Getting the balance right: gender equality in journalism; 2009 - Fokus

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IFJ Guidelines for reportingon violence against womenViolence against women and girls remains under reported, or badly reported, in thenews. Additionally, the 2005 GMMP reveals that domestic and sexual violence arethe least reported subjects among those where women are portrayed as a victim.“Reporting on such a sensitive issue cannot be improvised. It requiresprofessionalism, humanity and respect. A failure to apply the highest standards indealing with those affected such as poor conduct of interviews can compound thetrauma and may even add to the suffering and worsen the long-term impact of theordeal on survivors”, Aidan White, IFJ General secretary.1Identify violence against women accurately through the internationallyaccepted definition in the 1993 UN Declaration on the Elimination of ViolenceAgainst Women.2Use accurate, non-judgmental language. For instance, rape or sexual assaultis not in any way to be associated with normal sexual activity; and traffickingin women is not to be confused with prostitution. Good journalists will strike a balancewhen deciding how much graphic detail to include. Too much may be sensationalistand can be gratuitous; too little can weaken the victim’s case. At all times, thelanguage of reporting should avoid suggestions that the survivors may be to blame, orwere otherwise responsible for the attack or acts of violence against them.3People who suffer in such an ordeal will not wish to be described as a‘victim’ unless they use the word themselves. The use of labels can beharmful. A term that more accurately describes the reality of a person who hassuffered in this way is ‘survivor.’4Sensitive reporting means ensuring that contact for media interviews meetsthe needs of the survivor. A female interviewer should be on hand and thesetting must always be secure and private, recognising that there may be asocial stigma attached. Media must do everything they can to avoid exposing theinterviewee to further abuse. This includes avoiding actions that may underminetheir quality of life or their standing in the community.18 GENDER EQUALITY IN JOURNALISM
5Treat the survivor with respect. For journalists this means respecting privacy,providing detailed and complete information about the topics to be coveredin any interview, as well as how it will be reported. Survivors have the right torefuse to answer any questions or not to divulge more than they are comfortable with.Journalists should make themselves available for later contact; providing contact detailsto interviewee will ensure they are able to keep in contact if they wish or need to do so.6Use statistics and social background information to place the incident withinthe context of violence in the community, or conflict. Readers and the mediaaudience need to be informed of the bigger picture. The opinion of experts onviolence against women such as the DART centre will always increase the depthof understanding by providing relevant and useful information. This will alsoensure that media never give the impression that violence against women has aninexplicable tragedy that cannot be solved.7Tell the whole story: sometimes media identify specific incidents and focus on thetragic aspects of it, but reporters do well to understand that abuse might be partof a long-standing social problem, armed conflict, or part of a community history.8Maintain confidentiality: as part of their duty of care media and journalistshave an ethical responsibility not to publish or broadcast names or identifyplaces that in any way might further compromise the safety and security ofsurvivors or witnesses. This is particularly important when those responsible forviolence are the police, or troops in a conflict, or agents of the state or government,or people connected with other large and powerful organisations.9Use local resources: Media who take contact with experts, women groups andorganisations on the ground about proper interviewing techniques, questionsand places will always do good work and avoid situations—such as where it isunacceptable for male camera workers or reporters to enter a secluded place—which can cause embarrassment or hostility. There is always virtue in reporterseducating themselves on the specific cultural contexts and respect them.Provide Useful Information: reports that include details of sources and the10contact details of local support organizations and services will providevital and helpful information for survivors/witnesses and their families and otherswho may be affected.GENDER EQUALITY IN JOURNALISM19
Page 2 and 3: Publisher information: Internationa
Page 4 and 5: FOREWORDThe designation of gender e
Page 6 and 7: PREFACEOne of the greatest challeng
Page 8 and 9: “[Gender equality] does not mean
Page 10 and 11: Journalism is no exception. Inside
Page 12 and 13: While statistics show that more and
Page 14 and 15: High stress levels, bullying andhar
Page 16 and 17: from poor work practice can go unad
Page 18 and 19: AVOIDING SEXUAL ABUSE OF WOMEN REPO
Page 20 and 21: Sarah Rainsford reporting for the B
Page 22 and 23: The GMMP says that womenare more li
Page 24 and 25: (A good check is to ask yourself if
Page 28 and 29: Fariba Khani, Social Desk Reporter,
Page 30 and 31: Women in journalists’ unions (IFJ
Page 32 and 33: Learn about women rights that exist
Page 34 and 35: join a union if women issues are ta
Page 36 and 37: GENDER MAINSTREAMING“Mainstreamin
Page 38 and 39: Push for gender equality provisions
Page 40 and 41: Camerawoman at the 1 st Congress of
Page 42 and 43: Who Makes the News?Global Media Mon
Page 44 and 45: http://www.ilo.org/ilolex/english/c
Page 46 and 47: International Federation of Journal
Page 48 and 49: Institute for the Advancement of ab
Page 50 and 51: Harassment may be characterised as:
Page 52 and 53: Formal ProcedureAt any time, whethe
Page 54 and 55: ANNEXE BIFJ GENDER POLICIESPASSED A
Page 56 and 57: with employers; consultation rights
Page 58 and 59: to make it a top priority of the IF

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