Sexual Harassment in Journalism

For centuries, women journalists have been harassed physically, verbally, and, more recently, online, simply for doing their jobs. Historically, women who dared to step out of the home’s private sphere and into the male-dominated public realm of work faced sex discrimination as well as verbal and physical assaults. Women journalists have fought against misogyny, sexual harassment, and discrimination through lawsuits, public discourse, and online movements and protests. Still, sexual harassment today remains the most reported harassment complaint to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

Women journalists who report abuse and discrimination on the job sometimes face retaliation, and some remain silent. Sexual harassment persists while feminist movements, including #MeToo, continue to resist. This entry discusses sexual harassment of and discrimination toward women journalists in the United ...