Journalism is a male-dominated field around the globe. <\/span>A global report on the Status of Women in the News Media by the International Women in Media foundation <\/span><\/a>examined more than 500 companies in nearly 60 countries. The report showed that men occupy the vast majority of the management jobs and news-gathering positions in most countries. The study also revealed that among the ranks of reporters specifically, men hold nearly two-thirds of the jobs, compared to 36 percent held by women.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The 40 female Dalit journalists of <\/span>Khabar Lahariya<\/span><\/i><\/a>, as seen in <\/span>Writing With Fire<\/span><\/i><\/a>, are shattering that narrative by writing their own. These women leaped from the confines and traditional roles restricted by their caste to break the patterns. Rather than report the standard news of the day, <\/span>Khabar Lahariya<\/span><\/i> journalists report on news and issues through a feminist lens and address how these stories impact the lives of women of all castes in rural India. <\/span><\/p>\n In <\/span>India<\/b>, journalism is largely seen as men\u2019s work, and being an assertive female reporter can be extremely dangerous. It becomes even more so when women speak out about corruption and buck against systemic oppression. While violence against women is not a typically accepted cultural norm, it\u2019s also not uncommon. In 2017, the women of <\/span>Khabar Lahariya <\/span><\/i>were given a stark reminder that the cost of truth can be death.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Oscar-Nominated “Writing With Fire” Goes Inside India’s Only All-Women Newspaper<\/a>\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n The outspoken Indian left-wing journalist <\/span>Gauri Lankesh <\/span><\/a>had been repeatedly threatened for speaking out against the prime minister of India and the Hindu right. On the night of September 5, 2017, she arrived home in Bangalore and had almost made it to her front door when two men on a motorcycle drove by and shot her, once in the chest and twice in the back, killing her instantly.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Such violence against female journalists is not at all isolated to India; it’s prevalent around the world. In December 2020, a well-known Afghani journalist for Enikass TV, <\/span>Malalai Maiwand<\/span><\/a>, was on her way to work in Jalalabad when she was shot and killed, along with her driver. Maiwand was an activist and had previously spoken out about the dangers of being a female journalist in <\/span>Afghanistan<\/b>. Some women there are targeted not for their views or politics but simply for being involved in the media.<\/span><\/p>\n
\nREAD MORE >><\/strong><\/h6>\n
\n