November 2018 – Page 2

News

6. Violence Against Women in Media and Digital Contents

SETTING THE GENDER AGENDA FOR COMMUNICATION POLICY

Violence Against Women in Media and Digital Contents

Aimée Vega Montiel

Defined by the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), adopted in 1979 by the UN General Assembly, as any distinction, exclusion or restriction made on the basis of sex which has the effect or purpose of impairing or nullifying the recognition, enjoyment or exercise by women, irrespective of their marital status, on a basis of equality of men and women, of human rights and fundamental freedoms in the political, economic, social, cultural, civil or any other field, violence against women (VAW) constitutes the main obstacle for women’s human rights.

5. Addressing Gender Issues in Media Content

SETTING THE GENDER AGENDA FOR COMMUNICATION POLICY

Addressing Gender Issues in Media Content

Sarah Macharia

In 1995, governments participating in the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing reached consensus on specific strategic objectives and related actions to advance equality, development and peace for all women. One objective – to “promote a balanced and non-stereotyped portrayal of women in the media” (Section J on “women and the media”, Beijing Platform for Action, 2015) – listed several actions, inter alia, promoting research and implementing an information, education and communication strategy, encouraging the media to refrain from exploitation, sexualisation and commodification of women, and promoting the idea that sexist stereotypes in media are gender discriminatory, degrading and offensive.

9. A Feminist Perspective on Gender, Media and Communication…

SETTING THE GENDER AGENDA FOR COMMUNICATION POLICY

A Feminist Perspective on Gender, Media and Communication Rights in Digital Times

Anita Gurumurthy, Amrita Vasudevan and Nandini Chami

In 2005, the UN convened the second phase of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS). The resulting WSIS Tunis commitment acknowledged that ‘the full participation of women in the Information Society is necessary to ensure the inclusiveness and respect for human rights within the Information Society, (encouraging) all stakeholders to support women’s participation in decision-making processes and to contribute to shaping all spheres of the Information Society at international, regional and national levels.’

2. Gender Equality, Policy and Media Structures

SETTING THE GENDER AGENDA FOR COMMUNICATION POLICY

Gender Equality, Policy and Media Structures

Carolyn Byerly

The convergence of traditional print, broadcast and cable with digital (computer) formats requires that we understand ‘ICTs’ (information and communications technology) to include the wide array of media used for personal, interpersonal, and mass communication in today’s world. Women must have full access to these media, at ownership, employment and personal levels.

3. A Hard Ladder to Climb: Women and Power…

A Hard Ladder to Climb: Women and Power in Media Industries

Karen Ross

When women media professionals attain very senior editorial positions, their achievement continues to make front page news, as it is such a rare occurrence. When Jill Abramson became the first woman editor at the New York Times in 2011, she broke a run of 160 years of male editors. When Katharine Viner did the same thing at the Guardian in 2015, she ended an even longer reign of exclusively male editing history. One of the world’s most respected media institutions, the BBC, has never appointed a woman Director General since it began life under John Reith in 1922. Further, its publication of top earner salaries in the summer of 2017 revealed startling differences, in some cases as much as 300% between women and men doing the same job. These three examples demonstrate that even media organizations which enjoy a significant reputation for their content seem to ignore issues of gender equality in relation to who produces and edits such content.