Women in journalism face online abuse – threats, harassment and silencing – but their courage and solidarity, show that storytelling and seeking truth matter more than hate.
We live in a remarkable but complex time of converging crises. The shift from ‘traditional’ journalism to digital platforms has transformed the field. Journalists no longer wait for print deadlines or broadcast slots; they speak directly to audiences, explain issues, challenge power and help people make sense of a world that often feels overwhelming.
This excites me, as it opens new creative ways to engage, but it also scares me. Visibility comes with risks and for women, the price is disproportionately high – harassment designed to discredit, exhaust and silence. Threats of physical harm, sexualised abuse and online attacks have become the new ‘normal’.
On August 6, I attended a discussion in Johannesburg between Karyn Maughan, Qaanitah Hunter and Redi Tlhabi, titled Women VS. The Digital Machine. These are three prominent women in journalism, and they spoke about navigating digital hostility while remaining visible and credible. For women, visibility often comes with targeted abuse that is designed to drive us out of the conversation.
A SANEF study found that 75% of South African women journalists face online misogyny. I don’t need statistics to believe it. It is a lived reality for many of the women I look up to. The hostility is not random. It is ‘manufactured anger’, heightened by platforms whose business models thrive on outrage and misinformation.
Women covering politics or corruption are especially targeted. In 2024, Women Press Freedom identified 12 Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation (SLAPP) suits against women reporting on gender issues.
As a postgraduate journalism student, I often think about the work of photojournalist Lynsey Addario. Her career reshaped my understanding of journalism’s power. Addario is a strong advocate that women should not be limited in the assignments they work on. “Men and women have different access, we relate to people on different levels, and people respond to us differently, so certainly that will create a different dynamic with a camera, but I don’t think that, for example, as a woman I see differently,” she said. “What I choose to capture is possibly different from what my male colleagues do.”
Social media, the same tool that connects us to readers, also amplifies anger and division. Anonymous accounts and bots spread lies and hate. We are living in a time that some call ‘hyperpolitics’ – a state of politicisation without corresponding political action.
Yet women journalists continue to report, hold power to account and to tell stories that matter. Their dedication inspires me. It reminds me that journalism is not about ourselves; it is about trying to tell the truth, empathy and refusing silence. As Tlhabi said, “If we get obsessed with the hate we get, then they have won.” Section 16 of the South African Constitution protects freedom of expression. The question Tlhabi always comes back to is, “What is the cost of my silence? If I stay quiet, who benefits and who suffers?”
There are no easy solutions. Governments and media institutions must take cyber misogyny seriously. Platforms must be held accountable for the anonymity that shields abusers. Newsrooms, even as they shrink, need stronger support systems. And as journalists we must find solidarity, because joy is a form of resistance too.
As Hunter shares, “Don’t become what you fight. Foster joy. There is nothing that can contend with hate more than seeing a happy woman.”
Journalism has the power to change how people see the world. That is worth fighting for and it is worth protecting. As filmmaker Alice Aedy stated, “how to bring stories to life in a landscape that feels more challenging but perhaps riper with possibility than ever.”
Despite the hostility, I feel hopeful entering this field. Women in journalism have already transformed the industry, but the attacks are disproportionate, and we must continue to stand together. The advice I hear repeated is simple: never stop learning, never stop reading, and never forget the privilege and responsibility of this work.
FEATURED IMAGE: Safety of women in journalism. Graphic: Hannah Brown
RELATED ARTICLES:
- Wits Vuvuzela, World Press Freedom Day: truth on the line, May 2026
- Wits Vuvuzela, EDITORIAL: When will we tell women’s stories in full?, May 2026
- Wits Vuvuzela, Investigative journalism is alive and well, April 2025
