The Fourth Estate, Media Houses Where Interns are Victims of Sexual Predators

An internship is an opportunity for fresh graduates to learn the tools of trade before they get deep into the industry, internship is like the shallow end of the swimming pool where you test the waters of the career you are choosing and what most people would like, is to have a floater or guard to help you navigate around before you find your ground.

Newsrooms, where truth to power and unearthing the ills of society need to be the driving force, have turned to be the breeding ground for the most uncouth behavior, editors and reporters alike rush to the latest entrant to make advances with the management and HR’s not taking any action hence enabling the perpetrators.

Imagine this, a supervisor taking advantage of an intern and a report made to the HR is dismissed with a single ‘’Just avoid the person and take care.’’

This is a case scenario of several young graduates trying to make it in an industry  that is supposed to be the voice of the people, a foot at the doorstep is what most of them are looking for but once they have been allowed in, there is a whole new world of piranhas waiting to pounce on them. And sadly, the industry knows the beasts but shields them.

Getting into the newsroom is their desire, to tell people’s story and tell the world what is happening behind closed doors in different organizations but one story that will not be told is their own and how editors are preying on them.

Speaking to different newsroom interns across media houses, one thing stands out, ‘’you will leave they will stay so shut up or ship out’’

To say they have been made uncomfortable is an understatement. Some have been chased out because they refused the editors advancements, some gave in and treated like trash later on, a good case of ‘’use and dump.’’

In some cases, Editors and seniors in newsrooms brand themselves as guardians ready to help you navigate your way in the industry. They check on you from time to time giving you stories that in most cases would be assigned to a senior reporter so that you feel appreciated and trusted to handle the so-called “heavy tasks”.

As an intern to you the Editor is your mentor, but there is always a price. Later on, they start making advances, compliments about your beauty and how they can take care of you, well in a real sense, they are eying something else.

In one of the newsrooms in a leading media station in the country an intern, Ashley, not her real name, narrates how an editor lured her into covering a story together because the person she was to interview had communicated to him. An assignment that ended up being a lunch date.

“He assigned me a story and asked me to go there via cab, I did not have a problem because it was a senior editor and to me it was just like any day,” states Ashley. 

“He ordered a cab for me surprisingly we were the only ones going with the cab no camera person was assigned to me, and just a few meters from the company he checks his phone and says that the event had been canceled and instead directs the cab to a nearby restaurant,” says Ashley

 Ashley’s mind went into a state of emergency, torn in between reading the words in black and white and standing her ground and playing along to see that she sees the end of her internship.

Ashley says she was scared sitting next to a man who clearly wanted something more from her than what she was willing to offer. And to make matters worse she could not report the matter because the people in charge are enablers.

Sheryl on the other hand had just started interning, three weeks into her internship another senior person in a newsroom sets his eyes on her, an editor, they start that which is an office romance and when he had finally gotten what he wanted. It was time to let her go, Sheryl says he made her life a living hell sidelining her on assignments and rallied other editors to dismiss her.

“I reported the matter, opened my heart to those in authority hoping that they will take up the matter, but I was dismissed and told to just avoid the editor and take care of myself. Companies even those with women at the position of influence defend their own as an intern you are on your own,’’ says Sheryl.

According to Sheryl and her colleagues there was a meeting called with all the interns to check on how they were fairing on by the management, they were asked about their safety, they opened their hearts, to them hope had come and finally someone was willing to shield them from the predators.

‘’She said, we have heard those complaints and trust me we are doing something about it’’ Sheryl narrates.

Months down the line, the vice continued even after that lot had left, it became a cycle of predators waiting on when to pounce. Girls eager to join the industry to tell stories that matter, they themselves become stories that will never be told because who will tell their stories?

If at all you thought this happens to girls alone, surprise to you boys too are victims of sexual predators forced to walk out or give in to just land that internship in a country where getting an internship is a job on its own.

Organizations like the media council of Kenya that at times links the students to internship opportunities should help ensure their safety. The safety of young journalists is mainly reduced to out in the field when there is a more dangerous predator within.

Annabel walked into a national media station with the intent to be the best reporter trainee, weeks into her internship when she was just touching ground, advances started coming in, but for  her she stood her ground and knew her rights, two days later she was transferred to the technical department, apparently she wasn’t fit for the newsroom.

When her supervisor in the ENG asked her, she narrated hers story and she said “oh huyo hukuwa hivyo but usijali kaa tu hapa’ to loosely translate” that one is always like that, but don’t worry just work here”

Some interns are even warned on who to look out for meaning it is something that happens and perpetrators are well known but the question is why is nothing ever happening in terms of disciplinary action?

Weeks earlier she had just been praised for how good of a reporter she was. What had changed that her spirits were being reduced, making her second guess her abilities?

They come to them pretending to have the best of intentions, clothed in the mentor attire and a caring supervisor, to them it is a game they know how to play, they lure into trusting them with a promise they will retain you if you continue behaving, sooner rather than later their claws come out the mask falls off, they are coming for you.  When you say no. You are an outcast if not you are out. If you say yes, you are a toy they want to use and discard.

After using you they do not desire you any more and maybe you developed a liking to them hoping they will stand by you only to be left shuttered.

Annabel says, “That is the most hurting and undignified thing that could happen to anyone, before you recover from that, the idea that someone you trusted and looked up to just used you always breaks you.”

The stories from these interns across media stations is a clear indicator of how there is no tangible policy to protect young journalists and trainees from predators.

How the management of newsrooms knows who these predators are but still protects them.

Some are armored with evidence and WhatsApp messages but still no justice will come their way.

Inside the closets of the fourth estate are stories that should be told but ones that will never see the light because who exactly likes to reflect inside?

The media is not perfect, it could be rotten but it can also be salvaged.

Follow Up (2024)

The story did elicit reactions; we shared it with different media managers to have them investigate their newsrooms. After months of investigations in one of the media houses where the behaviour had been reported, the editors associated with the allegations were dismissed.

When we followed up with human resources to establish if they knew of such behavior in their organization they declined and said such has not been reported yet. The evidence provided indicates that the interns had earlier been called for a meeting to address the issue several reports had been made and no action had been taken.

We engaged the media managers who later sought to handle the issue internally. Later they say the case was handled and that the said perpetrators who were making life for the budding journalists unbearable were dismissed.

We sought to find out if measures were put in place to ensure that such behavior is not reported again and they said a desk was being set up for specifically handling the same cases allowing trainees to report any form of violence and harassment

However, further digging proved that the same editor was again hired by a different media organization as an editor and their hiring was even published on social platforms and the site of the media house.

This begs the question of how can the whole industry come together and ensure punitive punishment for perpetrators because without that then the act could continue in just a different organization with the same perpetrators.

The said behavior still sees the light of day despite measures being put in place to address it.

After months we did a follow-up where we interviewed some of the female journalists who still work in the same local media organization on whether there have been any changes. Their revelations have been shocking to us. Seeking anonymity “Mitchell” not her real name said that one of the employees had touched her inappropriately despite communication from the management that the behavior is unacceptable within the premises.  We asked Mitchell is she reported the matter but she said she decided to Keep to herself but had warned the person who had harassed her.

Annett not her real name says

“The reason why I never reported is that I feel the management may not take it seriously and to them, it might be a small issue plus the perpetrator will deny and I would feel embarrassed.”

Annette was harassed when reference was made to the size of her behind and the perpetrator went ahead to smack her same to “Mitchell”

Their fear of reporting evidence of how far we are when it comes to dealing with the issue.