MMA calls on media to extend activism
Since the start of 16 days of activism, Media Monitoring Africa (MMA) has observed media rightly declare that South Africa needs not only 16 days of activism but a whole 365 days. It echoes this commitment and challenges the media to spend the remaining days of this campaign constructing a set of guidelines and policies to ensure that gender-based violence will indeed be an ongoing news topic every day of the year in 2011.
Its recent analyses and research into media coverage and its approach to reporting and debating gender-based violence and gender issues, has shown a need for further improvement and guidance in this area of reporting. It was the data analyst for the Global Media Monitoring Project, which showed that the South African media dedicates less than 4% of its coverage to the topic of gender-based violence.
Watching brief
Based on its experience and awareness of media trends when it comes to reporting on gender-based violence and gender more broadly, during 16 days of activism it will be observing various issues, including:
- Frequency of articles published
- Depth of analysis of gender issues
- Reference to gender
- Level of critique and demand for insight and answers
- Originality and novelty of issues explored
