South African Media Coverage of Gender Based Violence during COVID-19 Period1

This research analyses how the media reported the gender-based violence (GBV) cases in South Africa during the 2020 COVID-19 period. The reporting contradicted figures from government statistician-general and non-government organisations (NGOs) such as Sonke Gender Justice (SGJ). Although the media reported that there are more women killed in the country, SGJ, documented that there are five times more men dying in South Africa than the females. The Men Foundation in South Africa (2017) reported that 18 men die every day in the country. If we compare the figure with the average death of women, which is 5, it reveals that the media approach to reporting GBV is biassed against men. This understandably seeks to prompt emotional public debates to push the authorities to address the issue. A few public voices that emerge contradicting the media reporting are subdued by the emotionally charged majority who call for "harsher" punishment for the men who perpetrate GBV. Emotional charge refers to people's entrapment in a state of perpetual anger and violence as a way of resolving conflicts. This research analyses how two leading TV stations, two leading FM radio stations, and four newspapers reported GBV during the 2020 COVID-19 period. It leverages qualitative approaches with Afrocentric concepts and constructs to analyse how the media reported GBV cases with bias against men. Covert observation, content analysis, and comparative analysis revealed how biassed GBV media reporting denies the public the chance for sober debates about practical solutions to GBV. The article recommends seminars for media reporters about GBV, accessible counselling sessions for the public, and the reevaluation of targeted stakeholders.