The Situation of the Media in the Mubarak Era and its Relation to the Use of Facebook during the Egyptian Revolution of 2010-2011

Abstract

Facebook account “We are all Khaled Said” played an important role during the Egyptian revolution (2010-2011), because it managed to bring together most of the dissidents who demanded the resignation of President Hosni Mubarak. However, little has been said about the situation prevailing in the rest of the media as well as the situation of freedom of expression in the country. In this paper we present a brief historical review of the terms of the relationship press-State and the conditions of the conventional media in the run up to the protests of January 25, 2010. We consider this panoramic review may help to understand the reasons why Facebook become a transverse and alternative communication space for generating public opinion regarding sensitive and censored issues in the mainstream media, as well as the abuse of power by the Egyptian security forces.