The media has an essential role to play in informing and educating people about the reality of domestic violence and the effects it has on families and communities in our society, especially women and children.
The complex nature of domestic violence means that quite often it comes to be misrepresented, minimalised or sensationalised. The way the news is framed, including how individuals and events are portrayed, can influence personal, political, policy and social justice responses.
While there is increasing emphasis on the potential for the media to play a role in the prevention of violence against women, research findings
suggest that the content of news reports frequently misrepresents the issue.
For example, while there are various ways of embedding and promoting understanding of the social constructions of male perpetrated violence within news coverage (e.g. by acknowledging underlying societal and gender-based factors), research shows that few media reports do so.
A body of research work shows that instead, there is a tendency for media reports of violence against women to use event-based reporting or ‘episodic’ framing (Sutherland et al., 2019).
When news coverage is focused on incidents or events happening at specific places and points in time, there is a tendency for individualistic attributions of responsibility to be emphasised.
This kind of reporting does not do justice to the systemic nature of gender-based and domestic violence, and the audience is thus prevented from seeing the ‘big picture’. Research show that sources, conventions and institutional constraints may constitute obstacles in the way of accurate reporting. Establishing positive working relationships with experts in the area of domestic violence will help journalists and broadcasters access accurate and reliable information that will ensure that the public receives information that does justice to the complexities of this scourge in our society.
Violence against women is now recognised as one of the most serious challenges to health and social inclusion for women and girls worldwide.
Defined as “any act of violence that results in, or is likely to result in, physical, sexual or psychological harm or suffering to women” (United Nations), it is a prevalent and pervasive issue with far-reaching individual and community impacts.
Recent estimates indicate that one in every three women in Europe and 15 per cent of women in Malta over the age of 15 have experienced physical and/or sexual violence by their current or former partner.
Most women experience violence perpetrated by someone they know, most often a current or former male partner. Forms of harm from violence are wide-ranging and include deleterious effects on physical and mental health.
Children exposed to violence can experience a range of social, behavioural, emotional and cognitive problems that often continue into adulthood (WHO, 2019).
The Commission on Gender-based and Domestic Violence strongly recommends that more journalists and broadcasters continue to look for ways to elevate reporting on domestic violence, and advocates for more sensitivity and accuracy in how it is covered.
Violence against women is now recognised as one of the most serious challenges to health and social inclusion for women and girls worldwide- Audrey Friggieri
Media professionals need to be exploring how factors like class, sexual orientation, age, race and immigration status can influence victims’ vulnerability to domestic violence and be willing to report it, also addressing how the criminal justice system and service providers deal with these cases.
Journalists and broadcasters of all stripes who write about the phenomenon of gender-based and domestic violence need to engage with examining the roots of the problem, efforts to rehabilitate perpetrators, and patterns of abuse.
Guidelines for reporting domestic violence may be found at https://stopviolence.gov.mt/en/Documents/Docs/Reporting%20Domestic%20Violence%20-%20consultation%20document.pdf.
Audrey Friggieri is Commissioner on Gender-based and Domestic Violence.