CAIRO: Several Egyptian journalists have left their columns blank in daily papers to protest the appointments by the upper house of parliament of 50 new editors for state-owned publications. Many of the newly -appointed editors are known for their Islamist views.
 
Instead of their pieces in Thursday's editions of independent newspapers, the columnists wrote short notes explaining their protest and denouncing what they describe as the Brotherhood's attempt to control the state-owned press.
 
The upper house is dominated by Islamists, mostly from President Mohammed Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood. The fundamentalist group has complained about negative press coverage, both of the Brotherhood and of Morsi.
 
The upper house, known as the Shura Council, is formally the owner of the country's state press, including such flagship publications as the dailies Al-Ahram and Al-Akhbar.