Women journalists and media workers: MFRR submission to the United Nations Special Rapporteur

OBC Transeuropa (OBCT), the European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF), the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) and Free Press Unlimited (FPU), as part of the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR), made a submission for consideration by the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of freedom of opinion and expression, Irene Khan, in the preparation of her thematic report on gender justice and the right to freedom of opinion and expression.

The submission considers barriers, challenges and threats that women journalists and media workers face in the exercise of their profession. Based on the monitoring work documented on the Mapping Media Freedom platform and on the 2021 analysis “Interviewing journalism. Needs and gaps in support for European journalists”, the submission shows that there are specific threats that women journalists are more subjected to than their male colleagues.

In 66% of cases, women journalists and media workers were subjected to verbal attacks and psychological abuse. Concerning the context of the incident, attacks on women journalists and media workers are most likely to occur online or in the digital sphere, while concerning the source of the incident, women journalists are less likely to be attacked by the police or other state security forces than their male colleagues. However, women journalists and media workers are significantly more likely to face attacks from unknown assailants. 

The 2021 needs and gaps analysis shows that women journalists and media workers continue to be impacted as a consequence of gender roles and stereotypes.

All these attacks, frequently met with impunity, contribute to a hostile environment. Therefore, MFRR partners listed in the submission a series of recommendations that should be undertaken by institutions, social media platforms and media organisations.

For more details, have a look at the full submission here .

Signed by:

European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF)

European Federation of Journalists (EFJ)

Free Press Unlimited (FPU)

Osservatorio Balcani e Caucaso Transeuropa (OBCT)

This content is part of the Media Freedom Rapid Response  (MFRR), a Europe-wide mechanism which tracks, monitors and responds to violations of press and media freedom in EU Member States and Candidate Countries. The project is co-funded by the European Commission.