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TelQuel (French: As it is) (slogan: Morocco as it is), is a French-language Moroccan weekly magazine. It is privately owned, and is known for its resolute opposition to Islamist ideology in Morocco.
History and profile
TelQuel was founded in 2001 by Ahmed Benchemsi.[1] It has been repeatedly subjected to harassment and pressures from the Moroccan government, according to press freedom watchdogs such as Reporters without Borders (RSF).[2] Both Benchemsi and Boukhari were convicted in 2005 on charges of defamation, in what the RSF described as a political trial.[3]
On 1 August 2009, the Moroccan government seized an edition of TelQuel, following its inclusion of an opinion poll conducted jointly with French newspaper Le Monde and looking at the performance of King Mohammed VI over the first ten years of his reign. Although 91% viewed his performance favourably, the authorities considered this to be an unsuitable topic for coverage and promptly banned publication of the survey, provoking a furious reaction from the press and Web users.[4]
TelQuel started a Moroccan Arabic edition, Nichane.[5][6] In 2010, however, it went out of business following government pressure on companies to withdraw advertising.[7][8]
Editors-in-chief
- Selma Mhaoud September 2001 – January 2002
- Driss Ksikes February 2002 - July 2006
- Karim Boukhari September 2006 – January 2013
- Fahd Iraqi, January 2013 – May 2014
- Abdallah Tourabi, June 2014 – present
See also
List of magazines in Morocco
References
- ^ Abdallah Tourabi (9 June 2014). "Editorial. Profession de foi". Retrieved 9 June 2014.
- ^ [1]
- ^ "Reporters Without Borders". RSF. 28 January 2012. Retrieved 3 February 2012.
- ^ "Moroccan authorities seize magazines publishing poll on King". Magharebia. Retrieved 3 February 2012.
- ^ "Media Sustainability Index 2009" (PDF). Irex. Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 September 2014. Retrieved 9 September 2014.
- ^ Bruce Maddy-Weitzman; Daniel Zisenwine (2013). Contemporary Morocco: State, Politics and Society Under Mohammmed VI. Routledge. p. 102. ISBN 978-0-415-69546-6. Retrieved 8 October 2014.
- ^ Aida Alami (28 April 2011). "Web Offers a Voice to Journalists in Morocco". The New York Times. Retrieved 3 February 2012.
- ^ Fisher, Max (1 October 2010). "Morocco's Largest Arabic Newsweekly to Fold Under State Pressure". The Atlantic. Retrieved 3 October 2010.