Risks and Resilience in the Case of Brazilian Female Journalists: How Women Perceive Violence Against Media Professionals and Cope with its Effects

ABSTRACT

The article examines how Brazilian women journalists claim gender-related issues influence the risks they experience in their professional routines and private life. Data was collected through 31 semi-structured interviews with female professionals who experienced episodes of violence during the course of their work between 2019 and 2020. Our investigation emphasizes (a) the connections between the political context and increasing hostility toward women journalists; (b) the impact of aggressions on production routines, family lifestyles, and emotional setbacks; and (c) how the lack of organizational support from news companies is associated with resilience and protection strategies. The results reveal that harassment and violence include physical threats and remarks about appearance, age, and sex life. Avoiding specific assignments or sources is among the journalists’ resistance strategies. Women journalists also describe implications on family routines and even dating practices to escape work-related abuse. Some interviewees claimed that news organizations are not prepared to support victims and that there is a government-sponsored “hate machine.” To extend beyond a descriptive account, the article discusses a set of factors characterizing the Brazilian media system that promote a thriving hostile environment, such as the male-led structure of news organizations and dependence on government funding.

KEYWORDS:

• Women journalists
• harassment
• gender
• journalism
• news organizations
• social media

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank all the interviewees for resisting the attacks and making the world a better place to live through their hard work. They also appreciate the anonymous referees’ comments on earlier versions of this article. We are grateful to Aline Rios, Carla Araújo, Helton Gomes, and João Frey for their help in contacting some of our sources. Dr. Marques expresses his deepest gratitude to the Michigan State University’s School of Journalism, especially Dr. Tim P. Vos, for the research opportunities in East Lansing. He also acknowledges the English teachers working for the VETP (MSU) and the Friendship House: Larry Woods, JoAnn Woods, Mary Hennessey, Karen Carpenter, Steven Stowe, Tom Almer, Dan Winter, Jen Garmon, Tim Miank, Paul Schleusener, and Marion Schleusener.

Disclosure Statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1 Some claim that the impeachment of former President Dilma Rousseff was a parliamentary coup d'état aided by the media. For more information about Rousseff's ousting, see Albuquerque (2019), Marques, Mont'Alverne, and Mitozo (2021) and Mourão (2021).

Additional information

Funding

This research was funded by the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq) [grant number 310724/2020-1] and by the Brazilian Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel (CAPES) [grant number 88887.478242/2020-00].