page_title: EGM: prevention of violence against women and girls
section_title: Mass and new media
hierarchical_section_title: EGM: prevention of violence against women and girls / Report recommendations / Mass and new media
caption_attribution_description: Computer-globe
context_page_description: The Expert Group Meeting: prevention of violence against women and girls was convened as part of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women's multi-year programme of work for 2010-2014. The "Elimination and prevention of all forms of violence against women and girls" forms a priority theme for its fifty-seventh session in 2013.
  The meeting took place in Bangkok, Thailand 17–20 September 2012 and was organised by the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women, in collaboration with the following organisations:
  United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific;
  United Nations Development Programme;
  United Nations Population Fund;
  United Nations Children's Fund and;
  World Health Organization.
context_section_description: Recommendation 134
  
  In line with BPfA's Paragraph 125(j) calling for awareness raising on 'the responsibility of the media in promoting non-stereotyped images of women and men, as well as in eliminating patterns of media presentation that generate violence, and encourage those responsible for media content to establish professional guidelines and codes of conduct' and on 'the important role of the media in informing and educating people about the causes and effects of violence against women and in stimulating public debate on the topic,' experts recommend that States, including local governments, community organisations, non-governmental organisations, educational institutions, the public and private sectors, particularly enterprises, and the mass media, as appropriate:
  Strengthen regulatory frameworks with regard to media, advertising imagery, texts, games and other popular culture mediums which portray women or girls in a discriminatory, degrading or stereotypical way, or which glorify violent masculinities.
  Engage all media agencies that currently produce, or provide platforms for the distribution of, material/content which objectifies girls and women and/or which promote/distort messages around violence against girls and women, through a partnership approach, for example co-regulation. This includes the internet, mass media, music and games industries, and advertisers.
  Build partnerships with journalists and other media professionals for the prevention of violence against women and girls and the promotion of gender equality, such as through training, guidelines and awards.
  Include dedicated resources in national media outlets for organisational and content development supporting gender equality and non-discrimination.
  Support advocates such as victims/survivors of violence, men committed to non-violence, and high-profile people to respond to enquiries from journalists and speak at events on issues of violence against women and girls, and to promote messages of gender equality and non violence.
  Promote inclusion and visibility of women at national conferences and in local and national media to challenge negative gender stereotypes and promote images of women leaders, intellectuals, politicians, etc.
  Use the media to educate, inform and engage citizens on women's rights, in particular engaging women voters on women's issues.
  Recommendation 135
  
  In addition to the recommendations made in line with BPfA's Paragraph 125(j) above, wider and long term action is needed to address the role the media currently plays in contributing to, maintaining and reinforcing, gender stereotypes. Experts recommend that all stakeholders above take immediate interim action to provide children and young people with media literacy skills as a core aspect of school curricula. This should aim to build gender analysis skills to interrogate the status quo (i.e. the objectification of girls and women), critique constructions of gender roles and offer alternative interpretations and framings of the content that they are engaging with on a daily basis.
  Recommendation 136
  
  In line with BPfA's Paragraph 129(d), encouraging 'the media to examine the impact of gender role stereotypes, including those perpetuated by commercial advertisements which foster gender-based violence and inequalities, and how they are transmitted during the life cycle, and [to]take measures to eliminate these negative images with a view to promoting a violence-free society,' experts recommend that international/regional organisations, States, research institutions, civil society partners and media organisations, as appropriate:
  Commit to the research and development of urgently needed guidance (and where appropriate, regulatory action) for the prevention and prohibition of discrimination against women and girls and gender stereotyping across all media. This includes guidance on both the development and the distribution of material.
  Fully implement the Convention for the Rights of the Child (Article 17) which recognises the importance of mass media and calls on states to develop '
caption: Mass and new media. (Recommendations 134 to 136)
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