Women have been successfully carving their paths in all careers and professions. From business to finance and entertainment to education: women have exceedingly progressed everywhere in the past decades.
One field, which plays a vital role, considering the socio-political environment we live in today, is journalism and media. Journalism is a field in India and the world, where women have made significant progress in the recent past. Women journalists have covered wars and reported from the edge of calamitous events. They have become the face of various news channels.
We all know Barkha Dutt, a well-known face in national media, for her amazing panel discussions and intensive and extensive fieldwork. But how many of us know about her mother?
Prabha Dutt, the late mother of today’s popular and passionate journalist, Barkha Dutt, went on to become the first woman chief reporter of a national daily at a time when Indian media was male-dominated.
She started her journalism career in 1964 with the Hindustan Times in Delhi. After her internship, however, the editor informed her that the publication did not hire women.
She was furious after hearing this as she knew she deserved the job. When the regulations were altered for women to work as well, she stormed into the editor’s office and demanded a position. She raised her voice for her rightful position and got it. She rose through the ranks to become the first female chief reporter.
Today too, many women in media are undermined, and their voices are suppressed. Gender discrimination and societal taboos still play a major role in curbing the strength of women’s voices in media. Women journalists are often barred from covering stories such as criminal cases or sports and are instead stereotypically given stories like glamour, fashion, and entertainment.
Journalism, as a field, is especially significant in the equality we want to achieve because of its reach to the masses. Unless and until a powerful voice carried forward the message of our rights, it would be a tough struggle. However, with the increased use of digital media and social media, everyone has a voice now, and that is empowering in its own way.