The Public Defender of Georgia is echoing the promo video of a new program Men’s Time circulated on the Public Broadcaster and the Internet.

The promo shows that women are employed as tailors and are surrounded by old devices (tailor’s profession is stereotypically associated with women), while two men are standing nearby like “supervisors”. During the promo the women are working silently, while the content of the men’s conversation makes it clear that while the women are sewing, the men are thinking about conquering the cosmos, where they would take women “not to be bored”.

The Code of Conduct of the Public Broadcaster openly seeks to protect public values. In particular, the Public Broadcaster is committed to responsibly covering issues that may be harmful or outrageous for certain groups. In addition, the goal of the Public Broadcaster is to protect the diversity and equality, which includes, among others, prohibition of gender discrimination.

Courtesy and respect for the audience obliges journalists not to use recklessly the words or phrases that might offend the audience. It is very difficult to define rules that would determine which words are offensive and which are not. This depends on many factors, including the tone and the context in which the words are used. An absolutely inoffensive word may be made rude by the tone or context; other determining factors are age, gender, education, occupation, religion, nationality, etc. [1]

In the mentioned promo video, women are used only for the background, while two men stand as the central figures. The degrading role of the women in the video emphasizes the central role of the men in the society. The Public Defender considers that the video promotes gender oppressive practice and strengthens negative gender stereotypes concerning women’s professional capabilities and their development.

The Public Defender calls on the Public Broadcaster to pay special attention to the protection of human dignity and equality during preparation of programs and promo videos.

[1] Code of Conduct of the Public Broadcaster. §14.9