Experts propose mainstreaming of reportage on violence against women report deficit
WRITING more reports on Violence Against Women ( VAW), especially in the print media, a group, Media and Gender Enlightenment Initiative ( MEGEIN), has called for more women to be promoted as editors in newspapers.
The call was contained in the Reporting Guidelines for Mainstreaming Violence Against Women ( VAW), Practice Codes and Policy Framework / Proposal compiled by an Associate Professor of Mass Communication, Nkem Fab- Ukozor, and a lecturer of Mass Communication, Dr. Alexander Chima Onyebuchi.
The guideline is produced by MEGEIN with World Association for Christian Communication ( WACC) sponsorship.
In the guideline/ proposal made available to The Guardian at the weekend, the duo, who are the Project Director and the Project Manager of MEGEIN, respectively, noted that the promotion of gender- equality and women centred reporting would enhance the quality and integrity of the profession, giving women the sense of belonging.
They also recommended National Diploma as the minimum qualification for journalism practice.
The policy proposal reads: “There should be more women in print journalism and as editors, as a way of promoting more genderequality and women- sensitive reporting.”
On the required minimum academic qualifications which the regulatory bodies should peg for anyone to practice, they proposed: “Reporters/ Correspondents should have minimum of National Diploma ( ND)/ Bachelor of Science ( B. Sc) degree before they are allowed to practice the course. This will ensure that they had earlier received knowledge on issues of gender - equality in their course - work before picking up the job. Making journalism profession an all- comers affair is gravely in bad taste.”
To ensure that VAW cases gain desired traction, the following were submitted: “For an accurate account of VAW cases, reporter should report incidence of VAW from the point of crime scene, arrest and prosecution.”
Looking at what is required from the point
of prosecution, the proposal stressed: “The reportage of prosecution / trial on VAW cases without adding the voices of the victims, eye witness accounts and perpetrators will not do justice to the stories. The report of trials will only present the views of councils, which may not sh ow the seriousness of the offence.”
The headlines and language, they said, “should reflect the actual content of the stor y. Ever y issue raised in the headline should be treated in the body of the stor y.
“Language that degrade women should not be used in reporting cases related to V AW. This will ensure that the readers pay more attention to the act rather than the words uses to describe the women / girl - child.
“Words / Language that play down on the gravity of the offence should be a voided in reporting cases of VAW.”
On proper attribution indices, the proposal stressed: “Parties to the report should form part of the attribution to the VAW stories.
“Men should not be reported in VAW stories in such a way that it tries to shade or justify their action.
“Images or pictures should be part and parcel of reports on VAW.”
According to the proposition, sensationalisation should be jettisoned: “In reporting
VAW cases of grieve in the family, the voices of women should not only be heard rather, both parents should be heard.
“Reports should avoid sensationalisng headlines of VAW stories.
“Words that show the impact and implication of VAW stories should be used to indicate the seriousness of the story.”
On the perpetrators, including police, the proposal noted: “Reports of VAW, which have prominent figures as perpetrators to a crime should not be reported with the intention to protect their image or identity.
“When police officers are alleged to have committed crime in relation to VAW, news stories on these events should not be written as if officers cannot commit such crimes.”
Reporting VAW issues from the perspective of a woman, the dons opined in their proposal: “Stories on VAW should be written from the woman rights perspectives, especially as it affects the rights of women as contained in the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women ( CEDAW)
“When VAW reports are taken from the point of court trial or proceedings, reporters should endeavour to refer to the crime scene / crime and confessions obtained.”
On the practice codes, they noted: “Balance and Fairness: Victims and perpetrators should form the essence of the story. In essence, a report will be balance and fair when the victim is also able to give an account as much as the perpetrator did. This will show both sides of the story. Also, reporters should be careful when interviewing the victims in cases where they are still alive.”
Also, on the images and photographs, the guidelines specified: “Image / Photographs: This helps to bring out the weight of the crime on VAW, especially where it is certain that the said victim committed the crime even when awaiting court trial. This should be more so in cases where the police have ascertained that the individual through confession committed the crime. Also, images of victims should be used discreetly, especially in VAW cases in order to avoid stigmatisation.”
Accuracy, the report advised, should be taken serious: “Accuracy: Story titles ( headlines) and the body content should actually reflect what transpired in cases of VAW. There is no alternative to an accurate account.”
Attribution to sources should be seen to enrich stories, according to the code proposal: “Attribution / Sources: To enrich stories on VAW, especially where the crime is grievous, accounts from different sources such as; authorities, eye witnessed and parties to the issues should be used to enrich the story and increase its prominence and believability.”
The rule guiding reportage of minors should be adhered to, the proposal stressed: “Protection of Minors: It is already a rule or mark principle that the images of Minors should not be used in the report of stories that have the propensity to tarnish their image. This principle should be strictly adhered to in the case of VAW reporting.”
According to the code, MEGEIN submitted: “Avoid Gory Pictures: Reports should ensure that the images the use in their reports are not offensive to the eyes. It is not in going taste to have stories that are gory flashed before the readers,” they concluded.