According to a gender audit of news organizations conducted by the Women Journalists Association of Pakistan (WJAP) and Freedom Network, the Pakistani media industry is in a state of gender emergency due to under-representation of female journalists in newsrooms and a lack of gender-sensitive policies.
The report, titled “Unequal Newsrooms: A Gender Audit of Pakistani Media Organizations,” was launched on March 8, International Women’s Day.
The gender audit is based on a survey of 15 news organizations in Islamabad that collected information on workforce representation, organizational policies, anti-harassment measures, working conditions, and remuneration. Six television channels, four newspapers, three news agencies, and two news websites were among the organisations evaluated.
According to the audit findings, the average percentage of female journalists at news outlets is only 11%. The majority of news organisations do not have any female journalists in top positions.
Despite a federal legislation requiring businesses to create an anti-harassment inquiry committee, only two of the 15 media houses have one. Despite the fact that paid maternity and paternity leave is now legally required, most media firms do not provide it.
The audit report’s gender sensitivity assessment revealed that approximately 75% of the 15 news outlets were gender blind, which means their organizational policies and practices did not identify or address specific gender-based issues that can affect men, women, and other gender minorities differently at work.
