The Centre for Civil Initiatives Poreč, in cooperation with PhD Marina Štambuk, conducted a study on the perception of sexist media content and reporting on gender-based violence among women who have experienced gender-based violence.

The findings show that participants – women survivors of gender-based violence – believe that inappropriate media reporting deepens feelings of fear, distrust, and hopelessness, and creates additional barriers to seeking help and reporting violence among women who are currently experiencing gender-based violence. They consider that gender-based violence is presented in a sensationalist and oversimplified manner, with an emphasis on stereotypical portrayals and victim-blaming, without regard for their privacy, and through the justification of perpetrators and the inclusion of statements from irrelevant sources. They also believe that such portrayals of victims and perpetrators, as well as of gender-based violence in general, contribute to a distorted public perception of these issues.

The study is available HERE.