London On the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, celebrated on November 25, the International Federation of Journalists urged media outlets around the world to make the fight against online harassment a priority in newsrooms and develop concrete measures to eradicate it. .
According to IFJ statistics, more than 60% of female journalists have experienced online harassment during their careers. The organization is also urging governments to ratify ILO’s (International Labor Organization) Convention No. 190, which contains provisions on online harassment.
A study by the Brazilian Association for Investigative Journalism (Abraji) with the support of UNESCO’s Global Media Defense Fund revealed that 127 professionals and the media were the target of 119 acts of gender-based violence and attacks against women journalists in Brazil in 2021. policy writers.
Online harassment targets journalists and family members
Physical attacks happen, but online harassment is the most common form of violence, affecting not only journalists but also their families who receive threats and attacks on social media.
“There is an urgent need to support women who are facing harassment online. The statement states that there are direct links between online threats and offline violence, a situation that women should not face alone.”
Violence was one of the topics discussed at the IFJ Gender Council conference on Women in Trade Unions on 22 November. The online meeting brought together journalists and union activists from around the world.
The conference was part of IFJ’s global campaign. Online Abuse: We Need to Talk.
Online harassment targets women of all political, religious and ethnic backgrounds, as the union organization states. One of the key aspects of these attacks is that they are gendered and sexualized.
These acts of violence are not only intended to intimidate and silence women in the media, but their chilling effect contributes to killing journalism and depriving the public of information, thereby undermining pluralism and the right to information.
The IFJ highlighted the lack of support from newsrooms and media colleagues when a journalist encounters harassment online. The entity says very few people reported the attacks, and very little action was seen when reported.
A 2018 survey by the Federation showed that only half (53%) of victims of online harassment reported the attacks to the media, the union or the police, and nothing was done in two-thirds of the cases.
Maria Angeles Samperio, chair of the IFJ Gender Council, stressed that journalism companies need to take a stand:
“We hear many terrible stories from our colleagues about online harassment. We see our colleagues who leave the profession suffer from traumatic stress disorders.
It’s time for media outlets to adopt concrete policies to combat this scourge and support female staff members who are working or self-employed. This is not a situation that any woman should face alone. Online harassment is not part of the business.”
As part of ILO Convention 190, governments also have a responsibility to combat harassment. The head of the organization, Dominique Pradalie, said:
“Twenty-one countries around the world have ratified this Convention, and many that call themselves democracies have not. We urge governments to ratify Convention 190 and Recommendation 206 as unique tools to combat violence against women at work.
We cannot remain silent when many of our female colleagues are subjected to harassment, online and offline, related to their work. It is in the public interest to ensure that strong laws eliminate violence. And journalists really need them.”
Brazil is not among the signatories of the Convention. Most of the signatories have not yet adopted the legislation locally. This is the case for the UK and Mexico.
In Latin America, a region where violence against journalists is increasing rapidly, many countries such as Argentina, Ecuador, El Salvador, Peru and Uruguay, as well as Mexico, approved this decision. According to the ILO, legislation is already in force in Argentina.
Also read | Federation of Journalists pressures governments to ratify the ILO convention on workplace violence
Tips to combat trolls
The IFJ has published a set of recommendations for the media and unions to take decisive action, including establishing workplace procedures, education on digital safety, and pushing online platforms for more notification and action. See some of them here.
media outlets
➢ Check legislation to determine what resources are legally available for journalists experiencing online harassment and make them widely available in your newsroom
➢ Provide workplace mechanisms for female journalists to speak out against harassment, including dedicated and trained listening staff. This includes:
– creation of a cybernetic cell to analyze complaints, provide support and organize a response to the attacker
– adoption of policies on online harassment and guidance for dealing with the problem, in consultation with workers and unions
– briefing and training the entire team on these policies
➢ As a media outlet, respond formally to online attacks so abusers see that their targets are not isolated. In order to provide visibility to the abused journalist, supportive messages should be sent in the social media stream, not as a private message.
➢ Define and adopt appropriate guidelines for moderating online comments, including conceptualizing acts of misogyny. The moderation team should consist of women and workers who represent diversity.
➢ Address online abuse in the workplace as a health and safety issue
➢ Provide full support to abused professionals, including freelancers, even after contract work has ended
➢ Assess how gender-based violence is portrayed in journalistic production and discuss the issue with the team
➢ Evaluating the position of women in leadership positions in the company and ensuring gender equality in recruitment policies
Trade unions and class associations
➢ Review national legislation to identify how online trolling is covered and means to combat it
➢ Supporting members who want to take their cases to court or workplace grievance mechanisms
➢ Intensify campaign for ratification of ILO Convention 190 on violence and harassment
➢Create a program for female journalists to speak out against harassment, including dedicated staff trained to listen, and organize a collective response to online harassment of its members on social media
➢Organize training for all members to help them detect and combat online abuse.
Also read | Brazil is among the 10 countries that kill journalists the most and punish killers the least.
source: Noticias
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.