This month, CJR presents “Required skimming,” a daily miniguide to our staffers’ beats and obsessions. If we overlooked your favorite too cool for school food mag, please tell us in the comments.
—Michael Wahid Hanna: A senior fellow at the Century Foundation, Hanna has emerged as a go-to authority on the ongoing political crisis in Egypt, giving thoughtful, informative opinions on everything from Egyptian popular opinion to the role of the United States. His Twitter account (@mwhanna1) is also worth a look.
—Mada Masr: Formed in June from the ashes of the Egypt Independent, this online Egyptian paper is an excellent source for the news of the day, a glimpse into multiple dimensions of Egyptian life, and a range of opinions on the Muslim Brotherhood’s downfall and the military takeover.
–Leon Hadar: A critic of the optimistic “Arab Spring” paradigm from early on, Hadar, who often argues from a historical perspective, has consistently opposed American interventionism in the Middle East. An analyst at Wikistrat, Hadar contributes to a number of publications, including The American Conservative and The National Interest.
—Hussein Ibish: A senior fellow at the American Task Force on Palestine, Ibish, a regular contributor to The Daily Beast (and elsewhere), supports an aggressive American policy in Syria. He’s also written in detail about the impact of ousted Egyptian president Mohamed Morsi’s overthrow on Hamas and the Gaza Strip.
—Syria Deeply: This site, which includes an interactive map, timeline, and descriptions of the major players, is extremely useful if your goal is to catch up on the basic facts of the conflict in Syria.
