WOMEN EXPERTS IN THE MEDIA:

A POWERFUL TOOL TO OVERCOME

L’ ART POUR L’ ARTISM

Claudia Ritter

The Sofia Foundation

Ljubljana

6 February 2015

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XqHYzYn3WZw

Timeline for achieving Gender Equality

According to the last report by the World Economic Forum:

The Global Gender Gap Report 2014

2015 2095

GENDER EQUALITY in the WORKPLACE

Women and Media

EIGE: lack of exposure of women as subject matter

experts (SMEs) to the media contributes to

perpetuating stereotypes about their competences in

decision-making roles

• We do not ‘see’ and hear enough women in the media

• If the ‘other half’ is missing half of the voices are

missing

• Responsibility of the media in reflecting diversity:

societies are diverse in terms of sex, race, age…

Women and Media: Some data

• The Global Media Monitoring Project 2010: "women are

repeatedly under-represented as experts in the media:

81% of experts and 82% of spokespersons in the media

are men. Conversely, women represent respectively 19%

of experts and 18% of spokespersons.”

• In 2011, the 59-nation study on women’s employment in

news companies to date, entitled «Global Report on the

Status of Women in the New Media», conducted with

the International Women’s Media Foundation,

illustrated that men hold three quarters of the positions in

both top management and governance

• In a study from the UK-based « Women in Journalism »

group, conducted in 2012, showed that of all the opinion

articles published in the British media in 2012 only 27%

were by a woman. 84% of news quotes are from men,

and men represent 84% of people referred to.

• The “Status of Women in the US Media 2014” report

(by the Women’s Media Center): in 214 newspaper stories

with male journalists’ bylines, male sources were quoted

four times more than female sources.

Women and Media: Some data

Women and Media: Some data

In Slovenia (data by Meta’s List Institute)

Monthly analysis of the 7 most watched TV info shows on Slovenian TV channels as well measuring the percentage of women and men experts invitated to be guests on their show (some shows are daily, some published on a weekly basis)

Result: on average the ration is 80 % of guests are men and 20 % women

(December 2014)

Also, pervasive gender bias messages in media content

reinforces stereotypes. Time for change?

Why is it not being addressed?

Lack of data

• Lack of more data and methologies for research

• Lack of funding for collection of data

• Lack of interest and awareness

Why is it not being addressed?

• Women’s lack of confidence:

Is it because women don’t speak out enough?

“I can’t do that”

“I don’t have time”

“I’m not qualified enough”

The Way Forward

Strategies and Actions

Advocacy

• Definition of clear targets, setting strategies

• Better data collection, new methologies and

specific research

• Lobby national parliamentarians, Members of the

European Parliament, National Equal Opportunities

Institutions

Use existing resources and initiatives:

• Alliances between like-minded organisations. Connect to networks e.g. Meta’s List Institute/the Sofia Foundation with other like-minded organisations/other groups working on the topic of gender equality, women in media…

• Networking: Promote/talk/exchange about initiatives who are paving the way

• Find allies within the media TO:

• (i) Talk about the issue

• (ii) Put women onto their panels

Use existing resources and initiatives:

• Engage Male Allies

• Galvanise momentum of international campaigns

such as the UN HeforShe campaign

• Create spaces for debate such as this conference to

bring organisations together

• Collaboration: Use projects such as Accelerate! to

coordinate actions/exchange information/reflect on

the subject

Including Men

Some examples of initiatives on women’s portrayal

• The Bedtchel test: The Bechdel test is now used as an indicator of

gender bias in all forms of fiction

• The Global Media Monitoring Project: The Global Media Monitoring

Project is the largest and longest longitudinal study on the gender in

the world’s media. It is also the largest advocacy initiative in the

world on changing the representation of women in the media The

Women’s Room (UK)

• Geena Davis’s Institute on Gender in Media: Seejane: The Institute

is the only research-based organisation working within the media and

entertainment industry to engage, educate, and influence the need for

gender balance, reducing stereotyping and creating a wide variety of

female characters for entertainment targeting children 11 and under

Advocating women in the media

• The Sofia Foundation (BE): A non-profit organisation

headquartered in Brussels. We help accelerate women’s

participation in economic, political and social governance

across Europe. Our objective is twofold: first, to complement

EU action engaging accomplished women leaders on boards of

organisations, and second, to promote women as experts in

the information media.

• Meta’s List Institute(SL):The institute was founded to

empower women’s voices in the public shpere, to raise visibility

on questions important to young, professional women, to fight

for bigger participation of capable women in public life, and to

achieve gender equality also in business life.

Advocating women in the media

• Women on Air (IE): Community of like-minded women

and men who want to hear and see more women on the

airwaves

• Femmes de Valeur (UK): Radio programme celebrating

the journey of inspirational women

• Women’s Media Center (US): The Women's Media

Center has the goal of making women visible and

powerful in the media

Coordinated actions at different levels

2015: Moment to tap into initiatives by addressing advocay groups, generating synergies, coordinating actions…

EUROPEAN LEVEL:

European Commission: New Strategy for Equality between Women and Men (by the end of 2015)

European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE): EuroGender is EIGE’s main consultation platform as well as a collaboration platform that allows all of its 10.000 users to exchange resources, knowledge and good practices on gender equality.

European Parliament: Engage MEPs at the begining of their term

WORLDWIDE

UN Beijing+20 - Platform for Action: Critical area of concern

#10: more than 150 countries have submitted reports to the UN

UN HeforShe Campaign: An initiative to mobilise men and boys

in the movement for gender equality.

As part of the campaign - UN Impact 10x10x10 Initiative: One-

year pilot effort that aims to engage governments, corporations

and universities as instruments of change positioned within

some of the communities that most need to address deficiencies

in women's empowerment and gender equality

Showcase: Accelerate!

Powerful – and visible! – women in governance

and in the media

What is the value of Accelerate!?

1. VISIBILISING: Identifying expert women

2. FACILITATING CAPACITY BUILDING AND CONTRIBUTIONS:

Training women

3. LOBBYING AND INFLUENCING THE AGENDA:

• Sensitizing media for the importance of more balanced

representation of experts

• Committing media to expose more women experts

“What is not mentioned does not

exist”

George Steiner

Thank you!