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Summary

report

Collection of methods, tools andgood practices in the field of

women and the media


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More information on the European Union is available on the Internet (http://europa.eu).

Cataloguing data can be found at the end of this publication.

Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union, 2014

ISBN 987-92-9218-495-7

doi:10.2839/77773

European Institute for Gender Equality, 2014Reproduction is authorised provided the source is acknowledged.

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Collection of methods, tools and

good practices in the field ofwomen and the media

Summary report


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The European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE) is an autonomous body of theEuropean Union, established to contribute to and strengthen the promotion of gender

equality, including gender mainstreaming in all EU policies and the resulting nationalpolicies, and the fight against discrimination based on sex, as well as to raise EU citizensawareness of gender equality. Further information can be found on the EIGE website(http://www.eige.europa.eu).

European Institute for Gender Equality

Gedimino pr. 16LT-01103 VilniusLITHUANIA

Tel. +370 52157444E-mail: [email protected]://www.eige.europa.euhttp://www.twitter.com/eurogenderhttp://www.facebook.com/eige.europa.euhttp://www.youtube.com/eurogender


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Collection of methods, tools and good practices in the field of women and the mediaAchieving equality for women in the media

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Contents ..........................................................................................................................3

Introduction ....................................................................................................................4

The challenges ................................................................................................................5

The policy context ..........................................................................................................7

Good practices ................................................................................................................9

Criteria for assessment of good practices in the area of women and media ..........10

Monitoring ....................................................................................................................12

Training for gender equality........................................................................................14

Awareness-raising ........................................................................................................16

Self-regulation ..............................................................................................................17

New directions ..............................................................................................................18

Endnotes ....................................................................................................................... 20

Contents


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6

Introduction

IntroductionIntroduction

The Fourth World Conference on Womenidentified Women in the media as a criticalarea of concern. One objective in the BeijingPlatform for Action was to increase womensparticipation in and access to expressionand decision-making in and through themedia and new communication technologies.

Expression in and through the media encom-

passes participation by women in the crea-tion of media products and the presence andweight of womens voices within media con-tent. Decision-making encompasses partici-pation by women in top-level managementpositions in media organisations and top-level editorial positions with responsibility formedia policymaking and production.

This report is based on a study commissioned

by the European Institute for Gender Equalityon Methods, tools and good practices in thefield of women in the media. The study lastedfrom August 2012 until May 2013. Several ac-tivities have been implemented as part of thestudy. The study reviewed relevant policies

and literature in the field. A mapping of stake-holders working in the field of women and themedia at institutional level and at organisa-tional level was carried out. An online surveyof 166 stakeholders was conducted. The map-ping exercise and survey enabled the collec-tion of methods and tools used to increaseand improve the participation of womenin expression as well as in decision-making

within media companies. The mapped toolsinclude monitoring, self-regulation, aware-ness-raising and gender training initiatives.Qualitative criteria for the identification andassessment of good practices in the area ofwomen and the media were developed. Thepractices identified as having potential wereshared and assessed in a consultation meet-ing that gathered experts and professionals inthe field and that selected 14 good practices.

The study collected a body of resources, in-cluding recent literature on the areas of con-cern for the project as well as recent refer-ences to the issue of gender stereotypes inthe media.


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7

The challenges

The challenges

Progress towards gender equality for womenin the media has been slow. Five challengescan be identified in the study Methods, toolsand good practices in the field of women inthe media.

The first one is that women experience signifi-cant inequalities in participation in and accessto decision-making in media organisations.

Many of the employment obstacles faced bywomen in the media industry are similar tothose faced more generally by women in thelabour market. These include discriminationat the point of recruitment, a gender pay gap,precarious conditions of employment andvertical segregation. According to a 2011 studyby the International Womens Media Founda-tion (1), for example, examining more than 500companies in nearly 60 countries, women oc-

cupy only 26 % of the governing positions and27 % of the top management jobs.

Research carried out by EIGE on womenand the media establishes the centrality ofwomens participation in decision-makingin media organisations to change within thissector towards gender equality. It identifiedsignificant gender inequalities in decision-making within media organisations. It foundthat While women have considerably out-

numbered men in university level and prac-tice-based journalism programmes (Eurostat,Education Statistics, 2010) and women are em-ployed in media professions in ever-increasingnumbers (Eurostat LFS, 2011) the organisa-tional culture of media organisations remainslargely masculine and women are still sig-nificantly under-represented in the decision-making structures of media organisations. (2)

The media labour market also presents specificfeatures that need to be taken into account.

The industry is characterised by temporarywork and discontinuous careers. The specificneeds of freelancers and temporary workershave to be taken into account. Media profes-sions are varied and not confined to journal-ists. There are strong gender biases in all areasof the media industry, but these are especiallyprevalent in the technical professions. Allmedia professions need to be taken into ac-

count in addressing the situation of women inthe media, including electricians, video opera-tors, video editors, sound mixers and writers.

Secondly, women experience significant in-equalities in participation in and access toexpression in and through the media. Thereis a form of segregation where women workin areas of soft news rather than hard newsand are, therefore, not engaged in those posi-

tions with potential to shape public opinion.According to a 2010 Global Media MonitoringProject report (3), for example, women makeup only 20 % of experts and 19 % of spokes-persons in the news.

The third challenge is that there is a lack ofpolicies directly addressing gender equalityin the media industry. Policies that do refer tothe media are predominantly focused on gen-der stereotypes and womens portrayal in the

media, and neglect gender equality withinthe media industry and womens access to theproduction of media products.

Governments and public institutions are waryof media regulation due to a commitment tofreedom of expression. It is important to notethat promoting gender equality in the mediais not an interference with freedom of expres-sion but a means for women to achieve full

access to freedom of expression.


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8

The challenges

The fourth challenge is that academics toohave paid little attention to issues of womensparticipation in and access to expression anddecision-making in and through the media.

The aspect of the media that has been mostwidely investigated by academics relates tothe portrayal of women in the media.

Finally, media organisations have been reluc-tant to engage with the issue of inequality ofwomen in the media. Womens associations,

journalist unions and NGOs are the drivingforces for change in relation to women in themedia. It is these organisations that imple-ment a large proportion of the methods andtools for gender equality found in the mediaindustry. The methods and tools collected inthe study were mostly implemented by NGOs(25 %), professional associations (20 %), indus-try associations (18 %) and statutory equalitybodies (19 %). The figure for media organisa-tions was 17 %.


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9

The policy context

The policy context

There are policies on gender balance in de-cision-making at a European level. However,reference to the media in these policies is lim-ited. Policies that refer to the media focus ongender stereotypes and womens portrayal inthe media.

Research conducted by EIGE (4) identifieddecisions, directives and recommendations

adopted by EU institutions that could beused by all private organisations, includingmedia organisations, to promote genderequality and foster the advancement ofwomen in their organisations. It further notedthe work of the European Commission in ad-dressing the relationship between womenand the media in the broader context of poli-cies to foster equal opportunities betweenwomen and men. In particular it referred

to the focus in the 'Strategy for equality be-tween women and men 201015' (5)on persis-tent inequalities between women and men indecision-making positions.

Overall EIGE research found that the criticalarea of women and the media as a policy-relevant issue is hampered by the fact that itis nested at the crossroads of several differentareas of policy debate and European Unioninstitutional intervention; that is, those of gen-

der equality promotion, including frameworkprogrammes adopted at EU level, of mediapolicy that has rarely engaged with the ideaof equality between women and men andalso with gender mainstreaming, and morerecently, the measures promoted to improvewomens presence in decision-making in theEU. The research concludes that explicit poli-cies which encourage media industries to en-able more women to reach decision-making

positions in the media industry are lacking'. (2)

There are few laws at national level that explic-itly address the media industry from a genderequality perspective. Equal treatment legisla-tion in the Member States prohibits discrimina-tion in employment and allows positive actionon the ground of gender. This is important butmakes no specific reference to the media.

There are exceptions. The ZDF Treaty (31 Au-

gust 1991) (6) in Germany requires that 39 outof 77 members of the board of this public tele-vision company be women and that the equalopportunities commissioner of ZDF must en-sure the realisation of gender equality objec-tives within the company. In Italy the Docu-ment of the Parliamentary Committee for theGeneral Supervision of Broadcasting (30 July1997) (7) requires the public broadcastingcompany (RAI) to promote the acquisition of

power and agency by its women employees.Legislation in France on audiovisual commu-nication and the new public television service(5 March 2009) (8) reinforces the role of theConseil Superior de lAudiovisuel (AudiovisualHigher Council) in promoting diversity, includ-ing gender. It specifies the expectations of thestate on diversity in all media, particularly thepublic broadcaster (France Tlvisions).

National authorities have issued regulations

governing media and communication. How-ever, most focus on gender stereotypes, jour-nalists behaviour and the issue of respect fordiversity and human dignity.

In Malta there is, however, the example of theGuidelines on Gender Equality and Gender Por-trayal in the Broadcasting Media issued in 2007by the Malta Broadcasting Authority (9). Theguidelines state that men and women should

have equal responsibilities in the broadcasting


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10

The policy context

industry, broadcasters should ensure bothwomen and men secure equal access to allareas and levels of the broadcasting mediaand broadcasting companies should recruit agender-balanced staff.

Codes of conduct are used as a form of self-regulation by a number of media companies.

They tend to be used by public bodies. TheCode of Czech Television (2003), the DiversityCell and Diversity Charter at VRT in Belgium(2003), the Gender Equality Policy for PublicService Television, SVT, in Sweden (2008), the

Plan on Gender Equality for Austrian Broadcast-ing, ORT, (2012), and the Gender Equality Policyfor the Finnish Broadcasting Company, YLE,(2012) all promote gender equality within thesecompanies. In France there is the Act of Com-mitment for a Process of Self-Regulation (2012)that covers the media in general and includes

a commitment from public and private compa-nies to increase the proportion of women ex-perts appearing in programmes/articles.

EIGE research on women and the media (10)

found that the majority of media organisa-tions have remained resistant to change andprogress. The research usefully differentiatesbetween passive general commitments andproactive action plans for gender equalitywithin organisations. It concludes that poli-cies should ensure that those strategies (withinmedia organisations) move beyond a pas-

sive general commitment to gender equa-lity towards proactive action plans to pro-mote equality within organisations. Currently,the mere presence of codes of conduct topromote gender equality in many organisa-tions, including media organisations, is not asufficient condition for change.


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11

Good practices

Good practices

The process of identifying good practices inthe field of women and the media involvedassessment against general criteria of gooddesign and efficiency, against criteria relatedto the specific practice being considered andagainst criteria directly connected with thefield of women and the media and, morespecifically, directly connected to the focuson access to and participation in expression

and of access to and participation in decision-making that are the two objectives set by theBeijing Platform for Action in Area J (Womenand the Media).

A step-by-step process was used in the iden-tification of good practice, following the ap-proach developed by EIGE. All the methodsand tools identified were scanned and a firstselection was made on the general criteria

of good design and efficiency. A number ofpractices with potential were then identi-fied from this initial selection. Experts andstakeholders with relevant experience onthe topic were identified and invited to par-ticipate in the assessment process. A consul-tation meeting then provided the context inwhich practices with potential were analysedand discussed by the experts and stakehold-ers to achieve agreed identification of goodpractices.

Those good practices do not have the ambi-tion to represent the absolute and most effec-tive approaches in the EU but they do standout as relevant, effective and viable optionsto overcome gender inequalities in the area of

women and media. They also aim to supportpolicymakers and professionals to improve theeffectiveness of relevant policies and practices.

The methods and tools addressing equalityfor women in the media, found in the studyMethods, Tools and Good Practices in theField of Women in the Media, include moni-toring activities, training activities, awareness-

raising actions, and self-regulation initiatives.There was a prevalence of monitoring activi-ties (40 %) over the other types of action. Thiscompares to training (24 %), awareness-raising(18 %) and self-regulation (18 %). This suggeststhat many media organisations may still be atthe stage where the priority is to establish aclear picture of the gender inequalities and tomake gender inequality visible.

Methods and tools supporting womens ac-cess to expression are more widespread thanthose supporting womens access to decision-making. In particular, monitoring initiatives,training activities and awareness-raising ac-tions tend to support womens participationin and access to expression. Self-regulationactions tend to support womens access todecision-making.

Gender equality in the media requires a long-

term perspective on and commitment to theinitiatives taken. The transformation requiredfor gender equality is structural in nature. Ef-fective approaches to gender equality needto be sustainable and adequately financed.


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Criteria for assessment of good practices in the area of women and media

Criteria for assessment of good practices in the

area of women and media

First set of EIGEs basic criteria: Basic ele-

ments for defining a practice with potential

1. Works well.2. Transferable.3. Has learning potential.4. Embedded within wider gender main-

streaming strategy.

Second set of criteria: Womens participa-

tion in and access to expression and deci-

sion-making specific criteria common for

all practices with potential

1. Approach centred on the role of women inthe social construction of reality.

2. Clear, appropriate, comprehensive definition

of womens access to and participation inexpression in and through the media.3. Enables women to access prestigious roles

in and through the media.4. Enables women to access all the professional

roles involved in media production.5. Increases womens chances of having a

voice in all the thematic domains coveredby media.

6. Contrasts womens segregation in thethematic domains considered to be for

womens interest/expertise only.

7. Increases womens chances of having avoice in all the media products.

8. Clear, appropriate, comprehensive definitionof womens access to and participation indecision-making within media organisations.

9. Promotes balanced participation ofwomen in decision-making within media

organisations (access to top-level positionsand to editorial positions, in charge ofpolicymaking and production).

10. Increases the attention given to womenssocial, economic and cultural issues.

11. Promotes the creation of womens formalor informal networks.

12. Promotes work/life balance and workerswell-being.

13. Promotes womens careers within media

organisations at any level.14. Ensures gender equality by promotingtransparency in the organisation of work.

15. Acknowledges and tackles forms ofmultiple discrimination that intersect withgender discrimination.

Third set of criteria: Practices with po-

tential, specific elements for the field of

intervention

See opposite.


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Criteria for assessment of good practices in the area of women and media

Monitoring of ac-cess of women toexpression

Monitoring of ac-cess of women todecision-making

Self-regulation

for genderequality

Gender

training

Awareness-

raising

Clear definition ofthe monitoringpurposes

Clear definition ofthe monitoringpurposes

Self-regulationtools intended toincrease womensaccess to rolesenhancing theirintellectual skillsand competences

Clear definition ofgender trainingpurposes

Clear definition ofawareness-raisinggoal(s)

Monitoringgrounded in a cleardefinition of access

to expression

Monitoringgrounded in a cleardefinition of access

to decision-making

Self-regulationtools intendedto give women a

voice in the mediaproducts that aremore relevant inpublic opinionshaping

Well-developedstrategy

Clearly definedtarget

Monitoringconducted on aregular basis

Monitoringconducted on aregular basis

Self-regulationtools intended topromote womensparticipation inmedia productionprocess at any level

Well-designedagenda

Clear message

Dissemination ofmonitoring results

Dissemination ofmonitoring results

Self-regulationtools intended topromote accessof women todecision-making inthe media

Addressing realproblems

Centred onwomens expertiseand skills

Monitoringconducted usinga clearly definedand consistentmethodologicalapproach

Monitoringconducted usinga clearly definedand consistentmethodologicalapproach

Self-regulationtools aiming to pro-mote a transparentorganisation ofwork, based onclearly defined andshared criteria inpromotion andtasks management

Not holdingwomenresponsible fordiscrimination

Well disseminated

Involvement ofgender experts andmedia experts inmonitoring

Involvement ofgender experts andmedia experts inmonitoring

Stable, long-lastingnature of self-regulation toolsadopted to redressgender imbalances

Gender and themedia-specificcontent

Addressing genderimbalance asa communityproblem

Strong basis inwomen and themedia issues

Gender skills andexpertise of trainers


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Monitoring

Monitoring

Monitoring methods and tools are the mostwidespread and they accounted for 40 % of allthe methods and tools identified in the study.Good practice in monitoring initiatives requiresthe involvement of experts in gender equalityand in the media. Monitoring needs to have aclearly defined purpose, be conducted on a regu-lar basis and have its results widely disseminated.It most often focuses on womens participation in

and access to expression in and through the me-dia. It includes databases and directories of wom-en experts in various fields for the use of mediaprofessionals when specific expertise is needed.Directories of women media experts and journal-ists are also used and serve as a networking toolto support womens professional advancement.

Surveys and checklists are used to analysemedia content. In some cases user groups

evaluate the degree of equal representation ofmen and women by regularly watching, listen-ing to or reading media outputs. Studies canalso assist with monitoring and are importantboth in providing an evidence-based perspec-tive on gender equality and in documentingprogress. Some companies have establishedadvisory committees to monitor genderequality.

Good practice in monitoring initiatives requiresthe involvement of experts in gender equal-ity and in the media. Monitoring needs tohave a clearly defined purpose, be conductedon a regular basis and have its results widelydisseminated.

Six good practice methods and tools wereidentified in the study.

Method/tool Description

Database of professional womenin the media with a genderperspective developed in 2012by Coordinadora Espaola delLobby Europeo de Mujeres (CELEM Spanish Coordinator of theEuropean Womens Lobby)

This directory of women journalists with a gender perspective wascreated to enable networking among these journalists. The specificpurpose of the initiative is to increase the quantity and quality ofinformation about gender in the media. One result of the initiativehas been to raise awareness among media professionals about theneed for visibility of women.

Directory of Experts implementedsince 2011 by France Tlvisions This directory of experts is used to increase the number and pro-portion of women experts appearing in television programmes. Itincludes 100 experts who were individually vetted for quality by theDirector of Diversity in Programmes. The experts are drawn from arange of profiles in terms of gender, age, ethnicity and disability.

The directory has been placed on France Tlvisions' intranetsystem and promoted to all the directors of channels. A diversityrepresentative has been appointed in each channel to promote itsuse. The impact of the directory is assessed on a weekly basis by thechannels themselves using a self-monitoring online tool.


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Monitoring


Kvinfo Database implemented

since 1997 by Kon-Viden Informa-tion Forskning (Kvinfo DanishCentre for Information on Gender,Equality and Diversity)

The objectives of this directory are to provide journalists, employers,

conference organisers and others with a user-friendly tool to findwomen experts with specific qualifications in a wide range of fields,to make women experts visible to the media and journalists and toincrease the weight and visibility of womens voices in the media.

Questionnaire to women journal-ists, implemented in 2006 by theNational Union of Journalists (NUJ)in the United Kingdom

This was a one-off survey of women members of the NUJ. The NUJwanted to reach out to women working in the industry.

The objectives of the survey were: to identify the experiences andproblems related to gender that the women members have had atwork; to start organising these women to work collectively on theissues identified; and to find out what they thought the NUJ coulddo in response to the issues identified.

The survey identified patterns, themes and priorities for the NUJ totake forward in its work.

Website Zeroviolenzadonne.it implemented since 2009by Zeroviolenzadonne.it (ZeroViolence against Women) in Italy

This project involves a daily press review of the space dedicated towomen and gender issues in the media. It aims to raise awarenessof the imbalance in the presence of women in the media in terms ofrepresentation and in terms of access as journalists, media produc-ers and decision-makers. It provides a space for debate on the issuesrelating to the visibility of women in the media.

Actively seeking womens opinionon male-dominated subjectsimplemented since 2000 by Trud

Dailyin Bulgaria

The objective of this initiative is to increase the visibility and weightof womens voices in the coverage of Trud Daily. The deputy editorsand editors-in-chief actively seek womens opinion by identifying

women from among popular and competent bloggers, freelancersand women in civil society.

Women who collaborate with Trud Dailyare not expected to be pro-fessionals or to be officially recognised as an expert in a field. Theyneed to be competent in the topic covered. This policy has resultedin an increasing number of womens voices in the newspaper.


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Training for gender equality


Training initiatives represented 24 % of all themethods and tools collected in the study. Theyinclude standard training courses and mentor-ing programmes as well as toolkits, manualsand handbooks. Most address gender issuesin terms of media content. Training coursesand modules to support womens careers andguidelines for staff on gender issues in theworkplace are less widespread.

Most training activities are aimed atempowering women, regardless of whetherthey are working in the media or are expertsin a particular field. The aim of the training isto support women to access high-profile rolesin the media and to improve the gender bal-ance in decision-making positions in mediaorganisations.

Few training activities are tailored for mediaorganisations to train management, human re-sources personnel or other staff. This is unfortu-nate, given that training is so important in sup-porting the necessary capacity developmentat management level, particularly in relation togender equality skills.

Good practice in training initiatives requires

trainers with gender expertise. Content shouldbe specific to gender in the media. Good prac-tice requires a clear definition of purpose anda training agenda that produces actionableoutcomes. Good practice ensures that womenare not held responsible for discrimination theyexperience. Four good practice methods andtools were identified in the study.


Training courses run in 2011by Ariadna, Asociatia FemeilorJournaliste din Romania (RomanianWomen Journalists Association)

A number of training activities on women in the media wereprovided as part of a wider gender equality programme. Specificobjectives for the training included: to enhance knowledge, skillsand awareness of gender issues; to increase womens access tomedia products; and to increase womens agency and responsibilityfor policymaking and production in media organisations.

Between 80 and 100 media professionals from print, radio, televisionand online media organisations participated in each course. Traineeshad the advantage of networking and working together. Coursesincluded teaching modules and electronic course handbooks.

Training courses for womenexperts provided since 2009 byVrouwen in de media (VIDM Women in the Media)

The objectives for this training provision are to redress the genderimbalance in experts access to expression through the media and,specifically, to inform and train women to claim their position in themedia and secure greater visibility.

Training courses are for 1025 participants, provide information onnewsmaking systems and processes and explain how journalistsselect news and how they find people to be interviewed. Traineesreceive information about the best way to become visible and topresent themselves.


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Mentoring programme for womenjournalists organised since 2011 bythe Journalistinnenbund (League

of Women Journalists) in Germany

This programme seeks to support women journalists to improvetheir careers. It provides advice, support and coaching from olderand more experienced journalists to women freelancers and to

women starting a career in the field.It is based on volunteers, although it was initially funded by thegovernment. Seventy women journalists have benefited from theprogramme to date. The programme has also facilitated networkingamong women journalists.

Mentoring for women working inthe film and TV industry organisedsince 2010 by WFTV (Women inFilm and Television)

This initiative seeks to improve womens confidence and give themtools to help to advance their careers. It aims to build their knowl-edge of the industry through peer-to-peer sharing of up-to-dateinformation, particularly about what skills are required for different

jobs in the industry. It seeks to provide good mentoring and supportand to encourage collaboration between the women involved.

Twenty women, with 5 to 10 years of experience in the film and TVindustry, are involved annually. Six hours of mentoring contact andfortnightly seminars are provided over 6 months.


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Awareness-raising

Awareness-raising

Awareness-raising initiatives accounted for 18 %of the methods and tools collected in the study.

They include campaigns to stimulate commit-ment and understanding among media profes-sionals of gender balance through the inclusionof women as experts, reporters and decision-makers in media companies. Other campaignsare to raise the confidence of women workingin the media. Initiatives also include conferences

and seminars where relevant data, good prac-tices and research findings are presented. Theseevents provide an opportunity to examine theissue of women in the media.

Awareness-raising initiatives are key to build-ing a responsive and conscious environmentfor media equality within media organisations,particularly at a decision-making level. Goodpractice awareness-raising requires a clearlydefined target group, involves clear messagesand spreads concepts that empower womenand mainstream equality. They are centred onwomens expertise and skills and address gen-

der imbalance as a shared community prob-lem. Two good practice methods and toolswere identified in the study.


Awareness-raising campaignfor the French-speaking com-munity of Belgium organisedin 2011 by the Association des

Journalistes Professionnels(AJP Association of Profes-sional Journalists)

This campaign sought to: raise awareness among key actors in the dailypress sector for the French-speaking community about the importanceof gender-balanced representation in the media; start a collectiveanalysis of the causes of under-representation of women in newsrooms;

encourage managers to achieve gender equality in human resourcespolicies and practices; and stimulate the key actors to question their ownpractice and participate in training in gender issues in the media.

The campaign was based on the Study on diversity and equality in theFrench-speaking daily press in Belgium (2011) and a mapping of goodpractices for gender equality in newsrooms. Activities included visits tonewsrooms and press agencies to present the study results, workshopsfor key actors and the distribution of a leaflet on the study results to thegeneral public.

The key actors identified included editors and journalists, communica-tion professionals, teachers and students of journalism.

Gender equality plan imple-mented since 2012 by ster-reichischer Rundfunk (AustrianBroadcasting Corporation)

This initiative by the Austrian public broadcaster covers both awareness-raisingand self-regulation. The gender equality plan aims to advance gender equal-ity through the promotion of women, the elimination of discrimination andenabling of reconciliation of family and work. In those areas where women areunder-represented, there is a target to increase the share of women to 45 %.Activities for the promotion of women are integrated into human resourceplanning with the objective of reaching the target share of women within6 years. The share of women in technical positions is also to be increased byimproving their opportunities for occupational development.

Men are motivated to make use of reconciliation initiatives to fulfil their fam-ily duties. Leaders in the organisation are stimulated to provide leadershipregarding gender equality.

The plan should lead to a higher proportion of women in leading positions.It should contribute to higher qualifications and enhanced possibilities forcareer progression among women in part-time employment.


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Self-regulation

Self-regulation

Self-regulation initiatives accounted for 18 % ofall the methods and tools collected in thestudy. They include codes of conduct for gen-der equality, internal gender equality policiesand internal gender equality action plans. Theyseek to prevent discrimination, take account ofdiversity and/or advance equality.

Good practice self-regulation should serve to

increase womens access to roles that enhancetheir intellectual skills and competences and

to give women a voice in the media prod-ucts most relevant in shaping public opinion.It should promote womens participation inmedia production at all levels and access forwomen to decision-making in the media. Itshould enable a transparent organisation ofwork based on clearly defined criteria in pro-motions and task management. Two goodpractice methods and tools were identified in

the study.


50/50 gender balance on the Tonightwith Vincent Browne show imple-mented since 2012 by T V3 in Ireland

The objective of this initiative is to increase the number ofwomen featuring on the panels for this current affairs show. Menhave dominated the fields of discussion for the show politics,economics and finance.

Editorial staff members are responsible for ensuring the 50/50

balance as a form of self-regulation.

Act of commitment to a process ofself-regulation to improve the imageof women in the media implementedsince 2010 by the Commission surlimage des femmes dans les mdias(Commission on the Image of Womenin the Media) in France

This Act of commitment seeks to improve womens access toexpression in the media. It is a tripartite agreement involving thegovernment (Secretary of State responsible for Family and Solidar-ity), media organisations (20 radio organisations, 19 TV organisa-tions and 22 press organisations) and the Commission on theImage of Women in the Media.

The media organisations have committed to actively seekingto feature more women experts in programmes or articles, toparticipate in a network of women experts and to raise aware-ness among editorial staff and production staff. The Commission

monitors the actions of the media in this regard. The governmentsupports the process and has an overview on progress made.

Significant progress has been reported involving changes torecruitment policies and access for women to important roles.However, the proportion of women experts in programmes orarticles has not made the same progress.


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New directions

New directions

The study Methods, tools and good practicesin the field of women in the media identifiesa number of developments that are requiredto increase womens participation in and ac-cess to expression and decision-making in andthrough the media and new communicationtechnologies. A starting point for these consid-erations must be that a long-term perspectiveof commitment and engagement is required.

Transformation towards gender equality needsto be structural and long term rather than be-ing limited in objective, time and extent if realchange is to be achieved. Commitment, sup-port and funding in this area need to be longterm to ensure sustainability.

Commitment and collaboration among allstakeholders are required to ensure positivechange for women in the media. Public in-

stitutions, media institutions, gender equal-ity bodies, national industry associations,womens associations and other NGOs needto combine their efforts to address gender in-equality in the media.

Public policy should explicitly address the pro-motion of womens participation in and ac-cess to expression and decision-making in andthrough the media and new communicationtechnologies. Policymakers are challenged to

respond to the lack of policy in this field.

The relevant national authorities should takea proactive approach to equality for womenin the media. They should promote network-ing and knowledge transfer among the dif-ferent stakeholders involved at EU, MemberState and local levels. Gender equality pro-

jects in the media industry should be fundedto promote organisational changes through

the adoption of codes of conduct and genderaction plans. The relevant authorities should

collect media-related data disaggregatedby gender. Research, studies and surveys arealso important as they provide scientificallysupported evidence of existing gaps and in-equalities and they can document and assessprogress being made.

Active commitment and leadership of man-agement, as well as of key figures such as

editors-in-chief, within media organisations,is important if gender equality is to be in-creased. Media organisations need to takea leading role in advancing gender equalitywithin their organisations. They should adoptcodes of conduct and support the impact ofthese with gender action plans. These codesand action plans should integrate a genderdimension into the policies, procedures, andpractices of the organisation. They should

develop and support cultural competenceamong management and staff to promoteand practise gender sensitivity and technicalcompetence to advance gender equality inpractice. Management training is fundamentalparticularly concerning the skills to promotegender equality, to build the necessary capac-ity at this level within media organisations.

These codes and action plans should guaran-tee non-discrimination, fair recruitment, equal

pay, equal access to training and career op-portunities, and the elimination of any formof sexual harassment. Specific commitmentsto action should also be included in the codesand action plans. Expert databases of womenshould be created and maintained. Gender bal-ance in expert panels should be achieved. Gen-der mainstreaming processes should inform allpolicies and actions to ensure that they equallyengage women and men.


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New directions

Gender quotas are still a controversial issue,though evidence shows that when and whereintroduced, quotas have enabled initial changeand supported the advancement of genderequality. They could be considered within ap-proaches developed within and across mediaorganisations.

NGOs and, in particular, womens associationsalready play a central role in bringing an exter-nal pressure for gender equality to bear withinthe media industry and in enhancing genderequality practices and approaches, including

equality policies and self-regulation within or-ganisations. Their work in this regard shouldbe supported at a financial and a political level.

Their work should be expanded and deepened.

More of these organisations should bring for-ward the demand for freedom of expression for

women and the participation of women in theconstruction of reality through the media.

They should articulate the demand for genderequality in access to expression and decision-making in and through the media to feature onthe political agenda. They should conduct gen-der equality monitoring of the media in termsof its organisation and production.

Awareness-raising initiatives on gender equal-ity and those on inequalities in the media areeffective in building a responsive and con-

scious environment within media organisa-tions, at a decision-making level and at a pro-fessional group level. They create foundationsfor change and could usefully be consideredwithin the strategies developed by NGOs inthis field and also by other stakeholders.


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Endnotes

Endnotes

(1) Byerly, C., Global Report on the Status ofWomen in the News Media, InternationalWomens Media Foundation, WashingtonDC, USA, 2011 (http://www.iwmf.org/our-research/global-report).

(2) Review of the Implementation of theBeijing Platform for Action in the EUMember States: Women and the Media

Advancing gender equality in decision-making in media organisations, EIGE,Luxembourg, 2013 (http://eige.europa.eu/content/document/advancing-gender-equality-in-decision-making-in-media-organisations-report).

(3) Who makes the news?, GlobalMedia Monitoring Project Report,World Association for Christian

Communication, Canada, 2010 (http://www.genderclearinghouse.org/upload/Assets/Documents/pdf/gmmp_global_report_en.pdf).

(4) Review of the Implementation of theBeijing Platform for Action in the EUMember States: Women and the Media Advancing gender equality in decision-making in media organisations, EIGE,Luxembourg, 2013 (http://eige.europa.eu/

content/document/advancing-gender-equality-in-decision-making-in-media-organisations-report).

(5) Strategy for equality between women andmen 201015, COM (2010) 491, EuropeanCommission, Brussels, 2010 (http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=COM:2010:0491:FIN:EN:PDF).

(6) ZDF-Staatsvertrag vom 31 August 1991,in der Fassung des Fnfzehnten

Staatsvertrages zur nderungrundfunkrechtlicherStaatsvertrge (FnfzehnterRundfunknderungsstaatsvertrag) in Kraftseit 1 January 2013 (ZDF Treaty of31 August 1991, in the version ofthe Fifteenth State Treaty amendingbroadcasting law treaties FifteenthBroadcasting Treaty Amendment in

force since 1 January 2013), Germany.

(7) Note di indirizzo della RAI della Commissioneparlamentare per lindirizzo generale e lavigilanza dei servizi radiotelevisivi, 30.7.1997(Document of the Parliamentary committeefor the general direction and supervision ofbroadcasting), Italy.

(8) Loi du 5 mars 2009 relative la

communication audiovisuelle et aunouveau service public de la tlvision(Law of 5 March 2009 on audiovisualcommunication and the new televisionpublic service), France.

(9) Guidelines on Gender Equality andGender Portrayal in the BroadcastingMedia, Malta Broadcasting Authority,Malta, 2007 (http://www.ba-malta.org/codes-guidellines-policies).

(10) Review of the Implementation of theBeijing Platform for Action in the EUMember States: Women and the Media Advancing gender equality in decision-making in media organisations, EIGE,Luxembourg, 2013 (http://eige.europa.eu/content/document/advancing-gender-equality-in-decision-making-in-media-organisations-report).


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European Institute for Gender Equality

Collection of methods, tools and good practices in the field of women and the media

Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union, 2014

2014 20 pp. 17.6 25 cm

ISBN 987-92-9218-495-7

doi:10.2839/77773


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MH-01-14-677-EN-N

http://eige.europa.eu

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