Summary of the Report
This report examines the growing issue of online violence against female journalists in Zimbabwe. It is based on focus group discussions and key informant interviews conducted by the Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) in Harare and Bulawayo.
The objective was to understand the prevalence, nature, and impact of online violence against women journalists and to identify recommendations for addressing this issue. Female journalists shared their personal experiences and highlighted the gendered nature of the violence. The report concludes with recommendations for employers, legal frameworks, and societal change to support female journalists facing online violence.
Introduction
“Women have to contend with sex as a weapon against them.” (Bulawayo participant).
As part of its overall objective to enhance the operating environment for media houses and journalists, MISA Zimbabwe is responding to a growth in cyberbullying of journalists online, particularly of female journalists. The organisation, therefore, seeks to study how widespread this problem is and what can be done to mitigate its effects.
Cyberbullying and online attacks on journalists are difficult to monitor, record, and document because, unlike physical violations, there is no standard definition of online-based attacks. However, in the absence of a standard definition, there is a need to document the discernible media violations that are happening and use these for evidence-based advocacy.
In this regard, MISA Zimbabwe engaged with female journalists to get first-hand accounts of cyberbullying/online violence and document them.
