A new global study on sexual harassment in the media industry has uncovered a troubling reality inside newsrooms worldwide: sexual harassment remains widespread, deeply underreported, and often ignored by media organizations themselves.
Released in partnership with [partners], the 2025 report draws on responses from more than 2,800 media professionals across 21 countries in Africa, Southeast Asia, the Arab region, and Ukraine. The findings reveal that nearly one in three media workers have experienced some form of sexual harassment while at work.
Considered one of the largest studies ever conducted on newsroom sexual harassment, it found that 29 percent of respondents reported experiencing harassment in media workplaces. Although slightly lower than the 34 percent recorded in 2020, researchers warn that the numbers remain alarmingly high and reflect only a fraction of the problem, as many survivors still choose silence over reporting.
What stands out most in the report is not only the prevalence of harassment but also the overwhelming fear surrounding it. According to the findings, 69 percent of survivors never reported their experiences to employers. Many feared retaliation, career damage, public humiliation, or losing their jobs entirely. Others said there were no proper reporting systems within their organizations, while some believed management would simply ignore their complaints.
The report found that 20 percent of respondents avoided reporting because they feared it would negatively affect their jobs. Another 19 percent cited the absence of reporting mechanisms, while 18 percent said they did not think their experiences would be taken seriously enough to matter.
Women continue to bear the heaviest burden. The research shows women are 2.4 times more likely than men to experience verbal sexual harassment and nearly twice as likely to face online harassment. Almost 60 percent of women surveyed reported experiencing verbal harassment in the workplace compared to just 25 percent of men. Similarly, 48 percent of women said they had experienced online sexual harassment.
Physical harassment also remains disturbingly common. Nearly one-third of women respondents reported experiencing physical sexual harassment, compared to 15 percent of men. The study also revealed that five percent of all respondents had experienced rape linked to their professional environments.
Researchers highlighted that gender non-conforming media professionals face particularly severe vulnerabilities. Twelve percent of respondents in this category reported rape experiences, the highest rate among all gender groups surveyed.
Africa recorded the highest prevalence levels globally at 33 percent, followed closely by the Arab region at 31 percent. Southeast Asia recorded 19 percent, while Ukraine, included in the study for the first time, recorded 12 percent.
Despite years of advocacy and growing public conversations around gender equality, the report argues that newsroom culture itself remains one of the biggest barriers to change. In many organizations, harassment continues to be dismissed as jokes, casual banter, or private matters rather than serious violations requiring institutional action.
The study found that fellow employees accounted for the highest proportion of perpetrators at 34 percent, proving that harassment is not only driven by powerful bosses but also embedded within everyday newsroom interactions. Supervisors and higher management together accounted for 29 percent of perpetrators, while news sources and external actors contributed significantly to online abuse cases.
Even when incidents were reported, organizational responses often fell short. Around 35 percent of respondents who reported harassment said their employers took no action at all. Only 14 percent said organizations consistently acted against perpetrators.
Where action was taken, it was often minimal. The most common response involved merely warning perpetrators or transferring them to different departments rather than implementing serious disciplinary measures or survivor-centered support systems.
The report further reveals the psychological impact harassment has on media workers. Only 51 percent of respondents said they felt emotionally safe at work, while less than half of women surveyed expressed satisfaction with their jobs. Many women also reported low confidence in whether their organizations treated men and women equally.
Lead researcher Dr. Lindsey Blumell said sexual harassment has devastating consequences for both individuals and the journalism profession itself.
“Experiencing harassment decreases job satisfaction, increases the risk of leaving the industry, and has serious mental and physical consequences for survivors,” she said.
The report also exposes major gaps in workplace education and prevention systems. Seventy-seven percent of respondents said they had never received any anti-sexual harassment training. Many employees were unaware whether workplace policies even existed, highlighting the gap between policies on paper and realities inside newsrooms.
Importantly, the findings arrive during a period when journalists globally are already operating under difficult conditions shaped by political instability, conflict, shrinking press freedom, and digital abuse. In countries experiencing war, democratic decline, or political unrest, women journalists often face even greater risks of harassment and violence.
The report warns that unsafe newsroom cultures ultimately weaken journalism itself. When journalists do not feel protected within their own organizations, newsroom diversity suffers, talented professionals leave the industry, and public trust in journalism is undermined.
Beyond the statistics lies an even deeper crisis: the normalization of silence. When most survivors choose not to speak out, it signals a failure of trust, accountability, and leadership within media institutions. Many journalists continue to weigh their dignity against their careers, fearing that speaking up may cost them opportunities, reputations, or livelihoods.
The study ultimately raises a difficult but necessary question for the global journalism profession: how can the media hold governments and institutions accountable while many of its own workplaces remain unsafe for the people producing the news?
The report concludes that meaningful journalism cannot thrive in environments shaped by fear, intimidation, and inequality. It calls for stronger reporting systems, survivor-centered support, newsroom accountability, leadership training, and cultural transformation across the global media sector.
For researchers and advocates, the message is clear: protecting journalists must go beyond defending press freedom. It must also include protecting the dignity, safety, and humanity of the people behind the headlines.