Glass Ceiling and Tokenism in the Newsrooms of Bangladesh

Photo courtesy: Committee to Protect Journalists

Despite its small geographical size, Bangladesh boasts a large and diverse media landscape. According to the latest government data, the country has 1,311 registered daily newspapers, with 530 of them published in the capital city, Dhaka. The government has issued licenses for 53 private television channels, as well as 28 FM and 32 community radio stations, along with more than 200 online news portals. This expansion in the media sector has occurred particularly over the past two decades. As a result, there has been significant growth in job opportunities in the field. While there is no official database on the number of journalists in Bangladesh, it can be assumed that thousands are now employed in the industry. As an outsider, one will see that a lot of women are working as journalists too. Their role is particularly “visible” on television screens. However, a deeper look reveals the existence and reinforcement of the glass ceiling phenomenon. There are invisible barriers and structural disparities that prevent women journalists from advancing to senior positions. I find the concept of tokenism from Rosabeth Kanter relevant to the media industry in Bangladesh, where women are mostly treated as tokens. They are more visible than their actual representation.

A recent study on Bangladesh's media sector, conducted by the Management and Resources Development Initiative (2023), reveals stark gender imbalances at various levels. Among the organizations surveyed, women constitute only 13.58% of decision-makers across the sector (p. 101). This figure becomes even more troubling in specific media organizations. For instance, at Kaler Kantho, Samakal, and Channel 24, women hold zero decision-making positions (p. 102).

There are also gender-based job placements seen in the media industry of Bangladesh. Women are mostly employed for in-house jobs such as sub-editors, news presenters, etc. The practice of employing women for field reporting is very low, though reporting is considered the most challenging and rewarding job. The study found that women constitute merely 5.72% of all reporters across the media landscape (p. 104). This creates a pipeline problem—with so few women entering reporting, the pool for potential advancement to senior positions remains limited. Even the women who are recruited as reporters are often not assigned to important news beats. This trend also reduces their potential for career advancement opportunities.

The research itself reveals the existence of a glass ceiling by stating that "women journalists have said, while mid-ranking women managers in television are slowly rising, a glass ceiling is very much there" (p. 14). I have worked for different media organizations in Bangladesh for more than two decades. I had the opportunity to take part in a lot of recruitment processes for new journalists. Through this experience, I myself observed the existence of invisible barriers that prevent women from entering the profession and reaching top positions. Of course, there are some cases where the women journalists themselves decline to take more responsibility, but there are hidden reasons behind their decisions.

I think the glass ceiling in newsrooms cannot be understood without considering Bangladesh's broader social context. The country operates within a patriarchal system where traditionally men have control and authority over women. This patriarchal mindset influences media organizations, too. Women have to overcome various obstacles in the family, society, and even in the workplace to move forward. Many of the organizations still think that women are not capable of taking the challenging role of leading newsrooms. Some of the management still believe that women would not be able to take the workload of senior positions. However, they don’t give emphasis on removing the structural barriers, such as a safe workplace for long-hour duties, proper transportation, and adequate child-care opportunities. The research notes that "women in journalism have the added obstacles of unfriendly work environments and demands of traditional gender roles, which prioritize their care work and family responsibilities more" (p. 51).

In papers, most media organizations commit to ensuring gender equality. However, in reality, there is very little reflection of this commitment. Based on my understanding of tokenism, I can say that the media focuses on ensuring symbolic representation of women, rather than ensuring real representation. According to Kanter, tokens “experience heightened visibility, stereotyping, and isolation from others. When they fail or make mistakes, they are seen as representative of the rest of their group” (as cited in Wingfield, 2010, p. 252). For this intensive scrutiny, many women journalists have to prove many more qualifications in journalism than men. I have seen practices of giving women journalists the leadership of the newsroom for a single day on Women’s day. I think this practice also reflects the mentality of tokenism,

I think the media organizations should change their mentality and approach and should focus on equity rather than only equality. The competition and comparison should be fair and equal. The male colleagues also need to change their mindsets. I think ensuring more women in decision-making positions in the media will also help to change the scenario. They will set examples and standards for other women colleagues. Creating more inclusive television newsrooms is not just about gender equality—it's about improving journalism itself by ensuring diverse voices and perspectives in news production and decision-making. Only by dismantling the glass ceiling can Bangladesh's television newsrooms truly serve the diverse society they aim to inform.

References

Management and Resources Development Initiative (MRDI). (2023). Gender equality and media regulation study: Bangladesh (2nd ed.). Fojo Media Institute, Linnaeus University.

Wingfield, A. H. (2010). Are some emotions marked “whites only”? Racialized feeling rules in professional workplaces. Social Problems, *57*(2), 251–268.
https://doi.org/10.1525/sp.2010.57.2.251

https://womenjournalistbd.com/about