Al-Ahram Weekly On-line 21 - 27 September 2000 Issue No. 500
Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875

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Writers meeting readers

By Gihan Shahine

Nothing excites a reporter more than getting a response to what s/he writes. Equally satisfactory is the feeling that the publication the reporter works for is gaining credit and popularity among readers and professionals for its high quality.

That was exactly how I felt during the defence of a dissertation on Egypt's English-language press, which revealed, among other findings, that Al-Ahram Weekly has the highest circulation and quality of all the country's English-language publications.

The researcher, Mahmoud Kamel, is a lecturer in media studies at Menoufiya University's college of specialised education, who obtained his MA in mass communications -- on the US media's view of Egypt -- from South Dakota State University in 1984.

Kamel was granted his PhD with the highest distinction from Helwan University last week. In his dissertation, he analyses a sample of Egyptian English-language publications during the 19th and 20th centuries. The sample includes the Egyptian Gazette (established in 1880), the Egyptian Mail (1912), Egypt Today (1979), Al-Ahram Weekly (1991), and Egypt Today's more recent publications, Sports and Fitness (1994) and Business Today (1995).

The flood of English-language publications is drawing increasing attention from media experts photos: Mohamed Mosaad

More interestingly, the study includes a survey of a random sample of 500 readers of the English-language press in 1999.

"The study tackles an important issue," comments Amira El-Abbasi, assistant professor at Cairo University's faculty of mass communications. "Some of the English-language publications in Egypt are now over 100 years old, and yet they have received very little attention in media studies. Today, we have many publications in English and it is high time that we study and analyse the factors that led to the emergence of such a category over the last few years."

There are at least 30 English newspapers and magazines currently on newsstands. Many experts find this sudden rise in the number of foreign-language publications a phenomenon with socioeconomic implications.

"Media experts, however, pay little attention to the phenomenon," Kamel notes. The few studies that do exist are outdated by now, and focused mainly on the historical background of such publications and their relation to the British colonisation of Egypt.

"That these publications have low circulation does not justify this neglect," Kamel continues. A publication with limited circulation, he explains, may have more effect than its widely-read counterparts if its readers include influential intellectuals and decision-makers.

"English publications, despite limited sales, continue to thrive and multiply," Kamel adds. "These publications get all their revenue from ads. But still, why would businessmen choose publications with limited circulation to advertise their wares?"

Kamel's study does not provide a straight answer to the question. Still, it presents interesting results of the readership survey regarding quality, the reasons people read the English-language press and the benefits, if any, they derive.

Kamel selected the readership sample at the American University in Cairo (AUC), embassies, research and cultural centres, libraries, universities, USAID, conferences on education, five-star hotels, news agencies and press offices -- all places where readers of English-language material could be expected to congregate.

According to the survey, 75.2 of the sample read Al-Ahram Weekly and are satisfied with its quality as the best of all English-language publications (Egypt Today ranked second in the quality survey). The study also shows that the Egyptian Gazette (the oldest and only daily newspaper in English) is the second most widely-read English-language publication, followed by the Egyptian Mail, despite some readers' dissatisfaction with the quality of both newspapers.

Ironically, the study shows that Egyptians constitute 68.8 per cent of all readers of English-language publications, although the editorial policies of those publications are clearly geared toward the foreign community in Egypt. Foreign readers are classified into three categories: American (12.6 per cent), British (3.4 per cent,) and other nationalities (15.2 per cent).

These figures, however, may have more significance when viewed in light of why people read English-language publications in the first place. According to Kamel, most of those seeking benefit from reading English-language publications reported using them in teaching English, translation, mass communications and at work -- which may explain why Egyptian readers outnumber foreigners in the survey.

Many readers also said that such publications are a good source of information and news as well as other topics tackled according to a perspective different from that of the Arabic-language press.

Some said they read in English purely for leisure or entertainment, while others said reading was a habit, and some -- even Egyptians -- because they don't read Arabic well.

Over 90 per cent of readers, on the whole, expressed their satisfaction with the quality of the English-language press. Many said that they had increased their knowledge, found more topics for conversation, modified their views, improved their understanding of current issues and tackled problems more efficiently thanks to their preferred reading material.

Statistically significant correlations were found between reading newspapers and the demographic characteristics of readers, except gender. Most readers (68.4 per cent) are aged between 20 and 40. Male and female readers made up roughly equal proportions of the sample (50.6 and 49.4 per cent respectively). Most of the readers hail from the middle, upper-middle and higher social strata and are mostly highly educated (35.8 per cent have undergone some form of post-graduate education, 27.4 per cent are university graduates and 34.4 are undergraduates).

Unmarried people of both genders constitute 64 per cent of the readership base of English-language publications. Married individuals represent 32 per cent, followed by the separated (1.8 per cent), the divorced (1.6 per cent) and the widowed (0.4 per cent).

Arab affairs top the hierarchy of "most interesting topics" in Kamel's readership survey. Following in order are: international affairs, local home news, political issues, cultural issues, social issues, entertainment, cartoons, educational issues, advertisements, sports, science, and economic topics.

"Many people also expressed their wish that English publications would tackle more issues related to religion, fashion, women and new scientific findings," Kamel notes.

Having analysed the content of the publications in question, Kamel found that they have generally adhered to their editorial policies. The Weekly, however, was the most strict of all English publications in its commitment to the journalistic code of ethics.

Kamel quoted a report, issued by the Higher Press Council in May 1999, as a case in point. The report states: "Al-Ahram Weekly has been distinguished among English-language publications: it has not received a single negative remark, clear evidence of its strict commitment to objectivity and the journalistic code of ethics."

The Weekly was established with the prime objective of bridging the gap between eastern and western cultures, through an Egyptian perspective. That was clearly expressed in the daily Al-Ahram editorial titled "A bridge to understanding" (28 February 1991).

"I've analysed the content of the Weekly to examine whether it has actually been committed to realising its goals and found it truly has," Kamel maintains.

According to the study, more than 60.6 per cent of stories in Al-Ahram Weekly cover the local scene, 21.62 cover Arab affairs and 17.78 tackle international issues -- in contrast to the Gazette and Mail, which give more priority to International and Arab affairs.

The three publications, however, give a large place to the peace process, which takes up more than one third of the Weekly's front page and at least a quarter in the Gazette and the Mail.

"The Weekly ranks first in its focus on the peace process," Kamel comments. "The reason may be that, as a national newspaper, the Weekly focuses on issues that concern political leaders in Egypt, or because the Arab-Israeli conflict is a prime concern for Egyptians and Arabs as well."

Both the Weekly and Egypt Today give far more space to readers' mail than the Gazette and Mail.

Furthermore, "the Weekly has been improving and expanding at a high pace," he adds. "The newspaper has significantly increased the number of its pages, from 12 in 1991 to an average of 20 to 24 pages in the second half of 1999, while the Mail, for instance, has stuck to its original size of eight pages. The Weekly also issued a 50-page special supplement on 5 January 2000 and the paper was sold at its original price -- further proof of the rapid growth of the publication."

For Kamel, the Weekly's layout and photos are also significant. "The Weekly uses the most modern techniques in layout, equivalent to those of the Independent and the Guardian," he explains.

Kamel quotes parts of Al-Gornal [the Newspaper], a book by Weekly layout editor Samir Sobhi. In a chapter devoted to the techniques adopted by the Weekly's chief and layout editors, Sobhi discusses horizontal layout, which allows more space for creativity and freedom when laying out the page. It is also more relaxing for the eyes, allowing more space for photos and using space instead of lines to separate stories.

"Al-Ahram Weekly also uses expressive and original photos, which are spread out in an attractive way, whereas some of the other English-language publications tend to use copies of pictures published elsewhere," Kamel concludes.

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