Journalists across the globe are faced with violence, harassment, criminalization, and even death for reporting on the issues facing their communities. The Committee for the Protection of Journalists reported 2024 as the deadliest year in its history for journalists, with at least 124 confirmed killings. Women in the media are especially at risk, facing targeted and disproportionate attacks in both digital and physical spheres. According to UN Special Rapporteur Irene Khan and UNESCO’s Safety of Women Journalists report, women journalists are particularly targeted for physical and psychological violence and are subject to disproportionate and specific threats. These harmful practices often chill women’s expression causing them to self-censor or ceasing to participate in the public sphere altogether.

Online abuse—including threats of violence, breaches of digital privacy, and disinformation campaigns—magnifies offline risks.  Beyond the digital sphere, women journalists are increasingly facing disproportionate and specific threats in sub-Saharan Africa.  Although gender-based violence is not new, technology’s reach and permanence make these attacks more persistent and harmful, exacerbating existing threats fueled by patriarchal norms and the belief that women can be easily intimidated into silence.

This report summarizes the trends in violence against women journalists that have emerged in Uganda, Tanzania, Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, The Gambia and  Sierra Leone since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020. It examines the types of attacks women journalists face, the type of attackers who commit this violence, the factors heightening women journalists’ risk of attack, the impact of violence on women journalists and the sector at large, as well as institutional responses to violence and barriers to reporting. Finally, it explores opportunities for strategic litigation to begin addressing the gaps in protection for women journalists across East and West Africa.