Historically, the great ideas of civilizations have traveled back and forth across the waters of the Mediterranean, and that tradition continued recently when women journalists from the Mediterranean countries met in Beirut to discuss the way forward.
The conference, “Women, Media and the Mediterranean,” was held in May and was organized by ANSAMed and the Arab Italian Women Association (AIWA) in a bid to strengthen the role of women in the world of information, to share experience and build a common vision for media organizations. The event provided an opportunity for dialogue and an exchange of experience between journalists from print media, television and radio from several Mediterranean countries and was attended by many of the region’s most prominent journalists.
“The media is the voice of the people,” Silvia di Savoia, Duchess of Aosta and AIWA’s honorary president, told participants. “We all base our knowledge of others on what the information we get tells us. In a world where information has a growing responsibility, women have a major role, because they are less aggressive and more prone to seek dialogue.”
She outlined the aims of AIWA, which are to promote cultural, informational exchange to overcome prejudices and preconceptions which became stronger after Sept. 11, 2001.
“Mediterranean women have a unique opportunity to find a peaceful solution to many problems of cultural, religious and political nature that are often resolved with violence,” said Roberto Cantore, the Italian business attaché to Lebanon.
Although many of the participants noted progress throughout the region, some noted obstacles still remain.
“The journalist’s role in the Mediterranean states has radically changed in the last few years,” said Barbara Serra, of Al-Jazeera’s English service. “They have more space but still remain bound to do the same job. It is difficult for them to request a role in management in television, radio or newspapers.”
Serra stressed that women’s role in the media is fundamental because they represent half the population and can — and must — speak to the people about the people. If the media is the mirror of the population, she said, it is right for women to take positions of more responsibility, which, she noted, is unfortunately not the case in many media organizations.
From the observations of many of the participants, it appeared the problem is widespread.
There are very few women journalists in decision-making positions, though there are many highly qualified and capable columnists, presenters, reporters and talk-show hosts both in political and nonpolitical programs.
Many women journalists have risked their lives to cover wars and conflicts; some have become targets of terrorists. Allow me to share with you some of the statistics and information about the situations of Mediterranean women in media: In Jordan and Algeria, women have claimed positions of editor in chief, while in France even more women are joining the ranks of journalists, taking 43 percent of all media jobs; however, they still take a disproportionate number of the top positions. Moreover, women are paid less compared to man in the same job.
The media in Spain continues to be dominated by men. According to a recent report, women have 43 percent of all jobs in the media — 63 percent of them have university degrees; male university graduates working in Spanish media account for only 39 percent of the number of men so employed. When it comes to careers, men hold most of the management or directorial positions, while women mostly work as editors.
In Egypt, women are underrepresented in the management of state-owned newspapers but hold high-responsibility jobs in television. More importantly wages for men and women are equal. In Morocco, women journalists hold the highest positions and collaborate very well with men. The estimates of the Italian Media Federation show that there are many Italian women working in the media, but they take lower positions in the hierarchy, including part-time contracts.
The situation is similar in Lebanon, where the women working in the sector are an integral part of the greater Arab media world. Lebanese women have played a central role in local and Arab media over the past decades as columnists, presenters, reporters and hosts of political and nonpolitical programs. They paved the way for a new generation of journalists who are integral part of Arab media.
Among the participants were leading newspaper, radio and television journalists from Italy, Spain, Turkey, Morocco, Jordan, Egypt, Algeria, Iraq, the United Arab Emirates, Yemen and Dubai, including Lebanese Gisela Khovry of TV Arabiya, Turkish columnist Ferai Tinc, Irene Lozano from Spanish ABC, Egyptian Rola Kharsa, Barbara Serra from London Al-Jazeera, Italian journalist Giovanna Botteri and Tiziana Ferrario. We shared our experiences and exchanged views and ideas about making the voices of women better heard on both global issues and those related to women. I was proud to share the achievements of Saudi women in media, both in projecting the new emerging role of women in Saudi society and discussing the challenges they face to become builders of society and promoters of peace.
Among the recommendations of the two-day conference were the establishment of an information network among Mediterranean women in media and a program to provide training for Mediterranean journalists to give a stronger voice to women and improve their conditions in the region. I hope that Saudi women in media will benefit from initiatives and work hard to upgrade the level of professionalism in our nation’s media.
There is an urgent need to create a more responsible media that can confront the many challenges ahead and serve in the development of our society. We need to develop a media that is professional in its approach and able to deal with issues in a specialized and scientific manner. Training and learning from experience both can contribute to upgrading the quality of our journalists.
It is important for our media to promote the culture of dialogue and to encourage citizens to exchange views openly. There are many concerns that need to be addressed and of which the community should be made aware. The media has a responsibility to play a more active role in projecting our true Islamic values of justice, equality, tolerance and respect for knowledge.
By learning from the experiences of journalists in other nations, we should be able to find better ways to do things, speed up the process of reform and help women take up their rightful role in our society. The sooner, the better. We need all the help we can get.
— Samar Fatany is a radio journalist. She is based in Jeddah.
