‘Less Women Speaking’ FEJAL’s Media Monitoring Report Reveals
By: Laymah Kollie
Liberia: The Female Journalists Association of Liberia (FEJAL) Media Monitoring Report has revealed a few number of women featuring in news sources as compare to men. In a total of 1689 stories produced in the period, the Report shows women constituted 19%, while men accounted for 40%, and individuals of unidentified genders constituted 41%.
The Female Journalists Association of Liberia (FeJAL) under the Internews-USAID Media Activity is continuing the monitoring of Media Institutions in Liberia to provide a comprehensive understanding of the portrayal of women and gender issues within news coverage. This report provides content analysis of ten (10) Monrovia-based radio stations and newspapers that maintain an online presence. The data collection period spanned from March 1 to May 31, 2024, marking a significant time-frame for a quarter analysis. The newspapers under scrutiny include Women Voices, Inquirer, FrontPage Africa, Daily Observer, and New Dawn, all pivotal players in shaping public discourse. On the airwaves, ELBC, Lux FM, Truth FM, Prime FM, and OK FM were monitored closely, reflecting the diverse media landscape in Liberia.
The core aim of this exercise is to analyse how women are portrayed and represented in the Liberian media, shedding light on the quantity and quality of their coverage. By delving into 9 key thematic areas, including Domestic Violence (DV)/Intimate Partner Violence (IPV), Sexual-Gender-Based Violence (SGBV), Human Rights, Politics, Health, Development, Economy, Sports, and Empowerment, a nuanced understanding of gender dynamics in media emerges.
The findings unearth a notable trend where women predominantly serve as news sources in SGBV and DV/IPV narratives, underlining the pressing issues of gender-based violence in society. Conversely, male voices dominate thematic areas like sports, politics, security, human rights, economy, and development, showcasing a gender disparity in news representation.
At the opening ceremony on Friday July 12,2024, Madam Lisa Diasay, President of FEJAL cautioned media practitioners to make significant use of the report in shifting the narrative surrounding women in their various newsroom.
The FEJAL’s President stated that the report is not meant to denigrate the efforts of Media owners contributing to gender equality in their newsrooms, but to shine a light on the level of efforts applied as so double their abilities in making sure women are at the forefront.
“As we release this report today, we want to appreciate media institutions that are giving women the space in their newsrooms and lifting women sources. Madam Diasay said.
Presenting the report, FEJAL Project Coordinator Madam Rita Jlogbe stated that the report was conducted with only ten media Institutions in Monrovia from March 1 to May 31,2024.
According to her, the less percentage of women as News sources prove there are few women speaking out on national issues. Stressing that the data shows the under-representation of women featured as News sources probably due to public perception about women.
“This data illustrates the under-representation of women as key figures in news stories, possibly due to societal perceptions that women lack expertise in pivotal subjects such as politics, economy, and development. Consequently, the likelihood of approaching them for interviews is diminished, resulting in a lack of female voices being heard”
However, serving as Keynote Speaker and Launcher of the report Madam Laura T. Golakeh, Deputy Minister of Gender at the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection urged women to dismantle all barriers and take the forefront in making a difference.
Adding that women inclusivity be extended to other sectors like maternal health amongst others.
“Women should dismantle all barriers that hamper women development.
The principle of inclusivity should extend to Maternal health”
Also, Madam Lien Bach, Internews in Liberia Chief of Party appreciated FEJAL for the level of work done while hailing partner media alerts to continue to push the gender gap in these areas.
Meanwhile, partner organizations and institutions like Wongosol, Women Legislative Caucus, Ministry of Information, Embassy of Sweden, Kvinna Till Kvinna amongst others graced the occasion and applauded the Institution for the level of work done in compiling such report.
The Female Journalists Association of Liberia is an umbrella body of women journalists in the country. It mentors, monitors and build the capacities of women journalists for representation in the media.
