Sexual harassment remains a persistent feature of media workplaces worldwide, with one in three people surveyed experiencing some form of harassment, according to a new multi-country study released today by WAN-IFRA Women in News; City St George’s, University of London, and BBC Media Action.
The study draws on responses from more than 2,800 media employees, making it one of the largest datasets on sexual harassment in newsroom workplaces to date.
Respondents span a wide range of roles, including journalism, administration, HR, production, marketing, and management, offering a comprehensive picture of how harassment is experienced across media organisations.
Sexual harassment in media 2025 survey
Conducted across 21 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, the Arab region, Southeast Asia, and Ukraine, the 2025 study finds that on average, 29% of media professionals in these countries reported experiencing sexual harassment.
Across all genders, 69% of those who experienced harassment did not report it, continuing a longstanding pattern of underreporting found in earlier studies. Where survivors reported incidents, organisations took action only in 65% of cases, most often through limited or informal measures.
Fear of retaliation, lack of trusted reporting mechanisms, and low confidence in organisational response remain key reasons why harassment goes unreported, reflecting structural barriers to reporting cases and a lack of accountability and response mechanisms across media workplaces.
Who is likely to face sexual harassment in newsrooms?
Globally, women are 2.4 times more likely than men to experience verbal sexual harassment and 1.8 times more likely to experience online sexual harassment.
Experiences of physical harassment and rape are lower but remain consistent threats. A quarter of all respondents report instances of physical harassment, with 5% of women and 4% of men citing they are rape survivors.
The research also points to a persistent gender gap in participation and reporting. Lower response and reporting rates among men suggest that sexual harassment is still widely perceived as primarily a women’s issue, despite its broader implications for newsroom culture, power dynamics, safety of journalists and the overall integrity of journalism.
The research builds on earlier studies conducted in 2018 and 2020, expanding geographic coverage to countries not previously studied, including Ukraine, Sierra Leone, Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Somalia, and South Sudan, and strengthening the global evidence base on sexual harassment in media workplaces.
Findings highlight significant variation across regions. Prevalence rates remain highest in Africa (33%) and the Arab Region (31%), compared with 19% in Southeast Asia and 12% in Ukraine, which was included in the study for the first time in 2025.
Dr Lindsey Blumell, City St George’s, University of London says: “Sexual harassment has a deeply negative impact on those who experience it and the general working atmosphere in newsrooms. Our research shows that no matter the type of harassment, experiencing it decreases job satisfaction, increases risk of leaving the industry, and many other negative mental and even physical consequences to victims/survivors.”
“Underreporting sexual harassment reflects a lack of trust in reporting systems and signals an overall acceptance of violence in newsrooms.”
The survey provides a valuable lens on how workplace cultures in media organisations have evolved over the past five years – and where change has stalled.
How to address sexual harassment is newsrooms
The findings, experts say, point to key areas where action is both urgently needed and possible: policies, training, support system for survivors, and collective engagement.
Valeria Perasso, Media Development Advisor at BBC Media Action says, “Addressing sexual harassment is not only a matter of individual protection, but of newsroom governance and journalistic integrity.”
Unsafe and unequal workplace cultures create structural barriers that limit who can participate, lead, and shape editorial decisions, and ultimately, journalism suffers. We hope this report will help inform organisational action and leadership practices in individual newsrooms and across the media sector, as well as policy and advocacy – contributing to safer, more inclusive, and equitable media institutions.”
Susan Makore, Managing Director, WAN-IFRA Women in News says, “When the majority of sexual harassment cases continue to go unreported, it signals a deeper failure of workplace culture, trust, and accountability. Sexual harassment in media is not an isolated workplace issue. It is a structural barrier that shapes who feels safe to participate, stay, and lead within journalism.”
“Addressing it requires more than policies alone. Media organisations must invest in sustained awareness raising, training, and sensitisation at all levels of the newsroom to help shift workplace cultures, strengthen reporting mechanisms, and ensure harassment is recognised, addressed, and not normalised. Safer and more equitable media workplaces are essential to building stronger, more inclusive, and resilient journalism.”
