Decoding journalistic bodies, and civil society’s safety interventions on female journalists: a South African, Lesotho and Zimbabwean case study

This article discusses mechanisms that media stakeholders are integrating at a practice level, industry context and at policy level to help curb the harassment of female journalists. The mechanisms being implemented in our case studies, South Africa, Lesotho and Zimbabwe, can be used as a blueprint for the continent. We are, however, aware of contextual differences especially for a vast continent as Africa which is diverse with 54 countries, with different political cultures, beliefs and regimes. Hence, when we draw some conclusions from this micro-case study, we are cognizant of these limitations. The insights in this article were gleaned through a combination of designs: semi-structured interviews and document analysis. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with journalists’ associations, media regulatory bodies and media-related civil society organizations. We also analysed documents from state and non-state journalism organizations, governmental bodies, media regulatory agencies and relevant advocacy groups to understand nuances concerning the safety of female journalists and mechanisms being used to respond to this pandemic. The overarching, and worrying, observation from this study is the absence of any government-led policy intervention meant to tame this professional harassment on female journalists. There is heavy reliance on broad constitutional and legal provisions which are failing to translate to an improved media operating environment. Civil society interventions are limited to training and financial support which is not enough to address these attacks. Journalists’ bodies have been relying on ‘whistleblowing’ victimizers through advocacy initiatives.