Gender Sensitivity in Odesa Media: January 2025 Monitoring Results

At the beginning of 2025, the expert group of the Gender-Sensitive Space for Contemporary Journalism project monitored regional media to assess the level of gender equality in journalistic materials.

Between January 15 and 21, three print media outlets (Vechirnia Odesa, Odeske Zhyttia, Chornomorski Novyny) and seven news sites (Dumska, Intent, Informer, Odesa-Media, Odesa Online, USI Online, 048.ua) were analyzed in Odesa. In total, 770 online publications and 61 newspaper articles were reviewed.

What was assessed

The monitoring is aimed at determining the level of gender sensitivity of Odesa media. In particular, the experts analyzed:

• The percentage of female and male experts in articles;
• The frequency of mentioning heroines and heroes;
• The use of feminine gender in the texts;
• The presence of stereotypical or sexist content;
• The presence of materials on gender issues.

The most balanced in terms of gender equality are those publications that have equal representation of women and men (50%/50%) as experts and experts, and use femininities in 100% of cases.

War as a dominant topic

We analyzed separately publications devoted to the war. They accounted for 25% of newspaper articles and 36% of online news. Journalists covered hostilities, missile attacks and their consequences, the construction of shelters, the process of restoring damaged facilities, new military accounting standards, the booking procedure through Diia, and prisoner of war exchanges. Considerable attention was paid to stories about the exploits of Ukrainian soldiers and their awards, as well as to the rehabilitation of veterans and assistance to IDPs.

Odesa-Media (44%), Intent (43%) and Odeske Zhyttia (37%) published the most stories about the war. "Vechirna Odesa weekly publishes a selection of news from the front under the heading "Ukraine on Fire". "Odeske Zhyttia devoted an entire column to a special project for veterans, and Chornomorski Novyny published a photo report about volunteers of the Net in Balta movement.

Gender in military topics

Women servicewomen were less frequently featured in the news than men. However, some media outlets published materials about the role of women in the Armed Forces. For example, Intent, Odesa Online, and USI Online published an interview with Tetiana Choroba, head of the regional recruiting group "South," who emphasized that women are present in combat positions and their duties are determined by their competence, not their gender.

The Intent website also reported on the first female bus driver in Mykolaiv, who has already been officially employed and is undergoing an internship.

Sports and culture

In online news on sports topics, a gender balance was achieved among experts (50%/50%), and women even prevailed among the heroes of the publications (66% vs. 34%). This can be explained by the coverage of the successes of tennis players Elina Svitolina, Diana Yastremska and Marta Kostiuk, as well as Dumska's publication about the women's hockey team "Kraken Sisters". The situation in the print media was different: there were no female experts at all, and women accounted for only 28% of the sports heroes.

In the cultural sphere, women were represented in 41% of online stories and 38% of newspaper articles. At the same time, women were the most frequent experts on charity and volunteering (80%).

Dominance of men in politics and government

Men made up the vast majority of political materials: 76-80% of experts and 78-80% of heroes. The highest number of female protagonists was recorded on "Informer" (41%), and experts - on "Odesa-Media" (33%).

Gender balance in the media

In general, the level of feminine gender usage in Odesa media is quite high. The websites 048.ua and Chornomorski Novyny used them in 100% of cases. However, the balance of female experts and heroines in journalistic materials has not yet reached equality. This does not mean that women are less active in public life, but rather that they need to be more actively involved in commenting on events.

According to the results of the January monitoring, the most gender-sensitive media in Odesa region were Informer (55%) and Chornomorski Novyny (54%). They are slightly behind Dumska, Intent, USI online (52% each) and Odeske Zhyttia (51%). The overall gender sensitivity index of Odesa media in January 2025 was 50%, which is the average among regional media in Ukraine.

Ірина Глухова