Egypt abuzz as newsreader on state TV wears hijab

By: Scott Sayare, NY Times, September 2, 2012 In what was called a first for Egyptian state television, a woman wearing a head scarf presented headlines in a newscast on Sunday, breaking with a code of secular dress that for decades effectively barred the wearing of Islamic head coverings. The anchor, Fatma Nabil, wearing a dark suit coat and an off-white hijab that covered her hair and neck, presented headlines at noon on Channel 1, one of several television stations operated by the state. Her appearance provoked an online debate over whether Ms. Nabil's appearance might be one step in an effort by President Mohamed Morsi, a former leading member of the Muslim Brotherhood, to encourage a more Islamic sensibility on Egyptian newscasts and in society.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/03/world/middleea...

Egypt Middle East and North Africa Fatma Nabil media religious freedom Mohamed Morsi