Balkans: Media portrayal of women called shallow, sexist

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BELGRADE, Dec 27, 2006, 2006 (IPS/GIN via COMTEX) -- The end of communism and the wars of the 1990s changed life in the Balkans, but the new nations that emerged are alike in presenting women in outdated stereotypes.

A study, "Stereotyping: Representation of Women in Print Media in South-East Europe," examines the portrayal of women in Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Macedonia and Serbia. The study was carried out by the MediaCenter in the Bosnian capital, Sarajevo.

MediaCentar (MediaCenter) is an educational and research institution set up in 1995 to promote professional journalism in post-war Bosnia-Herzegovina. The media played an important role in provoking inter-ethnic warfare between Bosniaks, Croats and Serbs.

The 300-page report from the center looks at the portrayal of women separately in all six Balkans countries.

Analysts studied leading publications from the region of former Yugoslavia for almost a year, and concluded that "the public sphere remains the domain of men, as politics and other 'serious' matters remain reserved for men, while women are assigned roles in the private sphere and entertainment."

The newspapers monitored were Dnevni Avaz, Oslobodjenje and Glas Srpske from Bosnia-Herzegovina, Jutarnji List, Vecernji List and Slobodna Dalmacija from Croatia, and Politika, Vecernje Novosti and Blic from Serbia. Other media monitored in the region were magazines Jeta from Albania, Ataka and Trud from Bulgaria and Reporter and Lobi from Macedonia.

"In 80 percent of the text, it is men who are represented in all the issues the dailies tackled," said co-author Ivana Kronja at a presentation of the study in Belgrade last week. "Women are almost invisible; they appear when one goes to the entertainment, fashion or TV section."

South-East Europe print media marginalize women even in areas and professions where they dominate, such as health care, education and municipal administration, the study shows.

"When journalists call analysts to comment on social and political events, in 90 percent cases they're men," she added.

"This clearly shows that media people also need a kind of education -- journalists of both genders," Tamara Skrozza, coordinator of the women section of the Independent Association of Journalists (NUNS), told IPS. Skrozza was involved in this project, which she describes as "one of the most important, as this is the first research that comprises the whole region of Southeastern Europe."

"Journalists often take the easy way out when writing a story -- they call the first expert they can think of, and it is usually a man," she added.

Skrozza said several regional journalist groups now plan to set up a website with data on women experts in various fields.

In Bosnia and Albania, but also in other areas, controversial stereotypes of women as dedicated mothers or seductive models prevail, the study found.

In Bosnia, the study found that gender attitudes combine with ethnic divisions between Bosniaks, Croats and Serbs, reflected in their separate media.

Bosniak media often tell stories of mothers or daughters of victims of the massacre of 7,000 men in Srebrenica in 1995. On the other hand mothers of Bosnian Serb soldiers are the favorite subject of Bosnian Serb media.

"Based on detailed analysis of material, we found out that the woman in discourse in Bosnia-Herzegovina dailies is presented either as mother/wife/housewife, old woman, or show business figure," the study says. In Albania, the study found a strong tendency to portray women achieving femininity through beauty and motherhood.

The author of the segment dealing with Albania, Ilda Londo, studied the popular women's magazine Jeta (Life) published by an all-female staff. She found that even when writing about successful career women, their achievements are underplayed to focus on their looks.

"By contrast, the depictions of the few male characters and their careers in the magazine focus neither on their looks nor their fate. Rather than watching their weight in order to preserve their jobs, the men in this magazine go through spiritual crises, emerging stronger and more famous than before."

The study says: "While media could play a pivotal role in changing this situation, little is being done to show such a commitment. In the absence of mainstream media's special coverage of these issues and with a vacuum of serious periodicals covering important issues on gender equality and global developments in this regard, the only option that remains are entertainment-themed women's magazines."

Women are portrayed "incorrectly" in 24.9 percent of items in print media in Serbia, 20.9 percent of the items in Croatia and 20.2 percent in Bosnia-Herzegovina. "The term 'incorrectly' is used when inadequate, simplified or inappropriate description of women is implied," Professor Svenka Savic from the northern Serbian province capital of Vojvodina told IPS.

This often happens in reporting crimes committed by women, the study says. The women are almost automatically declared guilty.

Gender bias in Croatian media was described through the controversial case of a young woman who killed her husband in 2005. The press turned against her, describing her husband as a successful young businessman from a prominent family, with little mention of the abuse and humiliation she was forced to live with for years.

"Politika daily from Belgrade leads the way among Serbian media when incorrect depiction of women is concerned, with 35.91 percent incorrect text," said Skrozza. The daily is the oldest in the Balkans and one of the most respected in Serbia.

Savic, one of the researchers for the study, told IPS that "Politika clearly promotes successful men rather than successful women in the same area of work. It also almost does not promote successful women at all."

"Sexism, stereotypes and exclusion of women from decision-making processes were registered in all six countries included in the survey," Savic said. In this respect all nine newspapers from former Yugoslavia should change their approach and stop treating women as sexual objects, she said. They must respect political equality and stop portraying women as inferior, she added.

Another cause for concern is that women are gravely underrepresented at higher levels of decision-making in the media, said Marina Blagojevic, a Belgrade researcher for the project. They are rarely chief editors, general managers or other decision-makers.