#TIME » Bassem Youssef Abruptly Cancels Egyptian Satire Show Before
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TIME World Egypt

Bassem Youssef Abruptly Cancels Egyptian Satire Show Before Sisi Declared
President

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He also insinuated that he refused to continue to air the show while
watering down its caustic style of political satire. Youssef modeled
his show on Jon Stewart’s The Daily Show, savaging politicians and
media figures of all stripes. He said the network, Saudi-owned MBC

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crossed one too many lines in April 2013, when prosecutors under the
government of Muslim Brotherhood leader Morsi issued an arrest warrant
for him. A satirist to the core, Youssef appeared at Egypt’s High Court
wearing an enormous version of a cylindrical black graduation hat Morsi
had worn in Pakistan. He was released the same day on bail.

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“The red lines conversely inspire creativity,” said Jonathan Guyer, a
senior editor of the Cairo Review of Global Affairs and a writer who
studies Egyptian political satire. “This happened under Mubarak.
Because nobody was publishing drawings of Mubarak, everyone found a
workaround to draw Mubarak. I wouldn’t be surprised if the people on