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Fighting the Good Fight
How a former ICFJ Fellow turned one of Egypt’s only independent newspapers into a powerhouse
On July 9, Al Masry-Al Youm newspaper joined 25 other independent Egyptian newspapers in a strike. They were protesting a draconian press law that would imprison journalists for reporting on personal financial matters of top government officials. The effort paid off. “President Mubarak intervened”, says Al Youm’s advertising and marketing director Ramy Botros, “and decided to make some improvements for the sake of journalists.”
These days, Botros has even more than that to crow about. In the same month as the strike, Al Masry-Al Youm could finally afford to purchase its own printing press. The reason: it raked in more than one million Egyptian pounds (about US$174,100) in advertising revenue, a record for an independent newspaper. Al Youm now no longer needs to rely on government-run presses that would regularly stop working when the paper had to go to print.
Botros credits his success to lessons learned from the International Journalism Exchange, organized by the International Center for Journalists. IJE is a five-week program, organized by the International Center for Journalists, that brings 10 international editors and sales managers to the United States for training, seminars and three-week attachments at community newspapers across the country. Last year, the U.S. Embassy in Cairo sponsored Botros’ fellowship. This year, the Knight Foundation is a key sponsor.
Botros took to heart lessons learned at his stint at The News-Press in Ft. Myers, Fla. His mentor Teresa Calkins, the VP of Marketing at this Gannett paper, took him under her wing and emphasized the importance of advertising strategies that his staff could easily carry out.
“When you see successful people working and getting good results, how they deal with their daily work, their planning overall, you get lots of notes which you can’t find in a book,” Botros says. “This is the key to my success. But it is not just my victory. It is a victory for ICFJ as well.”
When Botros returned to Cairo, he made significant changes. “I began with myself,” Botros says. “I began with a new spirit, to motivate [my staff], and to change my point of view. I worked with them, I gave them a healthy atmosphere for working, and I stopped being so hard on them.” Botros also says that the paper’s managers are planning to open up new reporting departments for better coverage.
He put together an annual calendar of events and coordinated with the newsroom to develop strategies to take advantage of them. For example, during holidays when Egyptians migrate to the beaches, Botros made sure Al-Youm published a special section on a beach town. This brought in new advertising from the tourism industry. Since then, Botros has created a regular rotation of special supplements that attract a steady flow of new ad revenue throughout the year.
One thing that impressed him was the work ethic at The News-Press, and at other newspapers, such as the Washington Post, the New York Times: Staff got to work early, and stuck to an organized schedule throughout the day. He was also struck by the high level of respect among colleagues at U.S. papers.
Botros’ host, Teresa Calkins, has taken a leave from Gannett to work as a Knight International Journalism Fellow in Colombia, where she helps newspapers transform their paper’s financial future. Calkins wrote of her work in Colombia, “After each series of workshops, I work with the owners to come up with a series of action plans that they and their staff will immediately implement. If no plan, nothing will occur.”
Since then, Knight Fellow John Smock has gone to Egypt to work with Al-Youm, among other papers. He trained reporters and editors in election coverage and photojournalism. “Al Masry Al-Youm and its editor-in-chief Hassem Kasshim are doing groundbreaking work,” says Smock. “The newspaper published photos of violence and vote-buying during the election that no other publication ran.” At the end of August Knight Fellow Craig Duff will travel to Egypt to help Egyptian papers like Al-Youm build on their successes.
Despite all the progress, Botros admits there is still a long way to go for independent news media in Egypt. While President Mubarak rescinded the most onerous parts of the recent press law, the legal framework for journalists is still very restrictive. “There are still back doors, which the journalists want to close,” he says. “But it is a good step for the President to cancel that part of the law.” And credit Botros with a few good steps of his own.
Written By: darteaga
Date Posted: 7/28/2009
Number of Views: 1486
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