Gender and the Media: An Exploratory Study of Sexual Harassment of Students in the Newsroom
摘要
Media organisations are meant to be safe places where journalists and interns ply their trade in conducive and protected environments. However, for decades, female journalists in Zimbabwe including interns have been subjected to endless sexual harassment (SH) in the newsroom and in the field of work, hence, the need to capacitate them with the necessary tools to protect themselves. The perpetrators of sexual harassment include managers, editors, fellow journalists and sources (A person(s) who supplies journalists with news/stories through interviews or at events). This article examines the sensitive topic of sexual harassment of journalism students in the newsroom in Zimbabwe. It discusses the interplay between sexual harassment and theories such as feminism and Africana womanism. Hudson-Weems believes that the problems facing Africana women including sexual harassment, and female subjugation ultimately have to be solved on a collective basis within Africana communities (Hudson-Weems, “Africana Womanism,” 159.). The study sought, among other aims, to establish the extent to which journalism students are being sexually harassed and the impact of SH in the newsroom as previous studies tended to focus more on the abuse of journalists in general. A two-page questionnaire was distributed to 11 University of Zimbabwe journalism students who were attached as student learners to media houses between 2019 and 2022 and voluntarily participated in the study. However, due to the scope of the study and limited time, not all journalism students could be surveyed. An interview was also conducted with the then Alpha Media Holdings editor-in-chief on their SH policy, and what they are doing to curb the scourge. Interview questions sent following visits to other mainstream media organisations namely, Zimpapers, Associated Newspapers of Zimbabwe and Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation were not responded to at the time of completion of the study. The study established that sexual harassment is still rife among students especially females despite efforts by various organisations to curb it through awareness campaigns, trainings and workshops. The harassment unearthed took various forms, inter alia, vulgar jokes, being asked when one would lose their virginity, being pimped, goodnight calls, inappropriate touching and the misuse of private information on a curriculum vitae to contact a student after hours. Some students were offered internships in exchange for sex, while those who snubbed perpetrators were either victimised or dismissed. Universities, media houses, policymakers, the government and other organisations need to come up with strategies to protect students especially females as most of them now fear going for attachment or returning to the newsroom after graduating for fear of being sexually harassed.