Sexualisation, stereotypes, and sensationalism: The gender blind spots in newsrooms
The workshop analysed a real headline from a past issue of a national Kenyan paper, featuring a lady golfer who had won a tournament. "Every stroke counts for (name withheld)" ran the headline, accompanied by a photograph of the golfer holding a club.
What you need to know:
- The ethics of framing gender-related media stories took centre stage last week at a training for media and communication practitioners from Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, and Rwanda. Hosted by the Graduate School of Media and Communication at Aga Khan University in Nairobi, the workshop opened by examining the foundational importance of ethics.
Ethics is defined as the study of "principles that help individuals distinguish between right and wrong, good and evil, truth and falsehood" (Journalism University). In journalism, it governs interactions with sources, fidelity to professional guidelines and standards, and the style and substance of published stories.
The ethics of framing gender-related media stories took centre stage last week at a training for media and communication practitioners from Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, and Rwanda. Hosted by the Graduate School of Media and Communication at Aga Khan University in Nairobi, the workshop opened by examining the foundational importance of ethics.
Like all stories, those dealing with gender must be told responsibly. This demands: accuracy; respect for the human dignity of subjects; informed consent for the use of information, voices, and images; avoidance of harm to subjects and their significant others; rejection of sensationalism and exploitation of adversity; and sensitivity to public taste.
The workshop analysed a real headline from a past issue of a national Kenyan paper, featuring a lady golfer who had won a tournament. "Every stroke counts for (name withheld)" ran the headline, accompanied by a photograph of the golfer holding a club. The first two words were bolded, clearly intended to draw attention to them.
The analysis concluded that the headline prioritised sensationalism through sexual undertones. Of course, golf involves striking the ball towards its target (we have deliberately avoided a specific term for ethical reasons). However, the headline writer was punning on "stroke" while juxtaposing it with the subject counting her scores.
Participants questioned why the writer did not simply celebrate the golfer's triumph or success directly. The consensus was that the headline subtly objectified the subject through a literary double entendre, and was thus deemed unethical.
Such a headline embarrasses the lady golfer in the eyes of astute readers. It equally embarrasses fellow female athletes, who might wonder whether sports journalists harbour this mentality when covering their stories. Moreover, it is distasteful to the public, inviting readers into a headline writer's distorted mindset disguised as linguistic sophistication.
A second example featured a female hockey player who was said to be "itching for the ball again". Given that "ball" is Kenyan slang for pregnancy, the headline implied she was returning from maternity leave and eager for another pregnancy.
The discussions later turned to the ongoing debate around the sexualisation of female athletes, particularly through focus on their bodies and tight sportswear. Several questions arose: Is this focus deliberate, coincidental, or inevitable? Are athletes ever consulted about their preferred kits, or are the products imposed on them? Who decides the style, and what considerations guide the design? Is the style part of a marketing strategy, and if so, is it ethical? Participants noted that sexualisation is not unique to female athletes, citing two male Kenyan runners on whom cameras often seem to zoom in on certain protruding physical features.
A more controversial issue arose around the handling of non-binary individuals. Several questions emerged: If a journalist hostile to non-binary people is assigned a story on the subject, do they have a right to decline? If they are allowed to do so, what precedent does this set in terms of journalist management? The more critical question was whether it is not the journalist's role to approach such issues with an open and analytical mind, in order to better understand the subject and help the public do the same.
The discussion yielded the guidance that a journalist does not have to ideologically agree with a particular issue in order to cover it. With regard to non-binary individuals, for instance, the guidance urged journalists to examine the various perspectives that could anchor the story. These include human rights, sexual and reproductive health rights, religion, history, culture, the family, democracy, law, discrimination, safety and security, inclusion, and diversity. Failure to do so, it was noted, risks perpetuating bias.
A checklist for practitioners was also shared, featuring the following considerations: providing equitable visibility for subjects of different identities; avoiding gender stereotypes and single-narrative approaches; being sensitive to the temptation to sexualise and objectify story subjects; making informed decisions on when to use, or not use, real identities and images, even when consent has been given; introspecting on embedded attitudes in the language used; and referring to subjects using the terms they prefer to be called.
In short, media work frequently places practitioners in ethical dilemmas they must navigate on the spot. Training of this nature, it is hoped, helps them anticipate such challenges and be better prepared when they arise.
The writer is a lecturer in Gender and Development Studies at South Eastern Kenya University ([email protected])
