Formalizing the Principles of Gender Equality in the Editorial Policy

What Has Been Done

The Ukrainian Week online publication has been adhering to gender equality principles in its work for a long time: the newsroom was careful about delicate subjects, prevented stereotypes in its content, and consistently used the feminine forms of nouns in Ukrainian.

In September, the editorial office approved the Gender Equality Policy developed by Women in Media NGO with the Commission on Journalistic Ethics with the support of the OSCE. The document officially consolidated the approaches that previously existed at the level of editorial culture and practices.

How It Was Implemented

The editorial office considered the introduction of a formalized policy as a prerequisite for the development of a professional media culture. After its adoption, The Ukrainian Week became even more selective in terms of topics and voices featured in the publication. The team actively engages women journalists and opinion leaders in content creation and works on topics highlighting women’s stories and helping to overcome gender bias.

Special attention is given to internal working conditions: the newsroom understands the needs of employees who also do care work, for instance, care for their children or elderly parents, providing opportunities for remote work where possible.

Impact

Approval of a gender policy really made the editorial team more aware of its own standards and responsibility for its content. The document now serves as a guide for everyday editorial decisions, particularly when it comes to choosing topics, expert voices, and approaches to sensitive issues. The policy also became the foundation for further development of other internal rules and standards in the newsroom.

Challenges and Next Steps

The editorial team has identified several initiatives that it is planning to implement further on. First, these include training programs for the team, for which they are now seeking donor funding.

There is also a need to implement additional PTO and social insurance, but it is currently not feasible due to limited human and financial resources. The situation is further complicated by the fact that some of the journalists from the team are currently at war, which increases the remaining team’s workload.

In addition to the gender policy, the newsroom is working on other internal documents, particularly an AI use policy.

How Other Media Can Follow

• Formalize gender equality values through editorial policies even if such practices already exist informally.
• Combine content standards with concern for working conditions and the balance between work and care responsibilities.
• Consider gender policy as a basis for further development of other ethical and professional editorial standards.