New step from the TGC against sexual harassment and abuse

The Turkish Journalists Association (TGC) Women Journalists Commission has taken action to address the disclosure of sexual harassment and abuse cases and to develop preventive policies.

Established in 2013, the commission previously prepared the "Women and Media: Gender-Equal News Guide" and made the experiences of female journalists visible.

NEW WORK FOLLOWING DISCLOSURES

Following the wave of disclosures that began in the photography and cinema sectors on August 21, 2025, and subsequently spread to the media, the TGC Women Journalists Commission has taken on a new mission in this field. The commission will work to ensure that abuse cases do not remain merely individual narratives and that institutional solutions are produced through deterrent policies.

GENDER POLICY FOR FEMALE JOURNALISTS

The commission aims to integrate a gender policy, to be created with the participation of female journalists, into the human resources processes of media organizations.

Commission Coordinator Göksel Göksu made the following statement regarding the ongoing efforts:

“As the TGC Women's Commission, we are closely monitoring developments and we value the disclosures made by all women, especially our colleagues, who risk everything to speak out. On this occasion, we declare our solidarity with women who are forced to reveal their own identities while exposing the opposite sex. When such issues occur in institutions, they do not become taboos, but they do when they are recounted...”

Göksu also drew attention to the risk of mobbing following harassment disclosures and emphasized the importance of institutional measures and deterrent policies.

STRUCTURE OF THE COMMISSION

The commission consists of Ayşegül Aydoğan Atakan, Ayten Serin İnsel, Çiğdem Yılmaz, İrem Barutçu, Mesude Demir, Semra Kardeşoğlu Kanar, Şükran Pakkan, and Zehra Güngör. In addition, a 40-member Women Journalists Advisory Board contributes to the work.

PAST WORK

Established by the decision of the TGC Board of Directors in the 2013–2016 period, the Women Journalists Commission carried out various activities to draw attention to the masculine structure in media language and to bring the problems experienced by female journalists to the agenda.

It prepared the "Women and Media / Gender-Equal News Guide" and delivered it to media organizations.

It held regular meetings during International Women's Day events and participated in marches.

It provided gender-equal language training to journalism candidates in Communication Faculties.

It revealed the problems of female journalists through surveys.

The prepared guide can be accessed at www.tgc.org.tr

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News Source: 12punto