Two ways the underrepresentation of women in media is being tackled

Image via CoWomen at Unsplash

By Katie Sanders

The general representation of women in media, and more specifically in films, is severely lacking. In 2022, at the Golden Globe Awards and Academy Awards it was stated that over 300 awards were presented, in which 91.1% were given to male directors. To add to the drastically one-sided and unequal statistic, it was found that only three of the women directors that won awards were from underrepresented backgrounds. But what is being done to tackle this? Here’s two ways this issue is being resolved:

1. BBC 50/50 Project

Producers across the BBC have been trying to tackle gender representation by re-evaluating whom they make appear in front of the camera. Today around 500 or more BBC shows have become members of the 50:50 project. However, the 50:50 project only acts based on gender representation across media. This project will not be the fixed solution and resolve gender equality more broadly. It will simply show that a change can come from embracing a growth mindset and help to provide a simple tool for achieving and acknowledging change without mandating it.

Read more here.

2. The United Nations Foundation

This foundation actively focuses on finding the efforts to increase the representation of women throughout the media world. They ensure that the foundation has various and diverse representation throughout newsrooms and through cinema. As we all know there is a lack of strong protagonists in the highest grossing films or an underrepresentation of women when it comes to awards season. The United Nations Foundation is currently helping women’s representation throughout film. It’s stated on their website: “if we want to break negative stereotypes of women off-screen, we'll need to tackle them on-screen too.”

Read more here.