‘Overweight’ female talent yanked from Egyptian state TV: ‘It is humiliating’

Eight women who work for Egypt’s state-owned broadcaster have been denied time in front of the camera because they are allegedly “overweight.”

Egyptian Radio and Television Union told its female talent that they have one month to obtain an “appropriate appearance” for air time.

One of the presenters who was ordered to slim down, Khadija Khatab, told Al Watan newspaper that executives were merely targeting “successful” women.

“It is humiliating and even scandalous,” Khadija Khatab said, UAE’s Gulf News reported this week.

Eman Beibers, chair of the Cairo-based Association for the Development and Enhancement of Women, also criticized the move.

“Judging anybody on the basis of his or her body weight is not the right criterion,” she told the website. “Our problem is that we judge people by appearance rather than performance and content. It does not matter if the presenter is fat or thin as long as he or she does not use nasty words on the air and knows well how to deal with guests.”

Egyptian TV chairman Majdi Lasheen said the decision was an “alarm” for its employees to “pay attention to their appearances,” Gulf News reported.