For over 10 years the Arab West Report (http://www.arabwestreport.info) has selected its articles from the print editions of Egyptian newspapers. Today, there are more than 25 Egyptian Arabic newspapers online (see http://www.onlinenewspapers.com/egypt.htm ).

We invite opinions - after comparing the online version with the print version - on two particular subjects:
A. Is the quality of the online news reports satisfactory on which to make considered comments, observations for a serious media watch activity; and
B. Is the quality of the Arabic online suitable for general use.

Dear Nick,

We compared this morning the Al-Ahram online with the Al-Ahram in print. The following comments:
1) several of the smaller articles (articles of a few lines only) were missing. Of the cover page only the main articles were given and even then incomplete texts (the printed Al-Ahram had more text).
2) searching in printed text goes definitely faster then in online text and if one wants to use online text that person would continuously need to compare printed text with online text. That is resulting in extra work.
3) The online text provides no information on page numbers

Kees



Nick Truscott wrote:

Kees & Sawsan

I know that you have both often said that the online versions of Egyptian newspapers are not adequate for the needs of AWR.

But having spent a couple of hours now visiting every site on this list http://www.onlinenewspapers.com/egypt.htm (which by the way has Egypt listed correctly under North Africa) I think that it would be really useful to ask people to visit these sites and make an _object_ive assessment of how much material can be easily, quickly and efficiently lifted directly from these websites and used in AWR material.

Newspaper websites are clearly gradually, slowly, evolving and placing more material (as well as archived material) online on a daily basis.

This website has _link_s to newspaper in 15 ME countries and another 9 Muslim countries under North Africa : http://www.onlinenewspapers.com/

Nx

Also check Arabic newspapers