A survey conducted by the Argentine Journalism Forum (FOPEA, for its initials in Spanish) reveals a worrying scenario in the profession: women journalists in Argentina face various forms of violence in the exercise of journalism, with significant impacts on their mental health, their professional development and even freedom of expression in the country.
Researchers for the study "Periodistas Amenazadas: investigar para protegerlas" (Threatened Journalists: Investigate to protect them) interviewed 215 women journalists from all Argentine provinces and found that 70% reported having been victims of psychological violence within the scope of their profession.
The numbers are also alarming for other types of violence: 115 participants said they had suffered institutional and economic violence, 88 reported being victims of online violence, 84 mentioned sexual violence, 31 said they had faced workplace violence and 25 said they had suffered physical violence.
“The study indicates that women journalists face multiple types of violence, with psychological violence being the most common. We're talking about things like harassment, institutional, economic and online violence. A really concerning pattern is that this violence isn’t isolated. Many women experience these different forms of violence at the same time,” Cecilia Bazán, study coordinator, told LatAm Journalism Review (LJR).
The first step in developing the project, Bazán said, was to plan how to cover Argentina's 23 provinces. A team distributed across the country's main regions (north, coast, center, Patagonia and Buenos Aires) collected data from journalists and created a database with representatives from all provinces. An anonymous questionnaire was then sent to this database and the researchers ensured that each geographic area was representative. Twenty in-depth interviews were also conducted with professionals selected for their experience and relevant cases in each region.
“It is important to highlight the research as a case study,” Bazán said. “We've worked with a non-probabilistic sample since we didn't have a record or census of all the women journalists in Argentina. The combination of both approaches provided a more complete and in-depth view of the situation of women journalists in Argentina, although the results cannot be generalized.”
“Being aware of that, one of the things that really stood out to me was how frequently the violence occurs at the very beginning of women's journalistic careers. Also, the fact that the perpetrators are often people in positions of power that’s pretty significant,” she continued.
Most of the interviewees are between 36 and 60 years old and have a high level of education, with university or incomplete postgraduate education (99 cases) or complete postgraduate education (27 cases). Of the total number of interviewees, 124 have children, the majority of whom are between 5 and 18 years old (74 cases). An important fact is that 133 of the journalists interviewed are heads of households.
Regarding professional experience, the majority have more than 20 years of experience in journalism (91 cases). Another 41 have between 16 and 20 years of experience, 27 have between 11 and 15 years, 27 have between 6 and 10 years and 27 have up to 5 years of experience. Most of the interviewees work in the private sector (140 cases) in media such as radio, newspapers, television and digital media. Another 46 work in both the public and private sectors, and 29 work exclusively in the public sector.
Another central finding of the research, Bazán said, is the high impact of violence on the mental health and professional development of women journalists, which perhaps confirms the general perception about how violence impacts the career development of women in journalism.
Only 61 of the 215 interviewees hold managerial positions, which represents only 28.37% of the total. Even among those with more than 20 years of experience, only 35.16% hold leadership positions. In this sense, the study showed that 200 of the 215 interviewees perceive the existence of barriers for women to access managerial positions in the media, with 145 understanding that these barriers are cultural and 92 relating them directly to the care tasks that fall to women.
“The research indicates that women in the 36 to 60 age group report facing a lot of difficulties, especially in relation to their professional careers and having to take on childcare responsibilities,” Bazán said.
“Regarding job positions, there is a low proportion of women in hierarchical positions despite their experience and education level, suggesting the existence of ‘glass ceilings,’” she continued. “Journalists in non-hierarchical positions are more likely to suffer various forms of violence from their superiors and colleagues. We also registered a major number of responses [saying that] women find it harder to climb the career ladder into those higher-level positions. According to the survey, a significant majority of the journalists surveyed, specifically 97 out of 215, perceive that women earn less money than men for performing the same tasks in the media.”
While the study does not explicitly name specific media outlets, the results show that perpetrators are often male bosses, coworkers and government officials. This suggests, Bazán said, that power dynamics and workplace culture play a role in violence.
There are several testimonies of problematic episodes. Among them, one interviewee said that there were only two women in her workplace, and they were the only ones forced to work on Sundays. Another journalist reported a situation she witnessed in which a boss told another journalist that “pregnant women lose a brain cell.” There was also mention of working hours that were unfavorable for women who were heads of households with small children. One of the interviewees said that a male colleague said that he would never work under the command of a woman. Another participant reported that she was told that “women are not suited to working in politics.” And there was also an embarrassing case in which they intentionally used an entrance lock at a height that was inaccessible to a woman journalist:
"I'm 5'5" tall, and they put a lock at a height I couldn't reach, so I had to ask someone passing by to open the door for me. I repeatedly asked them to use only the two locks on the bottom, so I could open the door without having to go through that situation," the statement reads.
Another major problem faced by Argentine women journalists is online harassment. The study shows that many women journalists experience online violence, including harassment and threats, which often go unreported. Bazán said this can have a severe impact, leading to self-censorship and, in extreme cases, women abandoning journalism altogether.
“The primary perpetrators of the different forms of violence are largely men with higher-level positions in the media, with coworkers and public officials coming in next,” she said. “Whereas, in online violence, private individuals take on a more significant role, but those in positions of authority and public officials are still relevant.”
An emblematic case is that of Argentine journalist Luciana Peker, recognized by CNN as one of the 30 most important defenders of women's rights in 2024. After facing an escalation of violence that included death threats and systematic online harassment, especially after her coverage of the Thelma Fardín case [Argentine actress who made a public accusation of sexual abuse], Peker had to leave Argentina and apply for asylum in Spain in 2023.
"Now I'm completely at zero, meaning they've completely cut off my professional career, and if I've managed to reinvent myself, it's out of sheer necessity and completely alone. I mean, they've completely destroyed my ability to work as a journalist,” Peker said in an interview with the study team. “A significant number of reports already speak of a decline in freedom of expression, of censorship, self-censorship, and digital censorship. They speak of freedom of expression not being at risk, but rather of it no longer being fully exercised by women journalists in Argentina.”
Bazán corroborates Peker's statement that freedom of expression in Argentina is compromised. When analyzing previous studies on the region and during research for the study "Periodistas Amenazadas," she says that she found public and anonymous testimonies that show the deterioration of freedom and that this could evolve into a situation similar to that of other countries in the region.
“This isn't just speculation; it's happening now, and women are one of the primary targets of these attacks,” Bazán said. “International organizations and advocacy groups can play a crucial role by raising awareness, providing resources, and advocating for policy changes. They can also support local organizations in their efforts to protect women journalists and promote gender equality in the media.
For her, one of the main obstacles to reducing violence against women journalists in Argentina is the normalization of forms of violence, such as psychological violence, which makes it difficult for victims to recognize and report it. The most common response among journalists to violence, according to the researcher, is to talk about what happened to other women, rather than filing formal complaints.
“In many testimonies women talk about how they are afraid of being perceived as ‘problematic’ if they talk out loud about violence or fight for their rights. In addition, there's a lack of adequate protocols and support systems within media organizations to address these issues,” Bazán said.
The survey asked journalists about strategies that might be a good or effective way to protect themselves and reduce violence. The responses point to some key strategies: digital security training and clear internal procedures within news organizations are crucial. Bazán said that actions such as implementing protocols to respond to violence, offering support to victims and creating a more gender-sensitive work culture can make a big difference.
“Media companies and journalism organizations need to take an active role,” she said. “They should implement clear protocols for preventing and addressing violence, provide training, and foster a workplace culture that values gender equality. It’s also important to have mechanisms in place to support journalists who experience violence and to hold perpetrators accountable.”
In addition to the research itself, one of the results of the project is a protocol model that FOPEA is sharing with media organizations for implementation in their workplaces to prevent and reduce cases of violence. The protocol was created by the Periodistas Amenazadas team after reviewing UNESCO's work in the area and also with the support of FOPEA's legal network.
“This study is merely the first step in our commitment to thoroughly examine the situation in every part of our vast and diverse country. Not only in the main cities, but also in the remote areas where journalists face violence while doing their jobs,” Bazán said. “Ultimately, our hope is that this research will lead to concrete actions that make journalism safer and more equitable, especially for women, fostering more inclusive workplaces, effective responses to violence, and a culture shift that truly values the contribution of women and, with them, the diversity of voices necessary in a free society.”
