WAN-IFRA, a global trade association for the newspaper industry, aims to enhance media freedom and promote gender equality within newsrooms as a core mission. Through its 'Women in News' program, it has provided leadership training and support to over 500 women journalists and editors, improving workplace dynamics and gender representation in media. The organization is addressing issues of sexual harassment in the media sector with tailored training and is continuously working to develop local chapters and advocacy efforts to enact change.

1. WAN-IFRA MEDIA FREEDOM AND GENDER STRATEGY
World Association of Newspapers
and News Publishers

2. Trade Association of newspaper industry; press freedom at core of mission
80 publisher associations 18,000 titles 120 countries
Founded in 1948 by French and Benelux resistance press
70 years of global advocacy and media development
€9.2 million raised for Media Freedom in past 3 years
What is WAN-IFRA

3. Absence of women in the news
Only 10% of news stories focus on women; little improvement since 2000
Lack of women in leadership positions in the news sector
Only 17% of top management positions held by women in the world’s
100 largest media corporations
Gender Equality: Media industry lags behind others
Sources: Global Media Monitoring Project 2015 Report; ‘The Media is Male Business’, Nordicom, 2018

4. Global Advocacy Potential
WAN-IFRA can play a particularly influential role in prioritizing gender
equality and identifying collective solutions to bring about concrete change
Women in News (kick-started with Sida funding)
WAN-IFRA was given the opportunity to pilot an innovative new leadership
development program in 2010 with rapid expansion since
WAN-IFRA & Gender Equality

5. Purpose: to increase women’s leadership and voices in the news.
WIN equips women journalists and editors with the skills, strategies, and
support to take on greater leadership positions within their companies.
It creates partnerships to identify industry-led solutions to closing the
gender gap in newsrooms, boardrooms and reporting.
Locally driven, industry led, and model-based approach
Multi-year, multi country partnerships supported by
What is Women In News (WIN)

6. Strong impact since 2010
More than 500 women
journalists and editors
from 15 countries have
progressed through WIN
More than 80 media
houses have engaged
with WIN to promote
women’s leadership and
voices in the news
WAN-IFRA made gender equality one of 4 priority
engagement areas with its global membership base

7. Nearly 1 in 5 participants reported a promotion in the past six months,
and directly attribute advancement to WIN
WIN participants are more motivated to remain in the media (93%) and
report enhanced professional networks (100%)
Editors/journalists report increase in self confidence (93%) and increased
contribution to their newsrooms (88%)
Media partners better understand the need to promote gender balance
in their organisations (71%)
Media partners report a greater commitment to support gender equality
within their organisations (67%)
WIN Results: Leadership

8. WIN media partners are making greater efforts to reduce gender bias in
their content (71% of those surveyed)
WIN editors report that they now regularly edit content to reduce gender
bias in news stories (41%):
increasing diversity within reporting beats (2/3)
more women experts quoted in articles (2/3)
educating staff on what makes a story gender balanced (1/3)
77% of WIN graduates polled say they consciously aim to reduce gender
bias in their own reporting/editing
Results: Gender Balance in News

9. How is WIN So Effective?
Local Ownership
Local steering committees actively engage in strategy and operations
Graduates remain engaged as mentors creating a legacy effect
Trainers and coaches drawn from the region, developing local capacity
Unique Model
Effective combination of media management training, career coaching,
mentoring and networking
Model can be universally applied but easily tailored to local contexts
Industry-helping-Industry
Peer-led training and education turns advocacy into an exercise to find
collective solutions and support one another

10. WIN’s Strength is in our Community
Local coaches mentors, and trainers
Steering Committee Members
Regional Leads
Fatemah Farag,
MENA Director, Egypt
Dr. Tikhala Chibwana
Africa Director,
Malawi

11. Swedish Brain Trust, Partners and Champions
3 Year implementation partner for WIN Somalia; gender advocacy partner in
Zimbabwe, Information partner in Rwanda
Carin Andersson
Chief of Administration, Mitt
Media; WIN HR Brain Trust
Jeanette Gustafsdotter
CEO of TU; WAN-IFRA Media
Freedom Board Member
Marie-Louise Jarlenfors
COO, VK Media; WIN HR Brain
Trust
Karin Pettersson
Director, Public Policy, Schibsted;
WAN-IFRA Media Freedom Board
Chair

12. WIN in the era of #METOO
In November 2017 WAN-IFRA polled its WIN constituents on the subject of
sexual harassment. 135 WIN participants responded to the survey (27%)
Nearly 2/3 of respondents reported some form of verbal harassment in the
workplace
Nearly ¼ reported physical harassment
1 in 12 respondents reported being sexually assaulted by a peer, superior or
source
71% did not report incidents to company or authorities. Main reasons for NOT
reporting: ”Worried for my job security” and “I was embarrassed or ashamed”
Just over 1/3 of media organisations have sexual harassment policies in place

13. How is WIN responding?
1. Developing sexual harassment training
module for managers and staff
2. Developing practical handbook for media
managers
3. Targeting HR Directors beginning with in-
person training and mentoring
4. Prioritising education on sexual harassment
in meetings with top management
All initiatives designed by regional experts drawn from the WIN community
and adapted to each region/country, with best practices and tools provided by
the Global HR Brain Trust

14. 1.Roll-out of WIN Advisory
Bespoke services, systematic tracking for a deeper engagement and to
benchmark progress
2. Consolidate National Chapters
Formalise national networks to further develop local training and
advocacy hubs
3. Become Industry Influencer
Leading by example, WAN-IFRA will mobilise the industry and leverage
brain power within membership base
WIN 2018-2022

15. Bespoke, in-newsroom training on key operational and management issues
focused on improving gender balance and achieving operational excellence.
Delivered by local experts drawn from the WIN community using skills
developed in past 7 years of engagement with WIN
5 core services to develop a gender equality framework for the
organisation:
career management business strategy mobile journalism
gender balance in the news sexual harassment
Goal: recruit 40 media partners by the end of 2019
1. WIN Advisory
Next step in advocacy and training

16. Develop organising and advocacy skills of WIN legacy participants in
12 countries to coordinate efforts to lobby for change on gender
and media freedom focused issues
Build on existing local infrastructure to establish local WIN chapters
through which trainings, mentoring and coaching could run
Extend reach of media management training through online
platform to extend the targeted training to women media
professionals outside of core WIN markets
2. National Chapters
Next step in activating legacy, localising ownership

17. Build access to gender diversity champions from global membership base
to support efforts to equip and inform media organisations with tools to
implement positive change.
Prototype Gender Balance Index, an automated content audit tool
allowing media companies and individuals to audit their content for
gender balance at the individual and aggregate level (English and Arabic)
Serve as galvanizing force amongst membership to promote dialogue
and discussion on how to move the barometer on gender equality in the
industry
3. Galvanize the Industry
Next step in influencing change in industry

18. CONTACT
INQUIRIES
MELANIE WALKER
DIRECTOR MEDIA DEVELOPMENT, WAN-IFRA
womeninnews
www.womeninnews.org
❞
World Association of Newspapers
and News Publishers