Local newspapers in El Dakahlia Province have suffered from a severe funding crisis, bringing the number of newspapers in the province down to 10 – 12 newspapers, the most important of which are: Welad El Balad, Al Vifagh, Al-Mansoura News, Al-Zaman Al-Masri, Mansoura Today, Dakahlia Gate, Al-Hakika, Breaking News, and Al-Bayan.

Local newspapers in El Dakahlia Province have suffered from a severe funding crisis, bringing the number of newspapers in the province down to 10 – 12 newspapers, the most important of which are: Welad El Balad, Al Vifagh, Al-Mansoura News, Al-Zaman Al-Masri, Mansoura Today, Dakahlia Gate, Al-Hakika, Breaking News, and Al-Bayan.

Due to a lack of funding and irregular issuance, many newspapers have recently resorted to publishing on the internet. Correspondents met with Khaled Amin, a 33-year-old-physician and a keen follower of local newspapers in El Dakahlia Governorate and asked him why he still supports local journalism, despite its many flaws.

Khaled Amin can you tell us local which newspapers you follow?

I read Al-Zaman Al-Masri, and I used to read Welad El Balad newspaper before it suspended its print release, now I follow its Facebook page.

How has the local newspaper scene changed in recent years?

Not much has changed in the last 20 years. The local newspapers are still the same, they all use the same format, they have similar content and all have a terrible layout problem.

What else are these newspapers lacking in?

The local newspaper industry needs better financial support and a more qualified administrative and technical personnel. Improving the human resources in the industry is essential for it to do real journalism, rather than the yellow journalism used to attract readers.

What are the reasons for the drop in reader numbers?

Local newspapers do not have new material to present. Therefore, its content was reduced to merely ads and crime stories. In addition, most newspapers appear only during parliamentary elections to advertise for candidates, and most of its journalistic content is done by trainees from Al-Mansoura Faculty of Journalism.

Moreover, many local journalists have taken on blackmail as a profession. They either blackmail the people by posting personal photos with state officials, to show that they are well connected to these officials, or they blackmail state officials if they obtain documents that could harm their career.

What do you need to read in local newspapers?

I need to read serious journalism that deals with peoples’ problems. I need investigations of these problems and serious interviews with state officials, rather than image-boosting interviews journalists usually do. More importantly, I need sustainability, I cannot follow a newspaper that suspends print releases every now and then for financial reasons.

What do you like about local newspapers?

I like some of the reports that discuss the problems of the common citizen in the towns and the villages in the province.

What is the best story you have read in a local newspaper?

I read a good report about the Manzalah Lake and the problems of the fishermen there. I also read a good report about artifact theft in the province, especially in Tal Bin Salam in the Al-Manzalah area.