From the Archives: A Conversation with Mada Masr Editor Yasmine Zohdi

The independent, progressive news site Mada Masr has been a pillar of free speech, investigating journalism, and unique writing and thinking in Egypt since its creation in 2013. It is one of the only publications left, in a devastated media landscape, which still asks all the questions no one else dares to. On October 27, a judge ordered the site’s closure. Its editor Lina Attallah faces further legal proceedings and the possibility of jail time. Please join us in spreading the word about what is happening and in extending any and all support to the brave, stubborn, beautiful staff of Mada. 

We recorded this episode in Cairo in 2020 with author, translator, and then-Mada Masr culture editor Yasmine Zohdi. We talked about making art in difficult and precarious times; how to acknowledge the political context; censorship and self-censorship. 

“What we talk about when we talk about trees,” by Yasmine Zohdi, ran in Mada Masr in December of last year.

We also spoke about the shrinking of cultural spaces in Cairo.

Zohdi translated her husband Muhammad al-Hajj’s beautiful Nobody Mourns the City’s Cats.

An excerpt of the Egyptian novel Prizes for Heroes was translated as part of Mada Masr’s translation series.

The Egyptian film Yomeddine (“Judgement Day”) was part of the official selection at the Cannes Film Festival. 

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