Experts Call on Media to Uphold Gender Balance in Reporting
Media professionals have urged journalists to adopt a deliberate strategy to ensure gender balance in news coverage by equally featuring male and female voices.
Speaking at a “ReportHer” training workshop held in Lagos, attendees stressed the need for media to become more intentional about inclusion and accountability, especially given the media’s influence in holding public institutions and government to account.
Among those making the call were the Executive Director of International Press Centre, Lanre Arogundade; the Chief Executive Officer of Women Radio, Toun Okewale‑Sonaiya; and award-winning journalist Priscilla Anamena.
Arogundade urged newsrooms to amplify women’s participation in governance reporting, and encouraged their colleagues to support the pending Reserved Seats for Women Bill currently under consideration by the country’s House of Representatives.
Okewale-Sonaiya urged male journalists to take up the call for gender balance, arguing that their support is critical to accelerate change and dismantle longstanding stereotypes.
Anamena reinforced that message, calling on journalists to make a conscious effort to include both male and female perspectives in their reporting to ensure fairness and representativeness.