Well ahead on release of Egyptian opposition leader

Reuters scored an impressive scoop on Egypt’s release of opposition leader Ayman Nour on Feb 18. The most populous Arab country is closely watched by investment strategists who need information on democracy, discontent and succession plans. The first Reuters alert, sourced to a prosecution source, moved at 16:08 GMT. Four minutes later, Cairo had confirmation from Nour’s wife. And just seven minutes later, Reuters was quoting the man himself saying he would continue to push for change in Egypt. Reuters was almost 30 minutes ahead of Dow Jones and more than 2 hours ahead of Bloomberg. The strong coverage continued with an analysis that explained that while Nour’s release would win goodwill from the United States, Egyptian authorities would most likely continue to silence dissent and obstruct and real democratisation.