: a dog, rude, bastard, born from a dirty womb, he has no honor, no manners, no religion, no patriotism, dog, jerk, a prostitute.. I tell Motaz that if we displayed a porn it will be watched more than you, you are a loser and a son of a loser”[17]
Legitimate questions:
1- How did a channel turn from seeking to express millions of Egyptians aspiring to justice, human dignity, life and freedom when they raised those demands a slogan in January revolution, called “Liberation” Revolution Square to the channel of incitement and accusing the different people of being enemies of the homeland or agents?
2- After its name turned to “Ten” and its ownership turned from Egypt to the UAE? What impact does the transfer of controlling and owner capital have on the media discourse if what Ten presents can be called a discourse?
3- How does the claim of objectivity and truth seek to be evaluated, in the light of the ambiguity of the names of the Emirati owners?
4- How can you trust or accept a media figure who changes his speech and media approach according to the change of the owners or authority that controls and shifts from supporting Islamists project which he called it Our Project [18] then he turns totally different presenting himself as an opponent to Islamist and supporter to current military rule?
The answer is mostly will be the UAE’s capital control.
Conclusion:
After the slogan “People want to liberate minds” was the slogan from which Al Tahrir channel started after the revolution of January 25. The channel has opened the way for the different groups of society, starting from hosting Hazem Salah Abu Ismail, the hardline Islamist, and opening the way for the leftist, liberal, nationalist and its anchors, like Ibrahim Issa, Belal Fadl and Hamdi Qandil, opening the way for the revolution’s opponents to express themselves, opening the way for revolutionary women’s voices.
Between the channel’s financial stumbling and the businessmen’s interests controlling it, between the Brotherhood’s desire to control the channel and prevent any criticism against them, then the military regime’s desire to kill the experience, then sell it to an unknown Emirati investor.
The distortion of the popular revolution resulted, calling it poisoned excretion, targeting its symbols and supporters, accusing them of treason, agency and inciting against all forms of freedom of opinion and expression, even if they were young woman on tiktok who express their desire to dance and enjoy their lives.
The gradual transformation and the fall of the experience of the “people want to liberate minds” and its transition to “the state wants to muzzle mouths,” is a good summary of Egypt’s overall political experience, and of the press experience in particular.
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[1] YouTube: Tahrir Channel, Published: 12 February 2011, Date of browsing July 2020 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1qeB1om_SY4&t=2s
[2] Sulaiman Amer commenting on the Central Auditing Report… Posted August 26, 2010 Date of Browse date: July 2020 https://www.almasryalyoum.com/news/details/92704
[3] Al MasryAl Youm: Criminal court to sentence … Published: June 2011 Date to be browsing: July 2020 https://www.almasryalyoum.com/news/details/136902
[4] Al Balad Al Youm: Suleiman Amer: Opposition wants to burn the homeland. Posted February 2013 Date of Browse: July 2020 http://www.balad2day.com/site/News-29220-.html
[5] Al Youm Al Sabei: Mohamed Murad: Al-Tahrir Channel, Published on 18 October 2011 Date of Browse: August 2020 https://www.youm7.com/story/2011/10/18/%D9%85%D8%AD%D9%85%D8%AF-%D9%85%D8%B1%D8%A7%D8%AF-%C2%AB%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AA%D8%AD%D8%B1%D9%8A%D8%B1%C2%BB-%D9%84%D9%8A%D8%B3%D8%AA-%D9%84%D9%84%D8%A8%D9%8A%D8%B9-%D9%88%D9%84%D9%86-%D8%AA%D8%AA%D8%BA%D9%8A%D8%B1-%D8%B3%D9%8A%D8%A7%D8%B3%D8%AA%D9%87%D8%A7/515094
[6] Fil Midan: first episode ،https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tegli-plwDE
[7] Qalam Rossas Program https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1S0nsr7Sqko
[8] Talk Shoes https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UH2ySR1VXKo
[9] Litmaen Qalbi https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KgjPFFJg1Uo
[10] Gabhet Al Tahyyes Al Shaabia https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zRiqofg5uho
[11] YouTube: Doaa Sultan responding to the prevention of the episode Published: January 2012 Date of browsing: August 2020 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2lr3Lme02co
[12] Al Wafd: Ahmed Moussa supports Nashaat Al-Dehi, Posted 6 December 2019, Date of Browse August 2020 https://alwafd.news/%D9%85%D9%8A%D9%80%D8%AF%D9%8A%D8%A7/2674363-%D9%81%D9%8A%D8%AF%D9%8A%D9%88-%D8%A3%D8%AD%D9%85%D8%AF-%D9%85%D9%88%D8%B3%D9%89-%D9%8A%D8%B3%D8%A7%D9%86%D8%AF-%D9%86%D8%B4%D8%A3%D8%AA-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AF%D9%8A%D9%87%D9%8A-%D8%A8%D8%B9%D8%AF-%D9%82%D8%B1%D8%A7%D8%B1-%D8%A5%D8%BA%D9%84%D8%A7%D9%82-%D9%82%D9%86%D8%A7%D8%A9-ten-%D8%A8%D8%B1%D9%86%D8%A7%D9%85%D8%AC%D9%8A-%D8%A8%D8%B1%D9%86%D8%A7%D9%85%D8%AC%D9%83
[13] Aldehi and Tiktok Published: April 19, 2020 Browse August 2020 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Y0Xb7NkAbA
[14] The original verse from Quran as Al Dehi recited wrong: And (He has created) horses, mules, and donkeys, for you to ride and use for show; and He has created (other) things of which ye have no knowledge. Surat the Bees, verse 8
[15] YouTube: Al-Dehi, “Al-Nasser an evil liar” Posted: December 2018 Browse: August 2020 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OGhu2nHutcA
[16] YouTube: Nashaat Al Dehi Published: January 2019 Date of Browse: August 2020 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y6F1k2Wj3gs
[17] YouTube: Nashaat Al Dehi January 22, 2020 Browse August 2020https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4KJjcdGM0MA
[18] YouTube: Joetube: Black Box of Nashaat Al Dehi November 16, 2019, browsing August 2020 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4KJjcdGM0MA
