Al-Ahram News Suspends Eight “overweight” Anchorwomen

Erin Cook

WLD-201

Matthew Klane

September 11, 2016

Al-Ahram News Suspends Eight “Overweight” Anchorwomen

Earlier this week, Safaa Hegazy, the director of the Al-Ahram news network, banned eight women from appearing on air for a month. In the NY Times article, “Egypt Suspends 8 Female TV Anchors, Saying They Are Overweight,” by Nour Youssef, she digs for information on the actions made by Safaa. Egyptian woman in the news and reporting industry are very restricted on the news they may report and the tone in which they report it. On top of the already inappropriate suspensions that were made, it has been confirmed that these eight women have also been ordered go on diets during the suspension. Khadija Khatab, one of the reporters in question, has said that she is extremely offended and noted that the media coverage following her has been insulting and sexist. “I believe I am an ordinary Egyptian woman who looks normal,” She said, causing backlash from many people who apparently disagreed. Fatma al-Shawari, a writer for Al-Ahram, supports the suspension and sees it as a way of improving the networks low ratings, insinuating that the appearance of anchorwomen is more important than the actual news. There are also many who are on the side of these women, “It has nothing to do with looks. But it goes to show that actual skill is not something they care about. The fact that it is a woman who is doing all of this just makes it all the worse.” Stated Mostafa Shawkey, a highly influential free-press advocate.

Works Cited

Youssef, Nour. "Egypt Suspends 8 Female TV Anchors, Saying They Are Overweight." The New York Times. The New York Times, 17 Aug. 2016. Web. 11 Sept. 2016.