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Guide for Media Representatives and Bloggers on Gender-Sensitive Coverage

Guide for Media Representatives and Bloggers on Gender-Sensitive Coverage

Content

CHAPTER 1. GENDER AND GENDER EQUALITY

1.1. The concept of gender. "Gender" and "Sex"

1.2. Gender equality

CHAPTER 2. GENDER AND GENDER POLICY IN THE REPUBLIC OF UZBEKISTAN

2.1. Gender policy in the Republic of Uzbekistan

2.2. Legislation on the protection of women's rights and practices of its application

CHAPTER 3. GENDER STEREOTYPES AND MASS MEDIA

3.1. The concept of "stereotypes". Pros and cons of stereotypes. The importance of stereotypes in everyday life

3.2. Stereotype dynamics: conservation, modification, transformation

3.3. The role of mass media in changing stereotypes: how to achieve?

CHAPTER 4. GENDER EQUALITY AND MASS MEDIA

4.1. Gender equality and women's empowerment

4.2. How the media covers violence against girls and women

4.3. Gender-sensitive and correct approaches in mass media: stages of theme development and design, selection of the correct language, description of the topic

4. 4. Media monitoring and media accountability

CHAPTER 1. GENDER AND GENDER EQUALITY

1.1. The concept of gender. "Gender" and "Sex"

The concept «gender» quite difficult to understand as it includes the whole complex topics for discussion related both to a separate person, and to large social networks, economic and political issues. What is needed, to understand gender correctly?

The concept of "gender" is quite sophisticated to understand as it includes a range of topics for discussion, related to the individual as well as to large social, economic and political issues.

What does it take to understand gender correctly?

The concepts "gender" and "sex" should not be confused:

Sex - is a person's biological identity, something that distinguishes a man from a woman in physiological terms; it is something a person is born with.

Gender - is a set of traits and characteristics of male and female behavior, lifestyle, way of thinking, norms, preferences, life aspirations, etc.

It is important to understand that gender relations can change across cultures and over time.
It should be recognized that gender is not just about women's rights. Gender allows to analyze people's roles, responsibilities, limitations, and opportunities, and therefore it is a socio-economic and political category that applies to both women and men.
To correctly understand the situations where gender differences are observed:

a) Social context. Different perceptions of female and male social roles: men are considered as the head of the family and the main breadwinner, while women are expected to raise children and provide care;

b) Political issues. The difference lies in how women and men accept and share power and authority: women are more involved at the local level in activities related to their household roles;

c) Educational context. Differences in educational opportunities and expectations for girls and boys: Family resources are allocated to educating

boys, not girls. Girls follow more well-trodden paths of learning.

d) Economic issues. The difference in women's and men's access to high-paying jobs and control over financial and other productive resources, loans and credits, and land (from Moser, 1993.; CEDPA, 1996.).

Be aware of gender roles and gender relations.

Gender roles - these are patterns of behavior for women and men based on traditional expectations related to their sex. This is a set of social and cultural norms that society prescribes people to follow, depending on their biological sex. Moreover, in every society, social-cultural norms change from culture to culture, from civilization to civilization.

Gender relations - relations between men and women in society, which determine the distribution of roles and responsibilities.

1.2. Gender equality

There is a misconception that feminism, which advocates gender equality, promotes matriarchy. This is fundamentally wrong. In modern societies,

women's rights tend to be infringed, and therefore gender issues often refer specifically to women's rights. The question often arises: what does gender equality offer other than justice?

As noted in the World Bank's study Women, Business and the Law 2020, "equality of opportunity is a good economy."

Under the "full potential" scenario in which women participate in the economy on equal terms with men (according to McKinsey research), by 2025 the annual global GDP would increase by $28 trillion (26%) compared to the current situation.

In this context, it is important to know and understand that

gender equality is when men and women have equal status and equal conditions in society to fully exercise their rights and opportunities.

GENDER EQUALITY IS WHEN TAKING INTO ACCOUNT DIFFERENCES WE GET EQUAL RESULTS.

Gender awareness, in other words, it is mandatory recognition that social inequalities between men and women exist and must be corrected by addressin women's needs and priorities, and by analyzing programs and projects for their differential impact on women and men.
A proper understanding of gender equality requires gender sensitivity, which involves recognizing that women as well as men should participate in media policy.

Gender sensitivity is a concept that refers to the formulation of policies and initiatives that address the different needs, hopes, opportunities, and contributions of women and men.

There is a need for gender equity, which means the balanced presence and participation of women and men to achieve equality in specific settings.
To know what needs men and women have in politics, in society, in programs and projects, gender analysis is conducted. It is a sex-disaggregated study that considers different roles of men and women. This analysis is necessary to consider different experiences, knowledge, talents, and needs.

The essence of gender analysis is to fully disclose any consequences for both sexes, not to promote or weaken the position of one of the parties.

Gender analysis i ncludes ¹:

collecting data broken down by sex;
identification of labor division as well as the degree of access to and control over resources and benefits;
understanding practical needs, limitations, and opportunities of men and women;
identifying more comprehensive constraints and opportunities related to the strategic interests of men and women;
development of capacity and capabilityof organizations to promote equality between men and women.

CHAPTER 2. GENDER AND GENDER POLICY IN THE REPUBLIC OF UZBEKISTAN

2.1. Gender policy in the Republic of Uzbekistan

In recent years, the country has adopted 25 normative legal acts aimed at ensuring gender equality, including 2 laws, more than 20 presidential decrees and resolutions, and government resolutions. Strategy for achieving gender equality in the Republic of Uzbekistan until 2030 is an important step in the state gender policy. As part of this

Strategy, the Government plans to:

conduct a gender assessment of the legislation of Uzbekistan, introduce a regular gender assessment of all laws at the stage of development;
implement a phased introduction of gender budgeting in all sectors, especially in non-traditional sectors of the economy (such as industry, energy, transport, construction, ICT and finance);
conduct a gender analysis of labor market demand to support the participation of women in non-traditional sectors, improve the capacity of key organizations and agencies to develop gender-sensitive sectoral budgets, as well as to integrate gender-segregated sectoral data into national statistics.

In the approved Development Strategy of New Uzbekistan for 2022-2026 ², goal 69 is aimed at supporting women and further increasing their participation in society. The following is envisaged:

Creation of an atmosphere of intolerance towards harassment and violence against women in society, ensuring women's rights and legitimate interests;
Continuation of the policy of ensuring gender equality, increasing women's socio-political activity, continuing the implementation of reforms to support them;
Providing comprehensive assistance in training, mastering professional skills and providing women with decent jobs, supporting women's entrepreneurship, identifying and properly orienting the abilities of gifted girls and women;
Increasing the effectiveness of work to ensure the quality of medical and social services provided to women in the regions, especially in rural areas, and introducing them to a healthy lifestyle;
Identification of systematic measures to provide housing for women in need of housing, to improve their living and working conditions, and to increase their income;
Providing socio-legal and psychological assistance to women in difficult social situations, and targeted support for them;
Organization of targeted work with "Women's Notebooks", implementation of public control over timely solutions to women's problems by responsible organizations.

2.2. Legislation on the protection of women's rights and its application

The question of women's rights as an integral part of human rights was for the first time raised in the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, adopted by the UN in 1979. The international community began to work on its legal support, but not all countries of the world have legally formalized the idea of gender equality.

Uzbekistan has joined to more than 80 international human rights documents, including 6 major treaties and 4 optional UN protocols to ensure women's rights in accordance with international norms and legal standards. Among them are the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), the Convention on the Political Rights of Women, and the Maternity Protection Convention.

It should be noted that Article 5 of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women stipulates that States Parties shall take all appropriate measures to modify the social and cultural patterns of conduct of men and women, with a view to achieving the elimination of prejudices and customary and all other practices which are based on the idea of the inferiority or the superiority of either of the sexes or on stereotyped roles for men and women ³

How does the legislation of the Republic of Uzbekistan define women's rights?

Constitution of the Republic of Uzbekistan

Article 18 of the Constitution states that all citizens shall have equal rights and freedoms, and that everyone shall be equal before law, regardless of their gender, race, nationality, language, religion, social origin, beliefs, individual and social status.
Article 46 of the Constitution stipulates that "women and men have equal rights".
Article 63 regarding women's rights in the family and their right to be protected from forced marriage states that "marriage shall be based on the willing consent and equality of both parties." In addition, several other articles declare equality between husband and wife regarding their rights and responsibilities within marriage and children.

Family Code of the Republic of Uzbekistan

According to article 53, forced marriage is considered illegal.
Articles 2, 3, 4, 9 and 19 stipulate the equal rights of men and women in family relations.

In addition, the decree of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan "On additional measures to further strengthen guarantees of the rights of the child", No. PP-4296 dated 22.04.2019, states that from September 1, 2019, the age of marriage is equal for both men and women -- 18 years old.

Electoral Code of the Republic of Uzbekistan

Article 3 states that elections in the Republic of Uzbekistan are held on the basis of universal, equal and direct suffrage by secret ballot.
Article 4 states that all citizens have equal voting rights, regardless of their gender.
Article 70 states that when candidates for deputies are nominated by political parties, the number of women must be at least 30% of the total number of candidates for deputies nominated by a political party.

Law "On the protection of women from harassment and violence" dated 02.09.2019 The law goes beyond the concept of "domestic violence" and regulates relations in the sphere of protecting women from harassment and violence in everyday life, in the workplace, in educational institutions and in other places. It provides a clear description of a number of concepts, including "harassment", "violence", "psychological violence", "physical violence", "sexual violence", "economic violence", "victim of harassment and violence", "protection order" and others. It also stipulates the adoption of measures to change the behavior of those who are inclined to commit or have committed violence, for which it is planned to develop and approve a targeted program.

In this regard it is important to know the following:

A victim of violence has the right to obtain a protection order that provides state protection from harassment and violence, which entails the application of the measures defined by the Law on the Protection of Women from Harassment and Violence against a person or group of persons who harass or commit violence against women.
If during the consideration of the issue of the protection order signs of a crime specified in the Criminal Code are revealed, the case materials are sent to the law enforcement agency to decide whether to prosecute the aggressor.
If there is evidence of violence, at the request of the victim of harassment and violence or his/her legal representative, a decision is made to grant asylum, accommodation is provided in special centers for up to thirty days, which can be extended if necessary.
If a victim of violence is placed in a special center, she retains her job, and the time spent in the center does not constitute grounds for expulsion from an educational institution for missing classes.

Criminal Code of the Republic of Uzbekistan

The Criminal Code of Uzbekistan provides for punishment for incitement to suicide (Article 103); inducement to commit suicide (article 1031) intentional infliction of bodily harm (articles 104-105 , 109); torture (article 110); threats of murder or violence (Article 112); rape (article 118); forced satisfaction of sexual need in an unnatural form (Article 119); forcing a woman to enter into marriage or preventing her from entering into marriage (Article 136); slander (article 139); insult (Article 140); violation of the equal rights of citizens (article 141). Typically, persons who have committed domestic violence are held liable under the above-mentioned articles.

Enforcement issues

According to the Main Department for Crime Prevention of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Uzbekistan ⁴ from January to August (inclusive) of 2022, security agencies across the country received 32,783 complaints about harassment and violence against women.

In total, 32 783 protection orders were issued to ensure the safety of victims of gender-based violence.

These figures show the scale of the problem of violence in society. However, according to the Article 66-1 of the Criminal Procedure Code of the Republic of Uzbekistan, a person who has committed a crime that caused harm to health or sexual freedom is exempted from criminal liability in connection with reconciliation with the victim.

Often in practice one can observe the widespread reconciliation of the parties in cases of domestic violence, even by law enforcement officers. According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, 4,086 and 17,012 families were reconciled in 2020 and 2021, respectively, and in 2022, more than 16,000 families were reconciled, and over 14,000 conflicts were resolved by issuing protection orders for victims of domestic violence ⁵ .

It is important to understand the following:

This practice is still doubtful and raises many questions since there are no specific criteria for reconciliation of the parties and no permanent monitoring of the situation in the family after the reconciliation with the aggressor.
Usually victims of violence, under pressure from family, friends and society, and also because of fear of stigmatization and being labeled as a "divorcee", agree to continue living with the aggressor, and the aggressor is rarely held accountable.
The legislation of Uzbekistan does not contain a clear definition of "domestic violence", which refers to the dependent relationship between the victim and the perpetrator, as well as the systematic nature of violence.
The Criminal Code does not classify domestic violence as a separate crime. The Criminal Code, the Administrative Responsibility Code and the Law on the Protection of Women from Harassment and Violence do not contain provisions regarding the ongoing, controlling, and coercive nature of domestic violence.
Economic and psychological violence are not regulated by either the Administrative Code or the Criminal Code, although these types of violence are recognized in the Law on the protection of women.

CHAPTER 3. GENDER STEREOTYPES AND MASS MEDIA

3.1. The concept of "stereotypes". Pros and cons of stereotypes. The importance of stereotypes in everyday life

Experts distinguish three groups of gender stereotypes.

The first group is stereotypes about men's and women's inherent character traits, personality traits, and behavior patterns. This includes stereotypes like:

all men are rational, and all women are emotional;
beauty and youth are the key to success;
women have chicken brains;
all men are strong and brave.

The second group concerns the assignment of family and professional roles in accordance with gender. For women, the main social roles are family roles (mother, housewife), and for men are professional roles. Men are evaluated on the basis of their professional success, and women on the basis of having a family and children. For example:

A girl needs to get married early and have children;
Woman is a keeper of the home and comfort;
A woman's mission is family, children and household;
Man is a breadwinner;
A man is called to work;
A woman is created for a family, and she does not have to study, work, or, even more, make a career.

The third group of gender stereotypes is associated with differences in the content of work. Traditionally, it is believed that women's work should be of a performing, service nature and represents the development of a "natural female purpose": caring for family members, raising and educating children. Men, on the other hand, are assigned an instrumental sphere of activity, where creative, constructive, and managerial work takes

priority ⁶.

Man is an excellent manager;
Woman is a good performer;
Best profession for a woman is a teacher.

Nevertheless, stereotypes can also play a positive role. They make it easier to understand the essence of many phenomena, events and processes, and accelerate the comprehension of complex concepts and problems. However, a journalist should not be guided by a stereotypical opinion in her/his practice - her/his main tool should be critical thinking.

In addition to stereotypes, there are prejudices. Prejudices are views and opinions based on inaccurate or distorted information and knowledge, most often taken on faith from the words of other people.

Examples of prejudice:

Women are weak;
Disabled women cannot give birth to healthy children;
A man cannot be a caring parent;
A woman does not have to study and work when she has a husband;
Woman is a submissive and must always obey a man.

The most common gender stereotypes in Uzbek society include:

stereotypes in relation to appearance: a stereotype regarding clothing (a woman
should remain feminine in any clothes);
stereotype of taking care of one's appearance;
gender and family;
stereotypes of personal qualities of character and behavior of men and women, their interpersonal communication;
stereotypes about the role and division of responsibilities in the household, raising children in the family;
stereotypes about professional roles: stereotypes of male and female professions, men's earnings, girls' education and women's careers, etc.

National media are engaged in relaying these kinds of stereotypes. The most striking trend in the coverage gender issues is the criminalization of both

female and male images, and there are much more materials that focus specifically on images of women as criminals than those with an emphasis on similar male images. As an example of the latter, you can consider the material under the headline "A man 'leaked' intimate videos of a girl from Andijan to social networks ^" ⁷ .

However, the materials with headlines "Girl extorted 15 milion soums from her friend for not sharing her intimate photos" ⁸ , "Girl who joked in the subway that there was a bomb in her bag was arrested for 5 days" ⁹ already pedal the topic of criminalization of women in their headlines and create a negative image.

According to Article 3 of the Law of the Republic of Uzbekistan "On Guarantees of Equal Rights and Opportunities for Women and Men", indirect discrimination on the basis of sex is considered the creation of a situation, provision or criteria that place persons of one sex in a less favorable position compared to persons of the other sex, including the promotion of gender inequality through the media, education, culture, the establishment of conditions or requirements that may lead to negative consequences for persons of a certain sex. In addition, Article 6 of the Law of the Republic of Uzbekistan "On Mass Media" stipulates that "it is prohibited to defame the honor and dignity or business reputation of citizens, to interfere in their private life through the media". Based on the above examples of headlines, it can be concluded that when journalists cover such cases, they often fail to consider the consequences of their actions, which can entail increasing discrimination against women in society.

When preparing a material, every journalist must keep in mind his/her obligations that are established in the Law "On the Protection of Professional Activity of Journalists", which states that when performing professional activity, a journalist must "observe the rules of professional ethics of journalists" and "respect the rights and freedoms, honor and dignity of the individual." It is also established that "a journalist may not use professional information for personal purposes, publish facts about an individual's private life, or use audio and video recording devices without the consent of the source of information or the author".

3.2. Dynamics of stereotypes: conservation, modification, transformation

Stereotypes in society are not permanent. They can exist for a long time, change, or disappear completely over time and with changes in social conditions and culture. Local researcher D.N. Karimova refers to the results of an online survey of 1,170 families from all regions of the republic, conducted by the Oila Scientific-Practical Research Center at the end of April 2020 ¹⁰ . This survey revealed the extent to which existing stereotypes coincide with the real situation in families of Uzbekistan.

Myth 1. Women are not equal with men in all rights

The result of the survey showed that the vast majority of respondents are familiar with the concepts of "gender" and "gender equality", believe that these issues are very important and should be addressed at the level of government and local authorities. The opinion about equal rights and opportunities for women and men in all aspects is shared by 68%, and only 20% are of the opinion that women should not be equal with men in all rights. The proportion of those who believe that women should have more rights than men is 4% (of which 6% are women and 2% are men). The rest found it difficult to answer. The figures show that an overwhelming number of respondents agree that women should be equal with men in all rights.

Myth 2. A woman is created for a family, she does not have to study, work and, especially, make a career

According to the survey, 74% of respondents believe that a woman can combine family and work (86% of women and 61% of men); 19% believe that a woman should devote herself only to family and raising children, and 7% think that a woman should focus on employment and career growth. At the same time, 15% of respondents believe that if a man, on an equal basis with a woman, is engaged in household chores and child-

rearing, then a woman will be able to work and make a career. The opinion of 6% of respondents (both men and women) who believe that household chores and raising children are exclusively women's responsibilities is a cause for concern.

Myth 3. A woman cannot be the head of an organization / business and should only perform executive functions

According to the results of the survey, 42% of respondents believe that a woman as a manager is quite effective as she is practical and energetic, 35% think that she is even more effective than a man; and 23% believe that men are still more successful in work and career (of which 15% are women and 32% are men).

Myth 4. Men should work, and women should combine household and social work

The survey revealed that women in the family are busy doing housework (cleaning, laundry, cooking for all family members) and raising children. If there are sick or disabled people in the family, then the care for them also falls on women's shoulders. Men at home do purely male work: they fix and repair; if necessary, they work in the subsidiary farm and go to the store for groceries. At the same time, 60% of respondents believe that men should be equally engaged in household chores and upbringing of children, as it will be a good example for them and will help women to devote their free time to themselves and their health. In society, women experience a double burden because, in addition to paid work, they do a disproportionately large share of unpaid household work.

Myth 5. Differences and contradictions between the interests of men and women, the prolonged cohabitation of spouses in the home leads to quarrels and conflicts in the family

During the quarantine, the cases of domestic violence increased due to the increase in conflict situations in families. Theoretically, differences in the behavior patterns of men and women can cause family, interpersonal and intrapersonal conflicts. Inconsistency of gender behavior with stereotypes and cultural norms of gender roles can also generate tension and conflict. Finally, the struggle for equal rights for women is also often conflictual. Is this the case in our context?

The results of the survey showed that during the quarantine, when all family members lived together under one roof for a long time, 46% of respondents did not observe any changes in gender roles in their families, 39% believed that relations in the family had improved, and only 3% stated that the position of women in the family had deteriorated. 93% of respondents noted the absence of cases of domestic violence in their family. It was also assumed that the deterioration of the social and material situation of families during the pandemic and quarantine becomes a powerful factor in conflict

situations in families and domestic violence ¹¹ . The results of the survey show that the Uzbek society had and has its own specific stereotypes of the behavior of men and women, depending on the historically established customs and traditions, culturally and religiously accepted norms and rules of life activity.

At the same time, there is a tendency towards transformation of society, including changes in people's attitudes towards gender stereotypes. Daily life facts like the increase in the economic and political activity of women in society, the development of women's entrepreneurship, the appearance of women in politics change gender stereotypes and force people to live in accordance with the requirements of the time. The departure from gender stereotypes associated with assigning professional roles exclusively to men, and family functions to women, expands opportunities for women's personal development, contributes to the elimination of discrimination against women and domestic violence.

3.3. The role of mass media in changing stereotypes: how to achieve?

In the concluding observations of the UN Committee to Uzbekistan on women's participation in political and public life, the role of the media was highlighted. In particular, it states that it is necessary "to ensure that women politicians and women candidates improve their skills in areas such as political campaigning, leadership and negotiation, and to work with the media to raise awareness among politicians, journalists, religious leaders, community leaders and the general public of the importance of women's full, independent and democratic participation on an equal basis with men in public and political life as a prerequisite for the full realization of women's rights and for the achievement of political stability and economic development

in the State Party" ¹²

In this regard, the following recommendations can be made:

to identify and exclude all kinds of sexist perceptions and approaches from media publications (discrimination on the basis of sex);
to reconsider the concept of historical development as a series of military conflicts and political upheavals (patriarchal) and replace it with the concept of history as the development of human life and human potential (the concept of gender equality);
to maintain gender balance in editorial management, in the selection of publication heroes, experts, and authors;
to demonstrate equally the role of women and men in the development of society;
to openly and impartially cover gender issues in society;
to adhere to the norms of journalistic professional ethics when covering issues of gender equality;
to observe the principle of "equal rights - equal opportunities" in gender-sensitive topics.

The stereotypical depiction of women and gender roles is especially characteristic for advertising and commercial information. The life of a woman in the media information space is polarized and confined between marriage, motherhood, beauty and sexuality. Research also reveals the increased interest of the media in the marginalization of the "feminine": female crime, alcoholism, prostitution. As for men, the media traditionally orient them toward their careers and making money, denying men such images as a caring father, for example.

From the view of gender stereotypes, one can outline the typological characteristics of female images created by journalists today. Experts have classified them into three groups:

1."Taboo" (prohibitions): stable simplified ideas about what a woman should not do. These include common open or veiled statements that, for example, a woman should not be stronger and smarter than men, should not give up her family, no matter how she feels, should not be tough, even if the main character of the material is a representative of law enforcement agencies.

2."Regulations" (instructions): stable simplified ideas that a woman should be a loving wife, a caring mother, a good housewife, yield to a man, be weak, soft, beautiful, necessarily slender, etc. As a rule, images of positive heroines in the media meet these "prescriptions".

3. "Ideal": stable simplified ideas about the ideal woman - this is a generalized and, oddly enough, well-perceived by the female audience, the stereotypical image of a woman who is successful in all areas of her life: from personal to social; she definitely has a family and children, she is an exemplary mother and housewife, she has risen up the career ladder to a middle management position, she looks like a model, or at least

strives to, she leads a healthy lifestyle, etc ¹³

These groups of stable simplified ideas generate a system of female images in the media, which, on the one hand, reflect the stereotypical perceptions of women that exist in society, and on the other hand, shape them. This approach simplifies the reader's understanding of the journalistic idea and produces female images-signs and symbols of the time, and on the other hand, coarsens and primitivizes the image of the world that is created by the journalistic work.

In general, the numerous stereotypical female images created by the media can be grouped according to the following characteristics:

1) according to the relationship of the heroine of the material with the outside world:

images of women consuming public goods (happy housewives, mistresses, friends of supermen, etc.);
images of women producing public goods (worker, fighting friend, intellectual, bohemian, sportswoman, rebellious pensioner, etc.);
images of women creating social relations (a female leader, a heroine, a political leader, a highly educated adviser, a socialite, etc.);

2) by the nature of the heroine's position in society:

negative (marginal woman, criminal);
neutral ("pack animal", worker, mother, teacher);
positive (political leader, leader, businesswoman);

3) according to the degree of participation of the heroine of the material in social relations:

a low degree, characterized either by the heroine's neutral consumerist attitude towards society (consumer, housewife, lover), or her negative consumerist attitude towards society (marginal woman, criminal, prostitute, etc., unambiguously condemned by society);
medium degree, characterized by the responsible attitude of the heroine towards her social functions, but with a low social status: worker, mother, teacher, educator, etc.;
high degree, characterized by a strong social position of the heroine, her belonging to the middle class or elite, the ability to create social connections, as a rule, she is a leader;
the highest degree, characterized by the maximum participation of the heroine in public life and social relations, her belonging to the top of social relations, as a rule, this is a female political symbol;

4) according to the social role of the heroine of the material:

negative: the heroine is out of society, the authors of the articles give them blatantly negative or compassionate characteristics, they are homeless women and prostitutes as outsiders;
adaptive: the heroine is depicted as "an attachment to a man", she does not have her own opinion and principles, her life is limited by relationships with her husband, lover or boss, as a rule, she is a happy housewife, seductress, Superman's girlfriend;
positive: materials usually feature a heroine of an approving nature, who, as already noted, occupies a low social status but performs responsible public functions (teacher, head of department, head of the department);
the highest: the heroine is portrayed as a statesman and political leader (it is interesting that the materials are not always positive due to the stereotype - distrust of authors and readers in the ability of a woman to manage at the state level), usually a female political symbol.

Meanwhile, life does not stand still. In the modern world, the social roles of women and men, their life plans, ideas and priorities have changed. However, new positive images and models of behaviors are still rarely reflected in the media and advertising. The reasons for gender imbalances lie in the fact that journalists and media people themselves are often the product of education in a society full of gender stereotypes. And they consciously or unconsciously reproduce outdated stereotypes in their materials. This is a serious problem, since the constant retransmission of outdated stereotypes can become a barrier to the implementation of gender equality policies and democratic reforms in the country.

In this context, the media and journalists face the following tasks:

to break obsolete anachronistic stereotypes, comprehend their sources, develop skills for assessing the content and application of gender stereotypes in journalistic content, as well as to capture and record new things that characterize people, the country and the era;
to adjust to broadcasting new female and male images and behaviors, success stories that go beyond the stereotypical approach to the roles and functions of men and women in the family and in society;
to move away from stereotyped images, clichés and frames in approaches to the coverage of gender-sensitive topics, to look for new angles for covering old topics, new types of heroes and heroines, interesting, varied and creative ways of presenting information.

This will become the basis for the media to move from relaying stereotyped, "blurred" images and behaviors of men and women to creating new, lively and active images and models that, by the way, have a place in real life, but are reluctant to be brought into the public space. Only then, the media will be able to become active agents of gender parity and partners in the formation of a gender-sensitive public consciousness.

A new type of woman is emerging as a result of changes in her life values and guidelines, which is characterized by the following qualities:

self-confidence;
patience;
organization;
the ability to be sensible;
the ability to empathize without excessive sacrifice.

The goal of the media is to provide competent and high-quality coverage of the new gender reality. It is necessary to create an adequate verbal or visual image of a contemporary woman, based on the established in the public consciousness attitude to the role of a woman, her position; an image put forward and distributed by the media as an ideal.

Based on this, the tasks of modern journalism consist of the following:

critically reflect on negative, rigid stereotypes and try to avoid using them;
critically analyze the source of the gender stereotype;
break, critically comprehend obsolete anachronistic stereotypes;
meaningful and appropriate use of positive stereotypes;
take into account the local context and create new positive stereotypes;
develop skills for evaluating content and applying it in the context;
identify and capture new trends, approaches and solutions.

CHAPTER 4. GENDER EQUALITY AND MASS MEDIA

4.1. Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment in Media

When examining the role of the media in achieving gender equality and empowering women, it is important to consider the following points:

What role do information providers (e.g. media, digital communication companies, libraries, archives and museums) play in achieving the goals of the Beijing Declaration, the Sustainable Development Goals and the goals of UN Women?
How can content providers measure their ability to respond to gender-related issues, and how can civil society, in turn, assess this response?
Who oversees the agencies that provide content? Why should content providers be gender-responsive in their management?
How can content providers challenge representations that stereotype women, men and minority groups?
Are content providers merely transmitters of messages related to gender inequality, or partners in the implementation of the Beijing Declaration and the other goals mentioned above, contributing to the creation and multiplication of information and knowledge?
If the media are involved, what is needed to enable them to perform their functions effectively?

To understand whether national media are promoting gender balance issues, some of the following questions need to be answered:

Do media organizations in your country promote media and information literacy (MIL)?
How do they do it?
What evidence is there that they are doing so? Please provide specific examples if possible.
How can MIL help fight gender stereotypes and address gender equality issues?
What local gender development programs are in place in your country and communities?
List some of the problems that arise in the implementation of these programs.
To what extent are the opinions of different gender groups taken into account in development of those programs and to what extent are they represented in them? How are they portrayed?
To what extent are various content providers involved in these projects?
How do you think MIL can be used creatively to bring gender equality issues to the forefront of media and information, and improve the representation of women?

Answers to these and other questions, analysis of existing experience and case studies can serve as the basis for the development of recommendations to address issues of gender equality, media and information literacy.

4.2. How the media covers violence against girls and women

At present, materials related to violence against women and girls are often in the form of criminal chronicle information presented without any analysis of the situation or assessment. Due to the lack of information, as a rule, commentators on social networks begin to analyze the situation and give their assessment with opinions ranging from "a terrible situation took place" to "it was her own fault". Often, the violence is justified by the fact that the woman behaved "inappropriately". An example of this is the resonant material about the beating of the bride by the groom at the wedding ¹⁴ . On this case, it is known that an administrative case was initiated against the groom under Article 183 (disorderly conduct) of the Code of Administrative Responsibility and the case was sent to court.

However, in the end, the groom was not penalized due to the lack of claims from the bride. In fact, in this situation, there was a violation of Article 26 of the Constitution of the Republic of Uzbekistan, which states that "no one may be subject to torture, violence, other cruel or humiliating human dignity treatment." In addition, since the groom's actions involved beatings and light injuries, he could have been held criminally liable for hooliganism under Article 277 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

In one of the episodes of the talk show "Amirkhon Umarov" on the Mening Yurtim TV channel, the heroine, whose husband went abroad to work, was raped by the head of the farm where she worked. In the studio there was a discussion about who was to blame. The victim's statement was classified as "Defamation" by the internal affairs authorities and was not considered. The discussion in the studio turned into a condemnation of the

"improper moral character of a woman" who was allegedly guilty herself. The "inappropriate image" usually fits within the stereotypical idea of what a woman should and should not do. The fact of violence is thus relegated to the background, and the victim becomes accused, and violence - justified by society. It is very important to convey in the media the message that no "inappropriate behavior" justifies violence. From a legal point of view, violence is always the fault of the perpetrator and no one else. All journalists and bloggers who address the topic of violence against women should adhere

to this principle. In this case, the discussion that was provoked on the TV show reinforced indirect discrimination based on gender, which is contrary to the Law of the Republic of Uzbekistan "On Guarantees of Equal Rights and Opportunities for Women and Men".

Most publications about violence against women do not contain journalistic analysis and evaluation, which can play a negative role, generating a perverted perception of the rapist that "I am not alone", "everyone does it". Therefore, it is always necessary to provide information not only about the fact of violence that has occurred, but also to connect this information with the fact of the punishment received so that the messages "violence is inevitably punishable" regardless of the behavior of the victim, "violence is an unacceptable way to resolve issues, problems, and conflicts" are delivered

effectively.

Often the image of a woman is criminalized in the media. In describing a crime, journalists focus on the gender identity of the perpetrator or suspect. For example, the article with the headline "Uzbekistonli ayol Rossiyada qiz tug'ib, chaqologni daryoga uloqtirdi" ¹⁵ ("A woman from Uzbekistan gave birth to a baby girl in Russia and drowned

her in a river"), reported that a woman from Uzbekistan in Russia gave birth to a baby and drowned her child. The headline emphasizes gender rather than the nationality of the person, which is fundamentally contrary to gender-sensitive reporting. A journalist must remember about equality before the law, regardless of gender. According to Article 18 of the Constitution of the Republic of Uzbekistan, "All citizens of the Republic of Uzbekistan

shall have equal rights and freedoms and shall be equal before law without discrimination by sex, race, nationality, language, religion, social origin, convictions, individual and social status." Article 46 also states that "Women and men have equal rights."

Emphasizing gender identity in headlines is considered to promote indirect discrimination on the basis of gender through the media. It is not uncommon to encounter materials in the media about law enforcement efforts to apprehend persons engaged in prostitution. Such materials also often take the

form of criminal chronicles and do not provide complete information or any social analysis.

For example, the program "Bu kun" ("This Day") of the TV channel Zur TV reported that as a result of a night raid, the Bukhara Province internal affairs authorities detained women engaged in pimping and prostitution.

The program exclusively focused on the women who provided sexual services, without mentioning the men who used their services or why these women were forced into it. The report implied that prostitution has a woman's face and that immoral women themselves are responsible for this social evil.

According to Article 3 of the Law of the Republic of Uzbekistan "On Guarantees of Equal Rights and Opportunities for Women and Men", mass media should not promote gender inequality. According to Article 29, "persons guilty of violating the legislation on guarantees of equal rights and opportunities for women and men shall be held responsible in accordance with the established procedure." In addition, Article 141

(Violation of the equality of citizens) of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Uzbekistan states that "direct or indirect violation or restriction of rights, or the establishment of direct or indirect preferences for citizens on the basis of their sex, race, nationality, language,

religion, social origin, beliefs, personal or social status shall be punishable by a fine of up to fifty basic calculation units, or deprivation of a certain right for up to three years, or up to three hundred hours of compulsory community service, or correctional labor for up to

two years.

Often a woman is portrayed as a scandalous, ill-mannered person in television talk-show programs, as for example, in the program "Choiga chiqing" of "Zur TV" channel, and in the the talk show by Amirkhon Umarov broadcasted on the "Mening Yurtim" TV channel. Meanwhile, the fact that the reason for such behavior could be her husband's bigamy, illicit relationship on the side, domestic violence, or material/domestic unsettlement is not discussed.

In television series produced in Uzbekistan, such as the "Zebo" TV series of the "Sevimli" channel, women are often portrayed as powerless victims of circumstances, held hostage by husbands and parents, unable to defend themselves without help. It conveys the message that a woman must be submissive, uncomplaining, tolerating injustice toward herself, and then her life will become prosperous. The possibility of standing up for one's own rights is not allowed.

Guiding Principles: Reporting (sexual) violence against women ¹⁶

Precise wording. Apply precise language to violence and sexual assault. Rape is never about sex or a non-permanent "relationship"; it is a violent crime with legal consequences. Sexual violence and violence against women has been defined not only as a violation of human rights, but also as a crime against humanity, whether committed in times of peace or war. It is necessary to consider the legal framework of the crime and use terminology that challenges misconceptions that minimize the consequences of violence.
"Survivor" or "victim"? Instead of the word "victim" it is better to use the phrase "survivor of violence." The word "victim" suggests that the woman was and is helpless. This word in itself excludes the possibility of resistance by a woman, rejection of violence as a normal and expected phenomenon, seeking help and survival. The phrase "survivor" refers to life after the assault, does not define a woman by a single event in her life, and helps to emphasize the woman's actions to take control of the situation and make decisions about the future.
Issues of privacy and respect. Many survivors feel shame or guilt or distress when recounting events. It is essential to clearly recognize oneself as a journalist and to explain the content of the story; it is important to build trust. It is also important to inform interviewees that they have the right to refuse to answer questions and that they can bring someone else to support them. If possible, the journalist should be a woman with knowledge of the effects of trauma. For example, many survivors of violence have fragmented memories of what happened or may not remember certain events if they are too severe to cope as the brain can block such memories. If anonymity is guaranteed, it must be respected and all identifying elements, such as work or location, must be concealed.
Security considerations. In some cases, talking to a journalist can put a woman at risk. Sometimes a woman's admission that she was raped can lead to her expulsion from the community, revenge, or even death. These risks should be kept in mind and taken into account when choosing the time and place for the interview.
Analysis of the situation. False information is often the result of inadequate study of the problem. For example, the Western media often focuses on the "danger from a stranger", when in reality most cases of sexual violence (not in wartime) are committed by someone known to the woman, or domestic violence is treated as an isolated incident.
Refraining from promoting sexist attitudes. Under no circumstances should a journalist assume that a woman might be to blame for what happened, or give advice restricting her activities, dress style, or behavior. It is recommended to avoid using dramatic expressions such as "defenseless", "lured" and "experienced worse than death", as they reinforce stereotypes about women, such as gullibility. It is important not to make judgments based on how a woman reacts to what happened or how quickly she recovers. It is necessary to show that women can recover and that there is no such thing as a "normal" reaction to an abnormal situation. Show respect for women in all their diversity.
Telling the whole story, but within reason. Do not focus on the description of bloody details. It is important, also for a woman, to place the event in context, both officially and geographically. A woman should be portrayed as a complete person who had a life before the event and which she continues to lead afterwards.
Drawing attention to the perpetrator. Often the perpetrator is not mentioned in the article or mentioned in passing. Women are not to blame for being raped. Also, the mainstream media refers to rapists or attackers as "monsters" or "maniacs", implying that they have visible differences from other men, although this is certainly not the case. Another category of crimes where the perpetrator often escapes punishment or the consequences of the attack are minimized is domestic violence.
Coverage of rape during war. Often this topic remains unpublicized because of fear of further attacks. It is almost always difficult to confirm what happened, and the sheer brutality of this particular "weapon of war" has reportedly been traumatic for journalists covering the subject. Caution should be exercised in the choice of language, and interviewees should be allowed to determine their own terminology. It is important to be especially cautious if armed or other persons express a desire to be present at the interview, as they may be accomplices or know the offenders, but one should not confront them, as this could affect the safety of the people being interviewed.
Where possible, provide information about organizations where survivors of sexual violence can seek help and support. A checklist for journalists reporting on violence includes 15 specific recommendations ¹⁷.
Talk about it!
Treat manifestations of gender-based violence not as isolated incidents, but as violations of human rights;
Reveal the context;
Be careful with wording;
Pay attention to headlines;
Be attentive when analyzing statistics and studies;
Describe the real situation, avoiding unnecessary sensationalism;
Limit the use of hidden cameras and other "covert" techniques;
Refuse "lecturing" and language that can provoke condemnation of the victim;
Avoid secondary victimization and describe the victim/survivor as a resilient individual;
Consider the order of themes, connections, and context;
Practice "service journalism" and "decision journalism";
Give yourself enough time to prepare the material;
Understand yourself, and help others understand!
Rebalance information in favor of gender equality.

Every time a journalist interviews a victim of gender-based violence, they should ask themselves three sets of questions ¹⁸:

Have I taken all necessary measures to eliminate risks to the safety and reputation of the interlocutor? If the interlocutor wishes to remain anonymous, am I sure that there are no details in the material that would allow the viewer/reader to recognize her?
Have I communicated to the interviewee the purpose and context of the interview, does he/she understand how long the interview will be and which media it will be published in? In other words, does the interviewee give her truly informed consent?
Have I been able to create an atmosphere of consideration, respect and impartiality and ensure, to the extent possible, that recounting the abuse does not cause the victim further suffering? Did I keep my commitment and justify the interviewee's trust?

4.3. Gender-sensitive and correct approaches in mass media: stages of theme development and design, selection of the correct language, description of the topic

How to cover gender issues correctly? This question should be divided into two. The first is how to develop a topic? The second is how to use the language for descriptions? ¹⁹

What are you talking about? The question is aimed at teaching how to develop a topic with gender sensitivity. This includes selecting and interpreting facts: statistical data, results of sociological surveys, expert assessments, characters of the story, various kinds of documents, written and oral testimonies, etc., through which a particular problem is revealed and presented to the audience.

How are you saying it? The question shows the work of the language itself in constructing gender, focusing attention on specific methods of changing gender-incorrect statements.

Mass media are engaged in the production of discourses - systems of concepts. Gender-correct communication means techniques and methods of disrupting the patriarchal discourses that dominate in society and replacing them with discourses of a completely different quality.

How to change the situation? There are techniques for disrupting patriarchal discourse that can be recommended to specialists in the field of mass media.

A technique that enhances the gender correctness of journalistic communication is the inclusion of female and male life experiences, views, and opinions on all problems of society without exception in the mass media discourse. This development of the theme using a gender-separated setting has several advantages. First, women will appear to society as individuals with their own voice, perspectives, and experiences. Second, it will become apparent that all topics are not gender-neutral. Finally, it will be revealed that men also play gender roles, are subject to gender discrimination, and are themselves "products" of the patriarchal discourse. Bringing women and men of different social strata, different nationalities, and different ages into the public spotlight. This is important because discrimination, hierarchy of power and subordination are born at the intersection of all these lines of tension. Giving people the opportunity to speak. This means that when developing any topic, journalists should include direct speech in their texts, quote those who are directly involved in it. Whether they are victims of human trafficking, prisoners, participants in domestic violence situations - all those who, for various reasons, have found themselves in a vulnerable position, should have the right and opportunity to express their opinion and be heard by other members of society.
Journalists should quote experts more often; in the case of using statistical data in the material, this is imperative. It is necessary to constantly update the lists of experts, attract new ones (to avoid "stagnation" of views, points of view), consider as experts only those who have special knowledge, and not simply men and women with rich social experience or famous and popular figures. In preparing analytical or discussion materials, it is necessary to correctly quote an expert, i.e. rely on his/her knowledge in the field of expertise, rather than suggesting, for example, that a doctor should discuss the ethical or legal aspects of abortion and a psychologist or priest should discuss its medical consequences.

The language in which we speak, read and write is by no means a neutral tool of communication, but is a mechanism that significantly affects the process and the final result of this communication. Philosophers and scientists of the 20th century proved the enormous role of natural language in the creation and expression of meanings, which was designated as a "linguistic turn" in modern cognition. It is not only important what idea we want to express, but also what words we use, since our words themselves set meanings, also regardless of our intentions. Researchers believe that patriarchal society naturally forms a patriarchal language, which is convenient for expressing the "masculine" ways of thinking, feeling, behavior that have become generally accepted, and is of little use for expressing women's social experience. Indeed, since for a long time very few women were in the public arena, they could not be the creators of culture to the extent that men were. Thus, there were few women among the famous and influential philosophers, orators, poets, politicians, linguists, educators, i.e. those who introduced new concepts and meanings, defining objects and events in the world. As a result, natural languages were shaped by men and represent a "masculine view" of events and facts of reality. Therefore, language, at a minimum, ignores women, which is expressed, for example, in the use of a masculine pronoun to someone whose gender is not specified or mentioned. And from this follows the conclusion that women are forced to use a language that does not reflect their perceptions of themselves and the world around them.

One of the most common examples of gender-incorrect language use is the use of gender-marked pronouns to refer to people of both sexes.

Take, for example, the sentence "A new professional has come to work for us; we hope he will do a good job." However, the "new specialist" can be either a man or a woman.

Or:

"In recent years, women have been spending far less money on buying knitting supplies." This sentence is gender incorrect. It could be written, for example, like this: "In recent years, people have begun to spend much less money on buying knitting supplies".

Thus, the main idea of using a gender-correct language is to avoid the use of words that may indicate a subject's gender in situations where the gender is not stated or specified.

For texts in Russian or Uzbek, the use of more precise nouns and adjectives referring to specific people and their qualities can solve this problem.

Many countries have adopted National Programs and Action Plans for Gender Equality. In these documents, the key role is given to the mass media, which are expected to widely publicize and promote the state policy in the field of gender equality. At the same time, it is reasonable to consider the media as the target object of its influence.

Taking into account the experience of foreign national programs and plans to achieve gender equality, the following recommendations can be put forward:

develop and introduce training courses on gender analysis of the media into the curricula of journalism faculties;
systematically conduct comprehensive gender studies of the media;
implement special educational programs to increase the gender sensitivity of journalists and representatives of structures involved in media regulation;
provide support to educational institutions and public organizations working in this area.

4.4. Media monitoring and media accountability

In order to identify trends in gender equality in the media, to identify factors that cause inadequate representation of women in the media, and to understand the role of the media in fighting domestic violence, editorial offices from around the world and journalistic associations conduct media monitoring and determine the degree of compliance of the content of information resources to ethical standards and the participation of editorial staff in the implementation of measures to protect human rights, including the rights of women and children to a life without violence.

The monitoring methodology usually includes the following:

analysis of articles (radio or TV programs);
number of women and men engaged as professionals and experts;
analysis of images of women and men: number, role and location (on the front or back page, at the beginning of the news or at the end);
analysis of job advertisements: whether only men or women also are invited for high-paying positions;
gender analysis of editorial teams: who heads the editorial teams - women or men and why, who makes the news materials, who decides what will be on the air, and how balanced the results are.

The monitoring also allows to track the reflection of the professional status of women and men. Often men are presented in the media as experts in politics and economics, and women in entertainment and show business. It is helpful analyzing the epithets used. Usually, adjectives such as "wise", "decisive", "strong", "very successful"; verbs like "decide", "make", "manage", "organize", "appoint" are used to describe men; these are representatives of such professions as director, manager, minister, adviser, chief, lawyer. At the same time, the epithets and verbs that describe women present them

as weak, despite the fact that women receive education and acquire professional skills on equal terms with men.

If we analyze the headlines of articles, we find that often articles about women politicians have titles that emphasize gender rather than professional status. At the same time, articles about men emphasize professional achievements. Photos that depict the partnership model of interaction between men and women do not always find a place on the front pages or on political pages. Often photos in the newspaper pages depict gender stereotypes and gender imbalances. Men in strict suits - politicians, leaders - distribute powers and make decisions. In the media of Uzbekistan, one can often find photos portraying men as the main characters, and women as "decorations" of the event. This applies to photos from various events, forums, conferences, summits, etc. Even at events on women's rights, men often dominate among the speakers and they come to the forefront in media coverage, while women remain in the background. Women are usually presented as an audience or assistants, subordinates. The results of the monitoring help to argue the conclusions by pointing out specific omissions in the media, weaknesses in the work of the media. Conclusions and recommendations should include suggestions for achieving gender balance in media coverage, from legislation on equality to editorial ethics.

Some media use stereotypical language to describe women. This is contrary to ethical rules. Publishers can contribute to the elimination of stereotypes, hatred, and discrimination against all members of society by using correct language.

As part of your media monitoring, briefly analyze the composition of the editorial board: consider how many women and men are on the editorial board, how many of them write, and how many manage the media. Evaluate the distribution of work among men and women in the editorial office, estimating how many women and men hold managerial and executive positions, including director, editor-in-chief, photographer, political observer, and reporters. Also, analyze: how many men and women are columnists in political departments; how many men and women are in management structures; who gets paid, who has the highest paid positions; who has the lowest paid positions.

Summarizing the above, the following recommendations can be made:

National and international legislation obliges to provide equal opportunities for men and women in all spheres of public life. The media should also ensure that adequate resources and space are given to women's voice, including on the main page, regardless of social affiliation or status, equally with men.
Media managers should pay more attention to ethical issues in management. The balance on the pages of the media begins with the balance in the team. Women journalists can work not only as correspondents, but also as editors-in-chief; both can write about politics, economics, or conduct investigations.
Establishment of a National Press Council. In most European countries, as well as in some post-Soviet states, press councils have been created that contribute to the professionalization of editorial offices. A Press Council is an independent professional association that promotes the empowerment of consumers to demand a professional approach from the media by peacefully resolving disputes between the media audience and the media, improving the quality of journalism and observing the principles of journalistic ethics by editorial offices and media companies.

The responsibilities of the Press Council (which may be called by different names) include to review and analyze complaints by members of the public about material in the media that does not meet ethical standards, including standards for the representation of women and men in the media, inter alia victims of violence. Another function of the Council is to protect the freedom of the press. Press councils are responsible for ensuring that journalists adhere to professional standards and also establish mechanisms through which people who are dissatisfied with the media can complain if the media violate human rights. Press councils allow people to file complaints free of charge and without a lawyer, which helps build trust in the media.

You should pay attention to the subject, headings, wording, keywords.

Recommendations for applying a gender-sensitive and correct approach in journalism and a checklist for gender sensitivity

To avoid covering and discussing gender issues exclusively in a "for" or "against" format: whether the phenomenon exist (for example, whether fathers should take parental leave, or should women serve in the military) or whether it should be banned; if it is not possible to ban, how to label this phenomenon - positively or negatively.
To ensure that gender problems are demonstrated in all their complexity and diversity, as having no instant and obvious solutions. In principle, it is unacceptable in journalistic materials to offer simple solutions to complex problems.
Try to avoid gender stereotyping, i.e. do not approach the problem from the point of view of traditionalist approaches to female and male social roles, identifying it with any issues related in one way or another to the "natural destiny" of one sex or another. The main mistake in covering gender issues is to look for simple solutions and reduce them to the "traditional purpose" of women and men.
The topic of gender equality should be raised and widely covered. It provides journalists with almost limitless opportunities to realize their creative potential. Each day, life itself presents numerous information occasions related to different spheres of life and activity of modern men and women. These can be ongoing events (for example, opening of a crisis center for victims of domestic violence in the city or the presentation of a sociological study on the economic aspects of gender), which serve as the basis for reports, news stories, articles, correspondence, and interviews. It can also be stories from the lives of real people, including journalists themselves, since they also manifest themselves in society not just as people, but also as men and women, which means that all of our actions have a gender dimension. Therefore, any daily activities, from shopping to driving a car, all this can become a direct informational opportunity for a journalistic material on the gender topic.
Create information occasions and emotionally positive attachments by yourself. Such occasions can be traditional "women's" holidays (for example, March 8, Mother's Day, Family Day, Women's Day), as well as constructed holidays associated, supposedly, with purely "male" professions. Find a female traffic police officer and interview her, write an article about one day of a female prosecutor's life, or report on a rescue operation led by a female firefighter.

The main thematic priorities could be the following:

• Policy, decision making and gender equality;

• Labor rights of women and men, gender aspect of unemployment and entrepreneurship;

• Personal development and self-realization of men and women, regardless of gender;

• Reproductive rights of women and men;

• Family in the context of gender equality, including the problem of domestic violence;

• Gender stereotypes in contemporary culture.

For example, the topic "The Family in the Context of Gender Equality" allows to draw society's attention to gender inequality in the distribution of household responsibilities. Despite the rapid growth of women's employment in production and the relative intensification of their participation in politics, they spend 5-10 times more time than men on cooking, cleaning the apartment, etc. As a result, the total workload of

women (work plus home) is on average 16 hours more per week than of men ²⁰ .

The topic of gender problems in health care is also interesting and promising: who gets sick more often and for a longer period, men or women; whether there are "female" and "male" diseases; how public funding of the healthcare sector occurs depending on sex and gender; how men and women behave in cases of illness, whose behavior is more likely to contribute to the prevention of illness and/or to a speedy recovery, etc.

At the same time, each topic can be divided into separate subtopics, questions, and focuses.

Thus, the coverage of gender issues in the media makes it possible to build on the experience of everyday life, use numerous informational occasions, both "natural" and specially constructed, to create materials of different genres, and to maintain regular columns and headings.

Gender Sensitivity Checklist, Editor's Checklist ²¹

• Are any aspects of gender relations reflected?

• Does the latest data contain confirmation of what has been said?

• Are different opinions represented?

• Are women not represented in the media given the opportunity to speak?

Is the representation of people in roles that conform to gender stereotypes avoided?

• Are racial, ethnic, class and age differences taken into account?

•Is inclusive and non-sexist language used?

• Are terms used that are understandable to the average person?

• Does the context contain analysis and an interesting introduction?

• Are there interviews with the people who provide the information, or rather are

there materials from other publications or other written materials?

•Is a gender lens used consistently?

• Does the material ask "why?"

Additional question:

• Ask why the article (description of the situation) does not do this?

____________________________________________________________________

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