Gender Grocott’s Policy in the making…

Definitions Sex: “either one of the two main groups (female and male) into which living things are placed according to their reproductive functions, the fact of belonging to one of these” - OED Gender: “the grammatical categories of masculine and feminine” In a nutshell: Where sex makes reference to biological categories, gender refers to social or cultural categories.

R Morris states: “Gender is a grammatical distinction and applies to words only; sex is a natural distinction and applies to living objects”

However… Morris’ statement fails to recognise the implication of ‘words only’ and the impact that words have on the perpetuation of gender codes within society!

Thinking local… Grahamstown is a multi-cultural community with a diverse range of expectations about what ‘femininity’ and ‘masculinity’ entail. Grocott’s must recognise this and respond in a journalistic manner that doesn’t take preference to a particular set of values.

What the critics say… “In a world ordered by sexual imbalance, pleasure in looking has been split between active/male and passive/female” – Laura Mulvey 1989 “To treat gender as sexual difference rather than sexual hierarchy obscures and legitimizes the way gender is imposed by force” – MacKinnon 1989 The challenge to Grocott’s is to acknowledge the gender imbalance within society and make a conscious effort to report in a mindful way.

What you say… Students who read Grocott’s observed that current reporting reinforces outdated and inaccurate stereotypes of women. This can be countered by: showcase more successful businesswomen in the community showcase more inspirational female figures Front page coverage of events like beauty pageants subscribes to the notion of objectification, decrease this.

Grocott’s Current Gender Policy At present there is no structured policy and any semblance of policy is ad hoc according to Louise Vale In terms of employment equity, most of the staff at Grocott’s are female. They use the term Ms in most cases to refer to women.

What Grocott’s would like to see in their gender policy. A policy that promotes equal understanding between the genders in a Grahamstown context. A focus on content that deals with gender ie. Women’s day. Issues that relate to women eg. Vale argues that AIDS affects women more than men (at higher risk of contraction). Issues that relate to men eg. The pressure put on them to be the bread winners in societies.

Photographs Front page  equal representation Strong men  Pg. 1 Strong women  Pg.2 Women  passive caregivers Men  active and assertive

Language Large no. of starry eyed girls Large no. of starry eyed boys? Women  appearance Men  factual/ability

GMBS Study The SA Gender and Media Baseline Study (GMBS) created by Gender Links (non-govt org) and the Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) released their findings on the 7 August 2003

1) Men’s voices predominate in the media (women’s voices constitute only 19% of news sources in South Africa), however the Sunday Times is making progress in this area since 29% of its news sources are women. 2) Black women constitute 45% of the population but only constitute 5% of news sources. 3) Old women are virtually invisible as far as representation goes. Findings:

Findings (cont…) 4) Women predominate as news sources in the occupational categories of beauty contestants, sex workers and homemakers. They are least sourced in sports and mining categories where men account for 100% of news sources. 5) Though 31% of the members of parliament and cabinet are women, they constitute only 8% of news sources.

So… Gender Links and the Media Institute of Southern Africa have used the findings to bring that message to mainstream media. In June and August, they held two-day workshops in each of the 12 countries included in the study, targeting media owners, editors and reporters as well as media associations, regulatory agencies and women's organizations. Sources: community.com/Article/196/15/2262.html community.com/Article/196/15/2262.html

New Policy To maintain a sensitive approach to all individuals in Grahamstown, regardless of their gender or culture. To avoid perpetuating the objectification of women in both text and pictures To have voices of authority and to use lay sources from both genders To continually invest in public opinion; ie be open to criticism and comment regarding the representation of both genders and encourage debate thereof