GMPS REGIONAL FINDINGS BY ThABANI MPOFU, Gender and media manager 11 OCTOBER 2010

Media practice Gender equality not given top priority in the region constituting only 1% of all topics covered. The proportion of single source stories at 67% is a cause for concern. Voices of experts and spokesperson, in which men are better represented than women, dominate news in the region. Women are proportionally better represented in the “ordinary people” categories which include personal experience, popular opinion and eyewitness, which together account for one quarter of all sources.

Proportion of single vs multiple source stories

Gender in media content There has been a marginal increase in the proportion of women sources from 17% in the 2003 GMBS to 19% in the GMPS. This is slightly lower than the Global Media Monitoring Project average of 24% but at par with the GMMP finding for Africa of 19%. Women are more likely to be seen than heard. They constitute 27% of all images in newspapers in the region compared to 18% of news sources in the print media. Women’s voices are most likely to be heard in soft areas, which include gender equality (43%), gender violence (41%), children and sex and sexuality.

Gender in media content Gender biases in occupational categories are still pronounced. Women predominate as beauty contestants, health workers, homemakers and sex workers. The proportion of women sportspersons and politicians is as low as 8% and 11% respectively. Women (8%) are more likely to be identified by personal tags than men (4%).

Women sources GMBS and GMPS All countries recorded increases except Mozambique where the proportion of women as news sources declined from 15% in GMBS to 14% in GMPS.

Women identified by personal tag GMBS versus GMPS There has been a dramatic decline in Malawi from 21% in GMBS to 9% in GMPS, Tanzania (11% to 6%) and South Africa (14% to 9%). There has been an increase in Mauritius (15% to 20%), Madagascar (5% to 8%) and Botswana (1% to 4%).

GENDER IN NEWSROOMS There are more women presenters than women reporters. Women constitute 29% of all reporters but 58% of TV presenters and only 25% of print reporters. Interesting gender benders: while there is still gender division of labour, proportion of women sources has increased across all topics. Having more women in top and senior management positions does not necessarily result in more women sources. Across the region women constitute 27% of decision-makers but only 19% of women sources. But having women journalists does make a difference. Women constitute 31% of sources in stories written by women journalists compared to 15% in stories written by men.

COVERAGE OF GBV GBV and stories that mentioned GBV accounted for 4% of the topics. Women make up 27% of sources in stories about GBV. Survivors constitute almost a fifth (19%) of all sources.

COVERAGE OF HIV AND AIDS The proportion of coverage has remained constant at 3% for 11 countries in the region surveyed for 2006 HIV and AIDS, Gender and Media Study and 2% for the three Francophone countries surveyed in the 2008 Francophone Gender, HIV and AIDS and Media Study. Affected people’s voices increased from 4% in the 2006 study to 36% in the GMPS while voices of people living with HIV and AIDS only increased from 4% to 7%. Proportion of women sources has dropped from 39% in the 2006 study and 30% in the 2008 Francophone to 20% in the GMPS.

Stories on HIV and AIDS: MAP vs non-MAP An increase in coverage by newsrooms that worked with MAP in Malawi and Mauritius. Lack of improvement points to the need for backstopping and creating solutions to the fatigue around HIV and AIDS coverage.

Who speaks on HIV and AIDS: MAP vs non-MAP newsrooms Working with newsrooms can help increase overall coverage and quality of stories on HIV and AIDS.

Feedback from consultative workshops Need for periodic audience research to remind media houses of what their target audience wants to read about or hear in news. Media need a constant reminder that audiences come first. Media houses must monitor their audience trends over a given period to determine whether figures go down or increase when gender is integrated into all news. Need for gender specialists just as there are political commentators. Proposed circulation of a directory with contacts of women experts in various fields.

Feedback continued Media houses to develop gender policies. More than 140 newsrooms expressed interest to develop gender policies during the consultative workshops. Regular monitoring and discussions with editors. Having gender policies is one thing and implementing them is another, and perhaps the most difficult part.