 Qandil was well known for his pan-Arabist discourse and fierce criticism of the Egyptian and other Arab governments.According to Al-Ahram Center for Political and Strategic Studies political analyst Diaa Rashwan, Qandil "is a great Egyptian journalist and highly credible, he is bold and gives constructive criticism ... people listen to him and take what he says seriously, which is why he poses a threat" to the government.Prior to the Egyptian revolution, Qandil co-founded the National Association for Change, a reformist group headed by Mohamed ElBaradei.