Gender representation in the media: who decides what we learn from the news

Good morning, ladies and gentlemen, dear colleagues. Thank you for joining me today. My presentation is entitled Gender representation in the media: who decides what we learn from the news. If you wanted a funny title, it could be called: Find a woman or Seeking of a woman story. But back on topic, it’s actually not very funny.

I would like to discuss an important issue that affects the representation of women in Czech media. As you may know, the media industry plays a crucial role in shaping public opinion and influencing societal norms.

Men and women are half and half represented in the population. However, despite progress in many areas, women remain significantly underrepresented in leadership positions within the Czech media landscape. This is true not only in public service media but also in private media (private outlets), both in traditional print media and online platforms. 

First, join me to see what I’ve found out about gender representation in the domestic media. If we look at the public service media, Czech Television, Czech Radio and the Czech News Agency, we find that they have never been headed by a woman. And, this is not the case today either.

The broader management of the public service media editorial offices looks like this:

• at Czech Television and Czech Radio, about a quarter of the senior positions are held by women, while at the Czech News Agency only a seventh are held by women.
  
  
• In the media councils, the situation is similar: less than a quarter of the so-called big Broadcasting Council are women, there is only one woman on the Czech TV Council compared to 14 men, which corresponds to a share of 7%, and there is not even one woman on the Czech Radio Council. And finally, the ratio of women to men on the Czech News Agency Council is 3:4.
  
  
• Looking at the private daily and weekly newspapers, it is clear that not a single one is run by a woman. I compared a total of 18 print media: 11 daily and 7 weekly newspapers.
  
  
• And in two dozens online media outlets, we find a single female editor-in-chief.

In lower-level positions, the overall proportions of women and men are roughly equal. But as we move up the editorial hierarchy, the number of women decreases, their share is lower and we see that three-quarters of the editorial board is made up of men.

As you can see, it is not easy to find women in charge of the media, even now, in the 21st century. It is largely men who decide which events make the news and how they are presented to readers and viewers.

The limited presence of women in media can be attributed, in part, to the challenges they face in balancing their roles as mothers with demanding careers. Unfortunately, the existing structures and practices within media organizations often fail to provide adequate support and accommodations for women in this regard.

You might be thinking: And why should we care? After all, there are other professions where one or the other gender is significantly predominant. It doesn’t matter whether it’s a man or a woman who repairs our car or who serves us in the shop.

And after all, it doesn’t matter who brings us the news, does it? But it’s far from just about the delivery of information. It’s about the choice of information.