Date of Award
2025
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Arts in Digital Journalism (MADJ)
First Supervisor/Advisor
Nancy Booker
Second Supervisor/Advisor
Thrity Engineer
Department
Graduate School of Media and Communications
Abstract
This study analyses the factors contributing to women leaving newsrooms in Uganda from June 2019 to June 2024. The study adopted a phenomenological qualitative methodology to explore the lived experiences of fifteen women who exited the profession. In-depth interviews were conducted to analyse themes including systemic gender discrimination, work-life imbalances, and organisational cultures hostile to female employees in newsrooms. Chapter One contextualizes the study by framing the problem, objectives, and scope, showing the persistent underrepresentation of women in leadership roles within Ugandan media. Chapter Two delves into feminist theory and organisational culture models, placing the research within broader debates on gender equity in journalism. The findings presented in Chapter Four show a male-dominated newsroom environment revealed by overwhelming experiences of sexual harassment, inadequate maternity support, and inflexible working conditions that disproportionately affect women, particularly mothers. Structural barriers such as limited mentorship, lack of policies addressing harassment, and entrenched patriarchal norms were found to affect the decisions of women to leave newsrooms in Uganda significantly. The findings also present the struggles of women in balancing professional demands with caregiving roles at home, often citing physical and mental health challenges as decisive factors for leaving. Chapter Five synthesizes these findings, proposing actionable recommendations to foster gender-inclusive newsroom cultures, improve policy implementation, and provide support systems for female journalists to retain and empower women in journalism, contributing to the global agenda for gender equality as articulated in SDG5
Recommended Citation
Abalo Irene Otto. (2025). An analysis of factors contributing to women leaving newsrooms in Uganda (Unpublished thesis). Nairobi: Aga Khan University - Graduate School of Media and Communications.
