International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS) | Volume VI, Issue VIII, August 2022 | ISSN 2454–6186
Gender Equality; Lived Experiences of Women in The Media Industry in Tanzania.
Samwel. J. Mwananjela
Department Journalism and Mass Communication, ST Augustine University of Tanzania, Tanzania
Abstract: Underrepresentation, inequalities, lack of career advancement, and nonappearance in the decision-making process continue to present obstacles for women in the media industry in Tanzania. This study aimed at exploring and understanding the lived experiences of women in the media industry in Tanzania. This was important given that there is a lack of qualitative research which allows women journalists to recount their situations in their voices and from their perspectives. Methodologically, the study adopted a qualitative approach. Data was collected through in-depth interviews which afforded space for a group of four women journalists to tell stories of their lived experiences particularly on decision making, career development, and news production in the media industry. The study discovers that women journalists in Tanzania are affected by the patriarchal system. This continues to influence gender inequalities and limits women’s opportunities for participation in effective media development/production. In conclusion, this study indicates that a patriarchal system that is well established in society and maintained through institutions such as the academy, the church, and the family lead to gender inequalities in the media industry in Tanzania.
Keywords: Media industry, women journalists, patriarchy, gender inequality.
I. INTRODUCTION
Women in Tanzania, as elsewhere in sub-Saharan Africa, are ordinarily treated and rated as a dependent sex or second sex (cf. de Beauvoir, 1974) in need of protection from men (Buberwa, 2016; Osorio et al., 2014). As a result, women are somewhat socialized to accept a lesser status in exchange for protection and privilege from men, forming a relationship that can be likened to benevolent patriarchy (hooks, 2004; Radke-Moss (2014; Swantz, 1985).
In this context, UNICEF (2006) has reported a lack of women’s voices to recount their lived experiences in their own words and from their perspectives. What is reported about women, in a patriarchal society like Tanzania, often comes from ‘outsiders’, whether those be some powerful men, activists, or other privileged commentators a shortcoming which leads to stereotypes and connotations, often categorizing womenfolk as weak and dependent, and even vicious (Quinn & Rosenthal, 2012).