Amid an atmosphere of awe, excitement, and celebration, hundreds of millions of viewers across all five continents followed the live broadcast of the historic opening of the Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM) by President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, with the participation of delegations from nearly 80 countries in attendance. The historic event was broadcast by thousands of television channels and digital streaming platforms, while even larger audiences around the world followed recordings, clips, photos, news, and commentary from the opening ceremony.

Media monitoring conducted by Egypt’s State Information Service (SIS) over the past two days confirmed the historic scale of coverage.

Journalist Diaa Rashwan, SIS Chairman, stated that around-the-clock monitoring of television channels and digital streaming platforms on social media revealed that the vast majority of TV networks and digital outlets broadcast extensive coverage of the Grand Egyptian Museum’s opening. This included leading international news and political channels, as well as dozens of photo news agencies in multiple languages.

SIS Chairman noted that the monitored television and digital broadcasts were not only limited to the countries whose leaders and representatives (79 countries) attended the opening, but also coverage extended to dozens of other countries and cross-border media outlets, representing one of the widest live broadcasts, real-time coverage, and pre- and post-event reporting of any cultural event worldwide in decades.

Journalist Diaa Rashwan, Chairman of the State Information Service (SIS), noted that some major television networks broadcast the entire ceremony with foreign-language translation, while others aired segments ranging from a few minutes to a full hour, often repeating news coverage and video clips within news programs. These broadcasts included background information on Pharaonic civilization’s treasures and details about the museum, highlighting Egypt’s comprehensive renaissance in infrastructure across service, economic, cultural, and social sectors.

Rashwan emphasized that the clear and positive global media coverage of the Grand Egyptian Museum’s opening—spanning several days before, during, and after the ceremony—placed Egypt prominently in the spotlight of international media. The event was followed by over one billion people worldwide, across diverse cultures and languages. He described this as an invaluable national achievement, significantly enhancing Egypt’s international image, promoting tourism, reinforcing its standing among civilizations, and showcasing a unique state of peace, stability, and security in its regional and global context.

Diaa Rashwan added that, in addition to television channels and live, recorded, and news streaming platforms, the SIS also monitored the coverage by leading international newspapers and news websites over the past two days. The monitoring recorded 705 key articles and reports across 215 major media outlets worldwide, focusing on the museum’s opening, Egypt’s cultural treasures, and the ceremony itself, before, during, and after the event.

The media monitoring revealed that these 705 reports and articles were published by top international media organizations across different countries, with 98% of the coverage being positive.

Diaa Rashwan explained that international media closely followed Egypt’s cultural and civilizational vision, step by step, and regarded the Grand Egyptian Museum as one of the major projects championed by President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi. Since taking office in 2014, the President has overseen substantial investments in the country’s infrastructure to revive an economy weakened by decades of stagnation and severely impacted by the 2011 unrest. Despite the challenges encountered during the museum’s construction, President El-Sisi insisted on completing the project, forming a dedicated team to bring it to fruition, resulting in the largest museum in the world dedicated to a single civilization.

International media have framed the museum as a new statement reinforcing Egypt’s pivotal role on the global stage, highlighting that Egypt is not only the cradle of civilizations but also a central force in shaping the global cultural landscape. The international press celebrated the inauguration of the museum as a landmark cultural event.

The Chairman of the State Information Service emphasized that international media have regarded the Grand Egyptian Museum as an architectural and cultural icon, blending the heritage of the past with the vision of the future. The museum is not merely a tourist or archaeological site; it carries profound civilizational and human significance. For the first time, it showcased the complete treasures of Pharaoh Tutankhamun—more than 5,000 artifacts discovered in his legendary tomb—in an exhibition that amazed the world.

Leading newspapers, news websites, and international news agencies across the United States, Europe, neighboring countries, Asia, Africa, and the Arab world published approximately 705 media items before, during, and after the opening ceremony. These were distributed geographically as follows:

• 63 items (9%) by American media
• 254 items (36%) by European media, reflecting the high interest of European outlets—especially French, British, German, and Spanish—in Egyptian tourism and antiquities, particularly the museum’s opening
• 44 items (6%) by media in neighboring countries
• 132 items (19%) by Asian media, notably Japanese outlets, as Japan was a primary foreign contributor to the museum’s construction
• 18 items (3%) by African media, most of which were sourced from European agencies
• 194 items (28%) by Arab media, particularly Saudi and Emirati outlets

This extensive coverage underscores the global attention and appreciation for the Grand Egyptian Museum and its role in showcasing Egypt’s cultural legacy.

These media materials were published across outlets in North America (the United States and Canada); Latin America (Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Cuba); Europe (the United Kingdom, France, Spain, Germany, Italy, Russia, Belgium, Greece, Cyprus, Switzerland, Ukraine, and others); neighboring countries (Turkey, Iran, Israel); Asia (China, India, Pakistan, Malaysia, Japan, Indonesia, Vietnam, South Korea, Australia, and others); Africa (Nigeria, Ghana, Ethiopia, South Africa, Sudan, and others); and in nearly all media outlets across the Arab world without exception.

The Ceremony Covered by 215 Global Newspapers and Websites

Approximately 215 major international media outlets with significant reach and influence covered the opening of the Grand Egyptian Museum. The breakdown by region is as follows:

25 American outlets (12%)

68 European outlets (32%)

24 outlets from neighboring countries (11%)

56 Asian outlets (26%)

10 African outlets (5%)

32 Arab world outlets (15%)

It should be noted that this count does not include repeated coverage by outlets that published multiple reports.

Translated by SIS