A report aired on Imedis Kvira program of Imedi TV on 26 July triggered hot discussions lately. The report was about a fact of domestic violence against a woman and touched on the problem related to the phenomenon called "virginity institute.” Even though the intention of presenters of the program to cover the incident as a problem was obvious both at the beginning and the end of the material, the report was revictimizing the victim of domestic violence and further strengthening damaging stereotypes.
Professional standards of journalism requires from journalists to respect dignity and private life and space of a person and prohibits them to manipulate with emotions and sentiments. In this report, the private space of the victim woman was crudely violated; the audience learned not only about her name and living place but also about such personal details as her monthly cycle, opinion of expertise about her virginity, the location of sexual intercourse and sexual abuse – close ups of the bed. All this smacked of the attempt to create vulgar sensation rather than realistically represent a deep and serious problem.
Article 35.6 of the Code of Conduct for Broadcasters allows the infringement of privacy only if it "is aimed at protecting legitimate rights of the public, is the only proportionate means to this end and the protected good outweighs potential harm.” The above mentioned report, however, cannot be considered a proportionate means to the end. Opening up a public discussion about sexual control and oppression of women does not outweigh that harm which the woman identified in the report may sustain as a result of repressive and stereotyped attitudes existing in our society. Even in the case when a consent is obtained on the identification of a victim, journalists bear social responsibility to realize the pressure which their respondent may find herself under due to opinions that dominate society.
True, a journalist cannot ignore a fact of violence as a piece of news, but by showing a big picture instead of focusing on a single individual, a journalist may present the problem from the human rights perspective and in legal context.
In a cultural setting in which women often become victims of sexist attitudes and stereotypes existing in society, media may hugely contribute to the fight against injustice and women’s oppression by deep and thorough coverage of a problem and triggering a serious discussion.
For media as an influential institution to realize its responsibility to society, it is important, when covering facts of violence against women, to reflect those approaches which are provided in recommendations of UNESCO and other international organizations. We call on media outlets:
• To refrain from revictimization of people when covering acts of violence against women;
• To be oriented on a survived victim, respect her feelings and minimize potential harm;
• To question attempts of presenting the act of violence as something natural and a matter of honor;
• To help audience understand a broader context in terms of human rights and legal aspect;
• To be consistent in reporting such accidents both in covering the entire legal actions and victims’ attempts to overcome a post-traumatic period.
We, Women’s Movement and representatives of non-governmental organizations express our readiness to organize a broad and open discussion with the involvement of media professionals. We believe that consensus must be achieved on those values and standards which are oriented on promoting gender equality and respect of individual’s personal life.
Women’s Movement
Media Development Foundation - MDF
Sapari
Georgian Democracy Initiative - GDI
Tolerance and Diversity Institute - TDI
Human Rights Education and Monitoring Center - EMC
Charter of Journalistic Ethics
Citizen Journalism Club
Media Club
Georgian Association of Regional Broadcasters
Identoba
Black and Baltic Sea Alliance - Georgia
Studiomobile – Accent on Movement
Women’s Initiative for Equality
Women’s Fund in Georgia
Georgian Centre for Psychosocial and Medical Rehabilitation of Torture Victims - GCRT
Women’s Information Center
Institute for Development of Freedom of Information IDFI
Institute of Nonviolent Communication
Article 42 of Constitution
Georgian Institute of Psychotrauma
