As I listened to Marian Finucane call out the “exercise in sustained cruelty” that was the recent Cork rape trial on her Sunday show, I was struck with just how it important it is to have a visible presence of women in all forms of media.
In a world that has become increasingly aware of the importance of representation, it’s easy to take for granted the presence of women on our airwaves and screens, women who take up space and have something to say. Our generation were born after Binchy, Kenny and co. inserted themselves into the white male media machine, and we often take for granted seeing women tell our stories, and knowing that if they can do it, then so can we.
Irish media has a long way to go in terms of its representation for women; Irish women of colour are drastically underrepresented in all forms of media, and work incredibly hard to break into all spheres of media.
When we reflect on our female journalistic role models, and the work they have done to break the mould and show a traditionally patriarchal society that women’s voices and narratives matter, and that women are equally capable of some outstanding journalism, we must also remember not to pat ourselves on the back too much. We must continue to fight to break the mould, and allow women of colour the platform to share their narratives and skills.
It is now no longer an unusual thing to see a woman reporting, creating, directing and participating in the media, and that has certainly contributed to the “new” Ireland of the 21st century that becomes more liberal by the day.
In creating a space for women in the public eye, women in the media have done something else, something equally important: they have used their voices to fight back against the overarching white male narrative prevalent in print and broadcast news, and brought women’s issues to the forefront of media attention.
Women in the media have opened discussions on rape culture, the gender pay gap, the unfair expectations of motherhood, sexual harassment in the workplace and reproductive rights- and that’s in the last year alone.
These women are at the forefront of social change in Ireland: From painstaking coverage of those affected by the 8th Amendment from all corners of the media landscape, to Sorcha Pollaks “New to the Parish” series which elevates the voices of people living in Direct Provision, and Alison O’Reilly who broke the “Tuam Babies Scandal.”
As protests spread throughout the country against a rape culture designed to intimidate women, it’s good to take a minute and remember the work of women in all forms of media, from print to radio to television, who every day reinforce the point that our stories matter.