Saheeh Masr under investigation for exposing electoral media censorship

Saheeh Masr, an independent fact-checking outlet, is to be subject to immediate investigation by the state media watchdog, which has accused it of “violating media codes” and “international and Egyptian standards for electoral media coverage.”

The step came shortly after Saheeh Masr published coverage on the intelligence-owned United Media Services’ (UMS) censorship of the ongoing presidential elections.

The Supreme Media Regulatory Council, a state body regulating the press environment, said on Sunday that it would conduct the disciplinary procedures against Saheeh Masr. In response, Saheeh Masr assured in a statement on Monday its commitment to journalistic ethics and its keenness to abide by the professional codes issued by the SMRC.

Saheeh Masr’s report detailed a list of prohibitions that UMS sent out to managerial staff at television channels and publishing arms of its subsidiary outlets, which include Al-Watan, Youm7, Egypt Today, Al Dostor, Mobtada, Dot Masr, Sout al-Omma and El Osboa.

Saheeh Masr published the report on Sunday, the first day for voters to head out nationwide to cast their vote for one of the four presidential candidates on the ballot.

Detailing the prohibitions UMS placed on coverage, Saheeh Masr said that footage of food being distributed to citizens before or after voting was banned from dissemination, as was any footage of government buses transporting citizens to the polling places. Mada Masr correspondents observed both of the above taking place on Sunday to incentivize members of the public to support the reelection campaign of incumbent President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.

Sisi’s name is on the ballot papers this round alongside state-aligned Wafd Party head Abdel Sanad Yamama and Republican People’s Party head Hazem Omar, while Social Democratic Party head Farid Zahran appears on the ballot as the sole face of a fractured set of opposition parties.

Also out of bounds for UMS outlets, said Saheeh Masr, was any media portrayal of citizens unwilling to vote, any emptiness inside the committees, and any materials showing the issuance of instructions to citizens and directing them to vote for a specific candidate.

Saheeh Masr also stated that the UMS guidelines were in violation of electoral laws.

Following the report, the Supreme Media Regulatory Council said that it will not hesitate to take the measures necessary “to preserve the great role played by the Egyptian media in covering the electoral process.”

Saheeh Masr is an independent media team specializing in fact-checking statements by officials, politicians and decision-makers. The outlet has recently covered issues ranging from the Occupation forces’ onslaught on Gaza to critical analyses of officials’ statements on Egypt’s economy.

The SMRC has also investigated Mada Masr in recent months in relation to its coverage of Israel’s onslaught on Gaza, referring Editor-in-Chief Lina Attalah to the Public Prosecution.