Covid era uncertainty could exacerbate sexual harassment

As we think about the safety of journalists, let us also consider the risks of sexual harassment and abuse that women journalists encounter at work.

More than six months since the World Health Organization (WHO) declared Covid-19 a pandemic on March 11, 2020, we remain in a state of uncertainty grappling with the loss of lives, and economic, social, and psychological consequences. The news industry in Africa, like many others, has been affected  and this is evident in the massive layoffs, forced pay cuts for staff, and closure of some organisations. These trends have been reported in many African countries including South Africa, Kenya, Uganda, Namibia, Cameroon and Nigeria. 

In the midst of this economic peril, we are concerned about the impact on women’s safety in the workplace. There has already been a lot of attention on state actors using censorship tactics such as violence against journalists and arrests in some countries including Zimbabwe, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, Eswatini, and Kenya.

As we think about safety of journalists at work, we must also consider threats that disproportionally disadvantage women such as sexual harassment and sexual abuse in the workplace.  

Over the last two years, we have conducted research in Kenya, Nigeria, and South Africa to understand the extent of sexism and sexual harassment in the news industry in sub-Saharan Africa. The findings paint a bleak picture.

Our survey of 200 journalists in the three countries showed widespread sexual harassment in the news industry. Among women participants in Kenya, almost 80% said they had experienced sexual harassment at work at least once. In South Africa, 57.5% of women participants reported having experienced sexual harassment and in Nigeria, the rate was 38% of women participants. These findings were recently published in the academic journal called Feminist Media Studies.

While men too are victims of sexual harassment, our study, like many others, shows women are at a higher risk of sexual harassment and abuse.

To better understand the context and nuances, we followed up with interviews with more than 40 journalists in the three countries. During the course of data collection over the last two years, women journalists have recounted to us how they are repeatedly subjected to objectifying comments about their bodies and dressing, unwanted invites for dinners and dates, and repulsive physical touching from male colleagues, bosses, and news sources.

Our research participants have recounted everything from sexist comments about women being emotional because of menstruation to groping and ‘accidental’ brushing of women’s breasts by male colleagues, to an incident of attempted rape of an intern by an editor that involved the use of a gun!

Our findings of this qualitative study were recently published in the academic journal Journalism Practice under the title “A Playing Field Where Patriarchy Plays”: Addressing Sexism in South African and Nigerian Newsrooms’.

One could argue, that faced with pay cuts, job losses, and a very low likelihood of new work opportunities in the industry, women journalists are now even more susceptible to being harassed and abused at work.

Sexual harassment, after all, is about power. Perpetrators tend to prey on people who are vulnerable such as interns, early-career workers, employees on short-term contracts, freelancers whose income is dependent on their work output, and staff who are isolated from others because of space (far-flung bureau offices) or their hours of work (late-night and early-morning shifts). 

Times of economic stress and uncertainty place such vulnerable groups at an even greater risk of abuse. The freelancer paid per story is now more susceptible to being abused by an assignments editor who knows that he has power over her ability to pay rent. An early career reporter in a news organisation that is laying off staff, is at great risk of being harassed by a boss that claims to have the power to protect her job.

Our research shows that survivors rarely make formal complaints when they are abused for reasons such as fear of retaliation, fear that they won’t be believed, and the burden placed on them to produce evidence of such abuse which can be complicated when someone harasses you verbally or there are simply no witnesses.

We have also seen from our research that organisations rarely take action even when (the very few) cases are reported. This means then, that in this era of economic uncertainty, survivors may be even more unlikely to report sexual harassment and abuse for fear that they could lose (their already at-risk) jobs, or face retaliation from bosses, or simply be ignored by their organisation. When people around us are struggling financially, unable to pay their bills, it is very easy to feel that you are lucky to simply have a job, even when your colleagues or bosses are constantly violating your rights and dignity. 

This is why we believe, the responsibility to tackle sexual harassment, especially under the current circumstances should not be on individual women. News organisations need to make a real effort in educating their staff about what constitutes proper and improper work conduct, have clearly spelt out mechanisms for formal complaints, offer support for survivors such as counselling, and act fearlessly against perpetrators.

News organisations must also confront news sources, however powerful they are, who harass women journalists in the course of their work. After all, the African news media confront despotic leaders every day. Why should individual politicians and business executives get away with demanding sexual favours from journalists? 

Now more than ever, we need to promote women media managers and welcome them to the often-male-dominated table where important decisions about recruitment, promotions, policy, and news content are made.

As an industry, we must tackle with urgency, the goal of creating work environments that actually accommodate women, or else we will continue to see women exit the industry out of frustration with the machoism and disregard for their intelligence, hard work, and the extra burden of domestic responsibility expected of them in patriarchal societies. In conclusion, as we think about the safety of journalists, let us also consider the risk of sexual harassment and abuse that women journalists encounter at work. Let us acknowledge that it is not up to individual women to fix the problem.

News organisations hold more power, and ultimately bear the responsibility to create safe work environments and put an end to sexism, sexual harassment, and sexual abuse of women journalists at work.