A new report by the Aga Khan University’s Graduate School of Media and Communications (GSMC) reveals a critical flaw in how East African media covers sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) and femicide.
The study indicates that a persistent media focus on event-driven narratives, victim sympathy, and official sources is inadvertently shielding perpetrators in Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania from accountability and obstructing the pursuit of justice.
The report, titled Media Framing of Sexual and Gender-Based Violence and Femicide in East Africa, analyzed over 1,200 news stories published between January 2024 and April 2025.
While the majority of coverage (78%) successfully framed the violence within broader social structures, a positive trend, the study highlights a stark disconnect when it comes to accountability:
- Invisibility of Perpetrators: Only a minimal 3% of stories focused on perpetrators, meaning the individuals responsible often remain unnamed and out of sight, especially in follow-up reporting. Lead researcher Dr. Hesbon Hansen Owilla noted, “That invisibility fosters impunity and weakens deterrence.”
- Marginalized Survivor Voices: Despite being central to the narrative, only 11% of stories amplified survivor voices.
- Regional Breakdown: Kenya led the regional coverage at 54%, followed by Tanzania (28%) and Uganda (18%). This disparity suggests a positive impact from the institutionalization of gender desks and specialized newsroom training in Kenya.
Professor Nancy Booker, Dean at GSMC, stressed the media’s profound influence on public understanding and response to gender-based violence.
“This study underscores the critical role of the media in shaping how societies understand and respond to gender-based violence,” said Professor Booker. “It challenges journalists and editors to move beyond the headlines to tell stories that humanise survivors, question impunity, and hold systems accountable. Journalism has the power not just to inform, but to drive justice and change.”
The report, part of GSMC’s Advancing Gender Equality in Media and Civil Society in East Africa (AGEMC-EA) project, urges media organisations to take decisive steps to improve coverage:
- Institutionalise gender desks.
- Embed gender-sensitive journalism in all editorial practice.
- Strengthen collaborations with academia, policymakers, and civil society.
Professor Booker concluded with a powerful message: “The media is not just a mirror of society, it is an agent of change. This report is a wake-up call to reimagine how we tell stories about gender-based violence, and whose voices we choose to centre.”