Report: Sexual misconduct rife in TV industry

Bullying and sexual harassment is prevalent across the TV industry, a report has found.

More than half of people surveyed, from producers to commissioners, had experienced sexual misconduct in the workplace, a joint Edinburgh International TV Festival (EITF) and Channel 5 News investigation revealed.

Of 315 respondents, more than twothirds said they had been bullied in the workplace – the majority of whom did not report it as they feared for negative repercussions on their career.

Coming after revelations of harassment across Hollywood and politics, the survey was aimed at understanding the prevalence of bullying and harassment within TV.

The majority of those who had suffered harassment reported it had occurred within the last five years.

It also found freelancers who had been bullied or harassed often stayed silent because “today’s bully is tomorrow’s boss”, according to one respondent.

EITF’s director, Lisa Campbell, said: “We need to make a change, and talking about these issues is the first step to addressing and stopping them for good.”

The report found: For the majority of those who suffered harassment who had reported it, it had occurred within the last five years; 84% of those who had experienced sexual harassment did not report it, and less than half of those surveyed – 47% – understood their rights in respect to taking action at work if confronted with bullying or sexual harassment.