Media Minister Salah Abdel Maqsoud on Tuesday vowed to shut down the privately owned Fareen Channel headed by controversial media figure Tawfiq Okasha, alleging that its financing is influencing coverage.
Abdel Maqsoud, who is affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood, told Saudi satellite channel Al Arabiya on Tuesday that "political money is used in Okasha's Faraeen channel and other [channels]."
He mentioned reports that the channel owes broadcasting fees to Egyptian satellite service operator NileSat and that some officials have attempted to intervene to keep the channel on-air.
"Judicial rulings will hush those channels up," he said during the Al Arabiya interview. "Political money plays a role in morally assassinating Egyptian icons through the media."
Abdel Maqsoud did not elaborate how funding to private media could be regulated, but his comments mark the government's latest attack on the channel.
Okasha, who is known for his harsh criticism of the Muslim Brotherhood and its political rise since the 25 January revolution, has recently stepped up his criticism of President Mohamed Morsy, saying his presence in the presidential palace is illegal.
As of 9 August, authorities suspended the satellite channel for a month and threatened to revoke its license if it doesn't make changes to programming.
Morsy had filed a lawsuit ahead of the presidential runoffs that would ban Okasha from appearing on Faraeen for allegedly influencing voters during the election. Okasha also faces charges in a separate case based on accusations he incited his viewers to attempt to assassinate Morsy and supported a military coup.
The minister also said that he would not allow the screening of the second part of the “Al-Jamaa (The Group)” series, which traces the history and development of the Brotherhood, if the goal of the series is to represent the group in a negative light. However, he said the decision falls to the relevant censorship authorities and that he will not propose any new regulations in this regard.
The first part of the series was screened in 2010 and criticized by Brotherhood leaders who said it unfairly portrays the group as violent.
Abdel Maqsoud also said that he hopes to transform the Information Ministry into one that all Egyptians identify with, adding that he wants to transform local media to cater to the needs of the nation rather than to those in power.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
