The celebration organized by the General Authority for the National Library and Archives, today, Thursday, on the occasion of the hundredth anniversary of the founding of the magazine “Rosal Youssef” The second session was held, which dealt with the historical, legislative and cultural dimensions of the magazine’s establishment, and its extended role in shaping Egyptian and Arab awareness.
The session was moderated by Dr. Mohamed Refaat Al-Imam, Professor of Modern and Contemporary History, and former Dean of the Faculty of Arts at Damanhour University, stressing in his speech that Rosa Al-Youssef is considered “the second institution after Al-Ahram in life.” In the history of the Egyptian media, and that she deserves an independent dramatic work that embodies her unique career and her ability to influence and control the journalistic arena for many decades.
Nermin Al-Azraq: Rosal-Youssef was born amidst legislative, societal and political challenges.
For her part, Dr. Nermin Al-Azraq, professor of media at Cairo University, presented a historical reading of the emergence of the magazine, noting that Rosal-Youssef’s beginnings came under “complex societal circumstances and legislative changes.” “pressure”, as it appeared at a time when journalistic work was surrounded by constitutional and legal restrictions, as well as a highly competitive political climate.
She stressed that the founding of the magazine after the 1919 Revolution was not a coincidence, as the revolution – As she said – It was an exceptional event that brought together all segments of society, and established a stage of public awareness that allowed a bold journalistic experience like Rosa Al-Youssef to arise and continue.
She added that any major media institution is the result of its social environment, and in the case of Rosa Al-Youssef, it arose at a time when the presence of Egyptian women increased due to educational missions since the era of Muhammad Ali, and the establishment of girls’ schools during the era of Khedive Ismail, which supported the emergence of a generation of women capable of thinking, creativity, and work. The year.
Azraq explained that Egypt preceded the Arab world in the journalistic renaissance, and that the French campaign was the first to draw the attention of Egyptians to printing, before Muhammad Ali founded the first official newspaper in 1828, which was the Egyptian Gazette. She pointed out that Egyptian society at that time was “cosmopolitan,” open to pluralism and acceptance of the other, which allowed journalism to flourish and bold media initiatives to be launched.
She concluded that Rosa Al-Youssef was published in the year. 1925 under the 1923 Constitution – Which stipulates in Article 14 the freedom of the press – It was a remarkable event, especially because it was one of the first newspapers published in the name of a woman, despite the restrictions imposed at the time under the Ottoman Publications Law, which set difficult conditions for the issuance of newspapers.
Nonetheless, the magazine emerged as a "fearless voice" As a rich experience, it established its presence amidst the intellectual and cultural momentum of that period.
Sahar Hassan: "The Egyptian Effendi".. the mirror of Egyptian satire and the memory of art.
In a related context, Dr. Sahar Hassan, representative of the Center for Contemporary Egyptian History at the National Library and Records House, spoke about the cultural role of the magazine, stressing that "Rosa Youssef" Over the past century, she contributed to shaping the conscience of the Egyptian reader.
She said that the character “Al-Masry Effendi” Which was associated with the magazine was an honest expression of the Egyptian collective mind, with its sarcastic spirit and harsh criticism of events.
She explained that Fatima Al-Youssef believed that the word was capable of shaping society’s awareness and opening new critical horizons, which was embodied by the character “Al-Masry Effendi”, created by the Armenian painter Alexander Sarokhan, and depicted her as a short man carrying a rosary and wearing a fez, to become a symbol of the simple, thinking Egyptian. The critic.
Saleh Mohamed Omar: Rosal Youssef and the Algerian Revolution…from hints to expanded coverage.
Dr. Saleh Mohamed Omar, from the Center for Contemporary Egyptian History, also touched on the magazine’s coverage of the Algerian Revolution in 1954, noting that the first signs of the revolution appeared in the magazine as hints and short news in 1956, before the coverage later expanded to turn into articles and expanded investigations.
He explained that the publishing process went through In gradual stages, up to the coverage of the Evian Agreements in 1962, which ended with Algerian independence, and then the editorial approach of the magazine changed after that, to reflect the new stage.
He added that Rosalie Youssef paid special attention to the meetings with the leaders of the Algerian revolution, and presented to the Egyptian reader a sequential narrative of the story of the revolution from its outbreak to its end.
