SAGEM on World Press Freedom Day


Date: January 1, 1970
  • SHARE:

SAGEM (South African Gender and Media Network) on this World Press Freedom Day in South Africa asks its media partners to consider the notion of press freedom in relation to the transformation of society in relation to gender.

SAGEM (South African Gender and Media Network) on this World Press Freedom Day in South Africa asks its media partners to consider the notion of press freedom in relation to the transformation of society in relation to gender. What real changes need to occur within the media content and in media houses to concretely address issues of gender transformation? In his inaugural speech on the 27 April 2004, President Thabo Mbeki, made several references to the critical need to address the gender inequities that exist in South African society. He stated that democracy cannot be fully realized if women remain unemanicpated. As has been cited in many fora the media has a critical role to play in the transformation of this society.

There have many positive examples of gender coverage during the last elections. SAGEM applauds the many progressive efforts that have been made by the media over the past year to improve the coverage and depiction of women in the media. SAGEM members particularly welcomes the result of its most recent media monitoring exercise which found among others that there was an overall improvement in the number of positive messages about women politicians in the media. This research shows a welcome change in the nature of media coverage of women leaders. For women politicians, many of whom may be newly-elected into government following the recent elections, it will mean having to contend with a media that does not undermine the notion of women’s leadership.

An interesting shift in news coverage was notable on the 28 April 2004. President Mbeki announced the cabinet but several media led with the story of Norman Mashebane being found "not guilty" on 22 counts of sexual harassment in his appeal. The media’s response points to an awareness of the importance of such issues in a country dealing with very high levels of violence and harassment of women and children. While we celebrate the advances that have been made by the media in relation to gender, SAGEM would like to point to some of the challenges ahead.

SAGEM believes that the coverage of gender issues in the media during the last election is cause for concern. Gender coverage for the 2004 Elections across all the media covered was, with some exceptions, notably low. Although political parties received similar amounts of coverage, which rendered the coverage balanced and fair, the same cannot be said for gender issues. Women comprise 54% of the population of South Africa, but an average of only 22% of all sources accessed in the media monitored was female. Such a clear disparity raises the question as to whether such coverage is fair.

On the opposite end of the scale, mediums such as the Star, OFM, Bush Radio, the Mail & Guardian, and SABC 1 all carried 25% or higher female sources. The Star is to be commended for consistently averaging 40% female sources in the monitoring period. Overall, Die Beeld rated the best in the election ratings for their gender coverage and have set a high standard for other media to follow.

However, gender is about much more than just the number of sources. Gender impacts on the key challenges facing South Africa; from justice and the environment, to HIV/Aids, children, poverty and racism. Aside from a few notable exceptions, gender did not feature when these issues were discussed in the media. The virtual absence of clear gender policies in political parties’ manifestoes was seldom raised as a concern in the media. Female politicians are still poorly sourced: almost half the time a female politician is named only without being asked for her opinion. The findings of the Gender and Media Baseline Study of 2003, an initiative of Gender Links and the Media Institute of Southern Africa, shows:

That men still dominate the news both as sources and as practitioners (women=19% and men=81% of news sources).
That black women who constitute the majority of our population are underrepresented in news.
That when women are used as sources, their exercise seems at the best of times to be limited to the private and domestic scene – as homemakers, sex-workers, victims or ramp models.
That images of women politicians and leaders are seldom visible.
That older women disappear from sight and sound.

These statistics prove that women in the media are largely absent as sources and their representations are limited to very narrow definitions listed above.

There is a historic context of inequality of the sexes to be addressed in, by and through, particularly, the media. On the occasion of World Press Freedom Day, SAGEM calls on the media to remain consistent in its efforts to ensure fair, equitable and progressive coverage of women. SAGEM supports the appointment of Gender Champions in newsrooms to ensure consistent monitoring and arbitration of women and gender issues in the media.

For further information contact: Kubi Rama on 0823788239 or William Bird on 0828871370 or Raashied Galant on 0734697443.

SAGEM is the South African Gender and Media Network. SAGEM comprises institutional members such as the Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA), Gender Links, the Media Monitoring Project (MMP), the Gender Advocacy Project (GAP), the NIISA Institute for Women’s Development and Women’s Net, as well as individual members who strive for greater gender balance and sensitivity in the news.


Comment on SAGEM on World Press Freedom Day

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *