Improving visibility of women in the media ‘must be a social and political priority’

The Catalan Women’s Institute has launched a campaign promoting the visibility of women in the Catalan media. Núria Ramon, the executive director of the institution, explains why they decided to focus on this issue, which she labels as a “social and political priority.” She also describes the overall situation of Catalan women in the workforce, as well as outlining the most relevant policies dealing with gender inequality in Catalonia.

Why did you decide to focus on the visibility of women in the media for this year’s campaign?

The Catalan government, through the Catalan Women's Institute, has decided to put the focus of this campaign on the visibility of women in the media because it's the revision issue in the United Nations’ Commission on the Status of Women, which will take place next week in New York, and we'll be there. In addition, in recent times, different social initiatives and movements have shown the lack of visibility of women in Catalan media, which only account for 27% of screen time in news programs, so it's clear that it must be a social and political priority.

What is the overall situation of women in the workforce? Are there any specific areas of concern?

There is a lot of gender based discrimination in the workplace, an unequal distribution of housework and care, maternity is penalized in the professional career, etc. We have many women with higher education who arrive at intermediate or executive positions, but the presence of women in management spaces remains low. So we have a lot of work to do in this area. And I think that fighting against the wage gap must also be one of the priorities as a government and as a society in general.

What are the most important policies dealing with gender inequality in Catalonia? And, more importantly, what else needs to be done?

For example, the Catalan women's institute is promoting a training plan about gender equality that provides training for different groups in order to incorporate the gender perspective into public policies and also strengthen the circuit against sexist violence. At the local level, for example, there is an important network of services of information addressed to all women coordinated by this institute, and at the level of companies, for example, an intensive work has been done in relation to equality plans. And I think that in the following years it is necessary to complete the implementation of the law, effective equality, between women and men that currently has several articles suspended by the Spanish Constitutional Court.