Journalist Bullied By Trolls For No Makeup Broadcast

A top female journalist in Tunisia has been bullied by internet trolls after appearing on the state-controlled channel without makeup.

Tunisian journalist Fadoia Chtourou was the victim of online trolls after reporting on an attempted suicide attacker near the US embassy in the country’s capital Tunis for the state broadcaster “Watania 1”.

Images show Chtourou bravely reporting from the field with a microphone in her hand but online trolls were quick to criticise her for not wearing makeup.

One wrote: “A correspondent who respects viewers should be presentable as if she’s going on a date. Looking sloppy reflects disrespect to viewers. She has every right to look however she wants on her own time or in front of her mirror, but on TV there are rules to follow.”

On of the tweets expressing their support for the Tunisian journalist

Another said she “she should have put an extra effort to look presentable”.

However, other women were quick to back her up like YouTuber and blogger ‘Rymou beauty dz’ who wrote: “As soon as I heard the news I decided to express my thoughts, as professional journalists don’t have the time to go to beauty salons. Her time is dedicated to her work. What’s wrong with her looking real without makeup? If anything, it shows exceptional courage and confidence on her part.”

It is not the first time Egypt has been found focusing on the image of female reporters while not demanding the same for men.

In 2016 the then president of the Egyptian Radio and Television Union, Safaa Hijazi, decided to take 8 female broadcasters off air because of their extra weight, sparking sparked widespread controversy between supporters and opponents of the move.

At that time, Hegazy justified the decision that it came within the framework of “a plan to develop the Egyptian media organisation, and that the eight women broadcasters who were suspended from work could work in losing weight so that their looks matched the standards demanded on camera”.