El-Abbassy is a PhD Candidate at the Communication and Media Research Institute (CAMRI), University of Westminster, London. She earned her BA in Journalism and Mass Communication with a Political Science minor and a MA in Journalism both from The American University in Cairo (AUC). As of 2010 El-Abbassy pursued both her academic and professional careers. She worked as mass communication instructor and a research assistant. On a journalistic professional level El-Abbassy was one of the first political journalists to join Al-Ahram Online, one of Egypt’s leading English news portals. She succeeded in covering numerous political events taking place during one of the most challenging years in Egypt’s history. Her articles were among the most read stories covering Egypt’s January 25th, 2011 revolution, protests and sectarian strife. El-Abbassy has academic experience along with professional experience as a journalist and media researcher. She is interested in media political economy, media literacy, media laws and regulations, Arab media, media crisis management, and media and minorities.

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Egyptian News Production Under Transition.

This comparative analysis will examine the Egyptian newspapers’ output during an important time-period in Egypt’s modern history. The research will study the period from June 30th, 2010, few months spanning before the January 25th, 2011 revolution under the rule of former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak; until June 30th, 2015, two years after the June 30th, 2013 events and a year under the rule of Egyptian President AbdelFattah El-Sisi. The study aims to analyze the role played by the Egyptian press under transition towards democratization, in-light of ownership, political situation, political economy of the media, consumer power, market pressure and the real essence of journalism. This is reflected in the research questions: What was the role of the Egyptian press towards transition midst political unrest? Is there a correlation between the Egyptian political economy of the media and the production and circulation of media information? and How did the Egyptian press compare in its framing of the events, aftermath, political parties and players and voice average Egyptians during the transitional period? The researcher will compare and contrast the news framing of the press throughout various pivotal political moments and under the rule of four presidents. It will look into the political economy of the media and the framing theory as the backdrop of the study. The research will analyze the state owned flagship Al-Ahram, the independent Al-Masry Al-Youm, and the opposition party paper Al-Wafd. Creating a panoramic view of the print media landscape in Egypt. Moreover, the findings will fill a gap in the literature, offering an important baseline for Egyptian journalism that can be used as a mirror to assess media performance as a tool of democratic socialization midst country’s transition towards freedom.