Working with researchers and leaders in this area at the University of Strathclyde, Pass the Mic commissioned research on media monitoring to assess the number of women of colour on TV news shows and newspapers ahead of the general election in July 2024. This is the only research of its kind in the UK which prioritises women of colour’s representation and expertise.
Given the importance of an election as a democractic event, and particularly this election in the current political landscape, the visibility of women of colour, our depiction, and whether the stories we care about make the news, is more important than ever.
The research monitored over 7000 news programmes and articles, and the findings are not surprising to us, but illustrate why the work of Pass the Mic matters:
* Women of colour remain under represented relative to the population.
* Two-thirds of people in news stories with a Scottish angle were men.
* Women of colour were less likely than other groups to be quoted and more likely to be photographed.
* Only 1% of people quoted in newspapers were women of colour and the majority of WOC quoted were not based in Scotland.
* Women of colour were more likely to occupy the functions of personal experience and popular opinion than other groups.
* 80.9% of all people of colour in news stories with a Scottish angle were men.
However, we know Pass the Mic is making a difference, as where women of colour appeared in published news articles, almost all of these over the media monitoring period of four weeks, were writers associated with Pass the Mic.