A/HRC/44/52 30. One case in particular has encouraged other women journalists to speak out. In 2009, female reporter Jineth Bedoya publicly recounted her personal experience of having been subjected to brutal rape while reporting on right-wing paramilitaries in May 2000.24 31. Despite the fact that more women journalists are speaking up, the vast majority continue to refrain from reporting on sexual violence perpetrated against them, often because of the cultural stigma attached to reporting sexual abuse or the fear they will dishonour their families and tarnish their own reputation. Many women journalists, especially those who want to work in the field, are reluctant to disclose an assault to their editors for fear they would be perceived as vulnerable and be denied future assignments. B. Discrimination and sexual harassment in the workplace 32. The media and ICTs have enabled and expanded the opportunities for millions of women to actively participate in political, economic, cultural and social life. However, stereotypes and discriminatory practices continue to exclude many women around the world from participation in public debate and the free expression of their opinions, or from accessing information on an equal basis with men. In 2019, the New York Times established the Women’s Project, aimed at correcting gender imbalance and with a view to better reflecting diversity in society. In doing so, it has been tracking the gender of every contributor published in its daily letters page. In February 2020, the tally was 43 per cent women and 57 per cent men. There were consistent patterns showing that on issues related to politics, the economy and foreign affairs the majority of submissions come from men. 25 33. Women journalists who challenge patriarchal stereotypes of disapproval of their participation in public life face a situation of violence and gender-based discrimination, as well as differentiated forms of violence from State and non-State actors. The targeting and abuse of women journalists mirror larger patterns of sexism and gender-based violence that seek not only to punish women for voicing critical or dissenting opinions, but also for speaking out as women. They may also implicitly seek to limit coverage of women’s issues and issues of interest to women. In conservative societies, shaming female journalists may also serve to shame the family as a whole. 34. While recent years have witnessed an increase in the number of women opting for journalism as a career, social norms and gender stereotypes continue to present considerable challenges that prevent women from working in the profession on an equal basis with men. 35. In some cultural and social contexts journalism is deemed to be an inappropriate occupation for women and one that is incompatible with marriage or family values. For those women who manage to forge a career in journalism, not only do they face the same risks as men in terms of threats and intimidation, but many also have to contend with the menace that lurks within their own workplace or newsroom. 36. According to a study conducted by the International News Safety Institute on violence against women journalists between 2013 and 2014, almost two thirds of respondents indicated that they had been confronted with some form of intimidation, threat or abuse in relation to their work, varying from verbal abuse to death threats. The majority of incidents had occurred in the workplace and were often committed by male bosses, supervisors and co-workers.26 Another study carried out in 2017, revealed that 48 per cent of the nearly 400 women journalists from 50 countries who participated in an online survey had experienced various forms of work-related gender-based violence, ranging from 24 25 26 8 Ms. Bedoya submitted her case in the context of call by the Special Rapporteur for submissions for the present report. See New York Times, “Women, please speak out”, 14 February 2020. See International Women’s Media Foundation and International News Safety Institute, “Violence and harassment against women in the news media: a global picture”.