Journalism — no longer a man’s world

Speakers highlight importance of women in field and struggles they face

KARACHI: The field of journalism is no more a ground where women are not allowed. Instead, in the past few years, women have been welcomed as much as men in the field.

This was expressed by participants belonging to various media and social organisations in a discussion on ‘Media’s Role on Gender and Youth Rights’ on Thursday at the Arts Council of Pakistan, Karachi. The discussion was organised by Mediators, a public relations firm.



Various topics relating to media, gender and reporting were spoken about and participants were free to express their points of view.

Reporter Anil Datta commented on gender equality in the media and said that in recent years he had met some very promising women working in the field. “Our job has no timings, therefore, there was a time when women themselves refrained from joining it and organisations also hesitated from hiring them,” he said. “But the interest shown by them was convincing and now in many organisations they have equal representation.” Speaking about the freedom of reporting, Datta shared that journalists in Pakistan are as free to work as those in developed countries.



Shazia Hasan, a reporter at an English newspaper, said that when she entered the field of journalism, she was discouraged from taking the sports beat and was told that the beat does not relate to women. But later, she claimed, she took on the challenge, took sports as her beat and worked on it for several years. “I had to prove myself at every opportunity and now I am working for the city pages of my paper,” she shared. Hasan said that various magazines are now being headed by women, which proves that women are as competent as men in the field of journalism.

Expressing satisfaction over the number of women in his organisation, Fahim Siddiqui, who works at a news channel, claimed there is always a ‘soft corner’ for women, resulting in them receiving many privileges such as pick and drop services and increased salaries and promotions where as young men coming into the field have to struggle a lot.



Agreeing with Siddiqui’s previous point, Nimra Malik, a reporter at an Urdu newspaper, said she believes that in the name of feminism, women sometimes receive advantages that are not given to men. She added that her male colleagues do not receive the same incentives that are given to women.

This story is totally different at regional channels, claimed Hameed Bhutto, who is associated with regional electronic media. Bhutto said that according to his experience, women are not given a fair chance at regional news channels and newspapers. He added that organisations have started to realise women’s importance and soon the stereotype of not hiring women because they are ‘less courageous’ will change.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 7^th, 2016.