Call to fight sexist stereotypes in the media

Council of Europe: Sexist stereotypes in the media a barrier to gender equality

The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) has adopted a resolution recommending a series of measures designed to combat sexist stereotypes in the media.

It invites the member states to set up regulatory and self-regulatory media authorities to reduce gender-based discrimination and to devise codes of good practice with partners in the profession to promote the balanced presence of women and men in the media.

At the same time, the Assembly encourages national parliaments to adopt legal measures to penalise sexist remarks or insults.

The rapporteur on this issue, Doris Stump (Switzerland), said media education also needs to be provided from an early age to teach young people how to decode images and messages.

The Assembly has also called on national parliaments to “adopt non-sexist language and not to resort to sexist stereotypes in the course of their parliamentary activities.”

At the same time, the Assembly urged the media to “favour a more balanced representation of women in the media and a non-stereotyped representation of women and men, thereby helping to overcome obstacles to gender equality.”