Reporter. Whose webcam is it . Yours or the nsas . Whatever side of the political divide egyptians find themselves on, whether they were for the interim military government or the Muslim Brotherhood, whether they thought an election in which the brotherhood was banned was legitimate or not, on this much, e job descriptions could agree. The. The vote had the drama of the elections that kept Hosni Mubarak in power for decades. There wasnt any. During Campaign Media outlets and not just those owned by the state provided a barrage favoring the general now known as president. Abdel fatah el sisi known to supporters as the savior of the nation. When low turnout threatened to undermine that message, Media Outlets urged the public to get out and vote. Critical voices have been hushed this past week. He scripts top t. V. Satrist yousef said his show would stay off of the air definitely. A plans to monitor social media sites for disseptember. The trial of this networks journalists accused of links to the Muslim Brotherhood, a story one angle in a wider geo political standoff between egypt and qatar. He script is a story egypt has trumped freedom of expression. Our starting point this week is cairo. The visual media remains the main stronghold of sisi. There is a combination between circus, a soap opera, comedy and all rolled into one. He script at the moment doesnt have a democracy. It has a democrasisi. That was apparent when the Election Results rolled in. Journalists even on some privately owned channels started celebrating. We have been trying very much to cheer a particular candidate. In this case el sisi and try to paint the picture of his overwhelming popularity. So really, the media has been in a way mobilizing people rallying people behind this particular candidate but there was also a lot of moving away from reality and misrepresenting the facts. For the most part, most of the egyptian media tried to push people to come out and vote the success of the elections was the voter turnout. Every single station irrespective of political leaning or ownership action most tried to rally people to come out into the streets this was the real key push for most of the stations. Egyptian media has been practicing to cover elections now for three years or so in a different way from the past. They have done relatively well. There were some excess or some bias in some private t. V. Channels. But the Egyptian State media, they tried as much as possible to adhere to the neutrality and to be balanced. If stateowned t. V. Really did try to do that, there are plenty of examples of where they failed. Sounds like a new low water mark for critical journalism until egypt. But in some ways, the news media may be rediscovering their voices. Take ibrahim esep, once a thorn in the side of the mubarak regime who opposed the Muslim Brotherhood regime of mohamed morsi. And then went all in on the coup that brought the interim military government to power. But when he took part in one of el sisis campaign interviews, he showed signs of journalistic life. I was very gentle with him until el sisi started talking about you have to understand that the army knows best and so on. So turning to him said the army should be under civilian supervision. So i see this in the Mainstream Media as a promising sign that especially with the relatively low man data that el sisi has that it will emboldep the media to be more critical. Most of the discussion seems to imply all of the stations and newspapers support el sisi wholeheartedly. Thats not the case. Primary in print media, there are some newspapers that have taken sisi to task, one being sharute, an independent publication that hosts articles by columnists critical of el sisi and some supporting the Muslim Brotherhood and an online publication that is independent. Most have continued to function but have not issued. They have seen circulation decline as the public becomes less and less interested in critical journalism. Egyptians embraced al jazeeras critical journalism during the arab spring. The Networks Coverage primarily on its arabic news channel was blamed by the mumbarac register email for playing a sentence tral role. Three years later, al jazeera is seen by many egyptians, journalists includen as biased in favor of the Muslim Brotherhood. Four employees are accused of cluing with the banned movement. The prosecution wants three Al Jazeera English defendants jailed for 15 years in the case journalists and media Rights Groups the world over have condemned as sham justice. When Tahrir Square was the story, was of what al jazeera and other networks broadcast came via social media through the images they sent and the news they broke over the net, egyptians drove the coverage. This past week, al watan based in cairo published leaked documents indicating the government plans to monitor social media on a mass scale. The interior minister confirmed that but insisted it will not affect freedom of opinion and expression. Just having this by the Security Forces makes a lot of people reluctant to voice their opinions openly and freely because they know that they are being watched. , in itself curbs freedom of expression and freedom of the press and also curbs the freedom which we have been witnessing online which has been a trigger for political mobilization as well as a reflex of it. Dont forget, also, something very important. The muslim brothers in their social media now, we will want to hijack this new democracy that is being built because during the Muslim Brotherhood, there was no democracy. Believe me. There was no democracy. So give sisi a chance, and about the social media, in egypt, here, or outside, they will watch what is happening. If there is any transgression against all of this highvalued principals, you will see the result. As for not infringing on civil liabilities, thats kind of a joke, even in societies like the united states. The snooping by Security Services has been a gratin fringement on civil liberties. So in egypt, big brother can really hurt activists and hurt journalists. I dont buy the justification that snooping is motivated solely by security concerns. If i am a terrorist and i want to plan an attack, they are not going to be advertising on facebook. So the real purpose is not foexecute but the inexecute of the state. Our Global Village voices now on the election, the coverage, and the prospects for egyptian journalism. Freedom of expression has suffered greatly over the course of modern egyptian history. I would say this period lies for the first time in the past of past few years, patrol from arrests of journalists, graffiti has been called a dishonoring of the flag. The Mainstream Media has begin up not only principles it once stood for but objectivity and whether its for imagined gain, because they lack to see other options i dont know. Egyptian media, they will continue to enjoy the security of a regime that supports them to say whatever they want and its basically them saying whatever the regime wants. Its a mutual relationship between the regime and media. Its not a good relationship. Now inroducing, the new al jazeea america mobile news app. Get our exclusive in depth, reporting when you want it. A global perspective wherever you are. The major headlines in context. Mashable says. Youll never miss the latest news they will continue looking for suvivors. The potential for Energy Production is huge. No noise, no clutter, just real reporting. The new Al Jazeera America mobile app, available for your apple and android mobile device. Download it now i think that al jazeera helps connect people in a way they havent been connected before. Its a new approach to journalism. This is an opportunity for americans to learn something. We need to know whats going on around the world. We need to know whats going on in our back yard and i think al jazeera does just that. Al jazeera america. We understand that every news story begins and ends with people. The efforts are focused on rescuing stranded residents. We pursue that story beyond the headline, pass the spokesperson, to the streets. Thousands of riot Police Deployed across the capital. We put all of our Global Resources behind every story. It is a scene of utter devastation. And follow it no matter where it leads all the way to you. Al jazeera america, take a new look at news. I find it immoral to destroy Something Like this an epic fight to preserve a way of life. We ask for strength as we take on one of the most powerful forces on the globe a battle for the very soul of this state, but is time running out . Its a wholesale effort to buy government. Fault lines Al Jazeera Americas ground breaking. We have to get out of here. Award winning investigative documentary series wisconsins mining standoff on Al Jazeera America gentleman urn. Time for listening post news bites. Two weeks into thailands arresting journalists and telling a story of psychological warfare. Release the may 31st he had been held for six days. He tweeted before a News Conference in bangkok, on my way to see the new dictator of thailand, hopefully the last. He said he was taken to a military camp along with officials of the ousted government. Thai police are reportedly posing as journalists. It shows a man wearing press accreditation and a green arm band of the thai journalist association, the tja helping Police Apprehend a protester. He said it would have an immense impact on the safety and credibility of the thai media. Sglefrp. Ivan watson of cnn was reporting live on may 31st when this happened on it. Achsen square. I think i am getting we are being detained right now. Watson later said on twitter he was released after less than an hour and that the police apologized for kicking him but the Prime Minister was unapoljetic. According to the press, he told members watson was a lacky caught red handed and cnn doesnt care about a free press. They are assigned to work like spies. The International Federation of journalists based in brussels, that turkey wants to join reports a number of journalists have been beaten by police in istanbul. A belologger in singapore has k started by using coloradoed sources. He doubles as a political blogger writing about the ruling Peoples Action Party on his blog, the heart truths, a post on may 15th landed him in trouble after he wrote of possible government corruption. Lawyers for the Prime Minister called his post defamatory and said that the bloggers subsequent apology and his offer of about 4,000 u. S. Dollars in damages were both unsatisfactory, which meant that the case was headed to court. He then turned to his readers to fund his case, posting an appeal for more than 50,000 u. S. Dollars. He met that target within just four days and the money is still pouring in. Gnerng told the new York Committee to protect journalists. The singapore government has used a blank et cover of fear and silence. I am greatly this has happened. A New York Times journalist who published u. S. Government secrets is one step closer to prison now that the countrys highest court decided it will not hear his appeal against a ruling he must reveal the name of a confidential source. The supreme courts ruling means jason ryeson will have to testify in the criminal trial against a former cia employee, jeffrey sterling accused of blowing the whistle on a secret program to provide iran with faulty plans for a nuclear bomb. Information ended up in rysons book, state of war, the secret history of the cia and the bush administration. Ryson is a pull it certain prize center and said he would rather go to jail than reveal his source. It comes days after the house of represent tufts said journalists would be protected against divulge ping sources. Its a long way of becoming a american law. A similar amendment, a media shield law for journalists was approved in the house of representatives but later was shot down in the senate. If you were to try to conjure up a mental picture of north korea based upon what you see in the news media, you would have a country where this is a country where a hair style is a fashion icon and a lack could get you devoured. In the news industries, reports on north korea are often inaccurate and unverifiable. Why would news outlets just eat up rumors and spit them out as headlines . Is that a natural symptom on report okay a hermit kingdom that wont let them in or are there larger agendas at play. Why so many run bizarre stories about north korea. North korea is like a black box. We dont see whats going on. To the outside involved, its a crazy and crackpot sort of place. Rethroughsive north korea. Full of things that go bang and boom. Even Television Announcer is emotional. When the foreign media found a sensational story, they jump on that and reinforce the i am alan of north korea as a bizarre place. Inside the strange world of north korea. If you just believe one source and write based on that source, then it becomes a wild story. There are so many wild stories. April, 2012, a par aide, a display of the countrys military power. However, arms experts studying the footage identify horn out we hopeon re, outdated vehicles and inter continental bullistic mock ooze that look like mockups made for show. This kind of informed reporting on north korea is the exception rather than the rule. In august, last year, south korea ian newspaper reported that kim jung unhad his exgirlfriend shot for involvement in pornography. Salon and the Business Insider reported the news. Just a month ago, the supposedly dead exgirlfriend popped up on north Korean Television. The reports of her demise had been greatly exaggerated. In march, this year, bbc, radio free asia, the independent and a number of other outlets posted the story about north korean students being ordered to cut their hair like kim jung un. There were no facts to back that up. When his uncle was arrested last year, the pictures were broadcast on north Korean Television for the world to see. Then, gruesome details began to make the rounds about how he was executed, supposedly devoured by hungry dogs. This news channel in india gave the story, the bollywood treatment. Nbc news, the daily mail and the independent in u. K. And singapores Straits Times reported it. Sky news in the u. K. Did something different. They just asked north koreas ambassador to britain about it. How was he executed . Because there has been a case and very wild reports that he might have been fed to the dogs. No. No. Can you clear it up . Well, he was shot to death. North korea is a country of 25 million people, one of om 8 in the world with Nuclear Weapons. You would expect the reporting to be, if not 100 accurate, at least a little more serious. North korea invents its own history and myth did. There are other people who have reasons to do for doing it, not least the south korea ians, japanese, chinese, people who have worked for them. Most of it cannot be verified or not verified. The western medias perspective of according to dor e a is very negative. In addition, their knowledge of the country is shallow, and, therefore, the reports are inaccurate. Japanese Media Outlets report everything, but with their own political spin. South korea ian news organizations are split between those who want to push favorably the image of north korea and many others who want to highlight the negative aspects of the country. North korea would like to tell us they have the strongest and best trained army in the world. There are reasons why the south korea ians would like us to think that might be true because they would like to keep Defense Budgets flowing as well. We report events with our own biases. Hence, no media outlet can really be accurate about north korea. This selective reporting of north korea means it is impossible to get a balanced picture of the country. There are numerous outlets that track event did in north korea and try to fact check them. There is nk news, north korea leadership watch, k cna watch, daily nk and a host of outfits in soeul. The did he if we cantors often have an agenda. I try to doublecheck, meet with government officials as well as intelligence sources. I meet with credible dea defect. A lot are not telling the truth and the media are writing stories based upon their t. V. Testimonies and their contributions. If getting information out of north korea out is difficult, getting in is tougher which was why it was such a big deal when back in february, 2013, new yorkbased vice media filmed and entire series of an he sewed series in pyong yang. I was more than a bit freaked out. Vice got in because it had a different idea. Vice knew kim was about, it brought in a colorful player and the rest was t. V. History. Most arentability offer a sweet photo op in exchange for access to north korea. They go cap and hand trying to get journalits n the vast majority are turned in. Leads reporters on the inside looking in, trying to figure out the story from a distance. Thats almost never a good formula for producing journalism that will informs. On an almost daily basis, i think the biggest mistake is with news editors who are impatient to get the story out and so its actually pressure put on core respondence to report when journalists on the ground in the field dont feel they have enough to go on, their editors say, we are running with it anyway. Slap together what you can because its north korea and anything goes and there is no way to doublecheck a fact. So lets run with the fact that was put out today. Firstly, i watch what north korea puts out and i pay particular attention to who is making the statement, whether its the fortunately ministry spokesman, the committee for the peaceful unification of korea or the defense men industry. Dpevenldzing upon who is speaking, you can assess what message pyong yang is trying to liv deliver. There is no mechanism to sha editors and Media Outlets who run with these stories. So no one had to put out a front page story saying we got it wrong. The unchem was not fed to the dog. They ignore it. You got attention. The incentives are to keep publishing facehood. In the swirl of stories about executions that never really happened, hair styles that never got into fashion and Nuclear Weapons that dont exist, real news gets lost. We will spend time chasing our tail trying to work out where the story came from whether its real or disinformation. I dont think we should. I think we should work on what we can verify, largely around the economy, around the Missiles Program and around any political intrigue thats going on that could end in a coup and a sudden collapse. Who cares what erin had cuts theyve got if the country collapses. More Global Village voices on fake stories from north korea. I am is concerned this could be the hacking incidents in south korea last year, the n hbank was crippled by a known group. There was no concrete evidence that it was behind the attack the government placed the blame on the north. In particular media would recall the rumor story. They sent clear coverage, lead to hate movement against north koreans. I find north korea is vulnerable to the fake story phenomen phenomenon. No one knows about it. So what little pieces we have we draw conclusions. They self propagate. We get to hear them probably 100th hand. They are fun to report on. I like reading them. It adds to the sort of allure of north korea north korea the system with Joe Burlinger observing a crime a shocking number of these eyewitnesses get it wrong how much would you remember . Dark complected. Medium height. You described most of the majority of the men in america sometimes witnesses get it right when you have an eyewitness to say i saw him do it, that is the best evidence. And sometimes sometimes they dont no one is listening to us. George is innocent. The system with Joe Burlinger only on Al Jazeera America im joie chen, im the host of america tonight, were revolutionary because were going back to doing best of storytelling. We have an ouportunity to really reach out and really talk to voices that we havent heard before. I think Al Jazeera America is a watershed moment for american journalism r one of the things that Edward Snowden revealed about the National Security agency is its spies can hijack your web cam to make sure you are behaving. Jame vale is a comedian. He nsa the his friends and family infiltrating their computers creeping them out. He plays it for laughs. The underlying message is serious. This is spooky stuff, very big brother with nearly half a million hits online, nsa web cam spying frank is our web video of the week. We will see you next time. Egypts former army general is sworn in as the countrys president. I am mariam mazi. Watching amount of al jazeera. Dozens killed in iraq, a market in ramadi was among the targets. Heavy fighting in eastern ukraine, a day of the countrys new president takes. Plus. Inside the studio of one of floridas most unique photographers. We will show you how his work is helping save an