At the ICSJ, we study gender equality – in the labor market, in the media, in games, and in language

On the occasion of International Women's Day, celebrated on March 8, we would like to highlight that gender equality remains an important topic in research on media, communication, and culture. At ICSJ, we approach it from many different perspectives: we examine how gender is reflected in working conditions in journalism, media representations, gaming culture, digital trends, and in the language used to talk about different groups of people. Research by our colleagues shows that questions of equality, stereotypes, and power run through the whole of society–from social media and sport to art. What exactly are our researchers studying?

#CleanGirlAesthetic

Our PhD researcher Uxía Sánchez Lorda studies how the female gender is constructed on social media platforms. She focuses specifically on so-called “girl trends” such as #ThatGirl, #CleanGirlAesthetic, and #ItGirl, in which mainly young women share videos of their daily routines, productivity practices, and lifestyle aesthetics. Through discourse analysis, she explores how these trends shape and circulate particular ideas about femininity, success, and self-discipline in contemporary digital culture.

“This topic is important because social media plays a powerful role in shaping cultural norms and expectations about gender. By analysing how femininity is represented and performed in these online spaces, my research aims to better understand how digital culture can both reinforce and potentially challenge existing gender norms,” she says.

Sexualized Violence

David Ongenaert, together with Sasha Mandakovic from Erasmus University Rotterdam, is working on a study that investigates how women affected by sexual violence are represented in two ideologically contrasting French news outlets: Le Monde and Le Figaro. Specifically, it focuses on the case of Gisèle Pelicot, a 72-year-old French woman who filed charges against her husband for over two decades of marital rape and sexual abuse. Her public testimony and the subsequent trial generated significant national and international attention.

They identified two main discourses through which Gisèle Pelicot is represented: a survivor discourse and a victim blaming discourse. Ultimately, the survivor discourse portrays Gisèle Pelicot as a resilient and agentic figure who became a feminist icon. This aligns with broader shifts in media practices that increasingly portray women affected by sexual violence through empowering narratives.

Conversely, the victim-blaming discourse reproduces more traditional and conservative narratives by portraying Gisèle Pelicot as complicit and unreliable, notably through the exposure and scrutiny of her sexuality. Ultimately, these representations demonstrate that while progress has been made in how women affected by sexual violence are portrayed, dominant cultural norms and institutional pressures continue to influence which stories are legitimized, how they are told, and whose voices are amplified by the media.

“We investigated how women affected by sexual violence are represented in news coverage because sexual violence remains a pervasive issue that affects millions of women worldwide and continues to raise urgent social, political, and cultural concerns. In particular, news media play a crucial role in shaping public discourses and perceptions of sexual violence,” says David Ongenaert.

The Precarization of Women Journalists

Our PhD researchers Karolína Hájková and Hana Řičicová recently published an article in the international journal Medijske studije on the parenting strategies of women journalists in the context of precarious work.

The study examines how women journalists planning to start or expand a family face unstable working conditions and the specific demands of the journalistic profession. News journalism in particular is often unpredictable and difficult to combine with family life. The authors identified five strategies women journalists use to cope with this situation. They share one common feature: none of them provides real, systemic security.

Gender and migration

Nico Carpentier, Vaia Doudaki and Miloš Hroch from the ICSJ are co-authors of a recently published article focusing on the intersectional discourses of migration and gender in the social media environments in three European countries – Belgium, Greece and Italy. The authors analyse a fierce struggle between two main types of discourse: an inclusionary one, which supports the integration of migrant women and men and draws on themes of empathy, care, equality and recognition of their social role; and an exclusionary one, which portrays migrants (primarily men) as a threat or a burden and emphasizes their otherness. Especially in the exclusionary discourse, migrant women are depicted as vulnerable victims in need of protection, while migrant men are portrayed as threats. But also the inclusionary does not escape from reproducing traditional gender stereotypes, as men are still represented there as hardworking breadwinners.

"Gender remains highly relevant in the 21st century, but we should not study it in isolation. Gender interacts and intersects with many other identities and positionalities, including ethnicity. This shows that the struggle against sexism is often also a struggle again racism," says Nico Carpentier.

Women and Games

Tereza Fousek Krobová studies the position of women in gaming culture—whether they are gaming journalists, game developers, or senior women who simply enjoy playing games. In all these cases, women often find themselves symbolically placed in marginal positions. “I’m interested in the obstacles and stereotypes they face and how they try to overcome them. In the case of senior women, we are looking at a completely overlooked group who are under pressure from two sets of expectations–those related not only to gender but also to age,” she says. She adds that such research is crucial for understanding persistent gender inequalities–not only in gaming culture but in society as a whole.

Representations of Activism

A collective of authors from the ICSJ published the book V patřičných mezích: Reprezentace aktivismu mladistvých v online veřejném prostoru (“Within Proper Limits: Representations of Youth Activism in the Online Public Sphere”), which examines how youth activism is represented in the Czech online public sphere. One of the findings: commenters often use strategies similar to those used in attacks on women and racial or ethnic minorities to ridicule young activists: mocking appearance, belittling intelligence or mental health, misgendering, sexist attacks, or ridiculing non-heterosexual identities. Journalists also tend to give more space to male respondents.

Constructing Identity in Art

Our PhD researcher Lenka Marxová examines the construction of female identity in collage art created by artists from postcolonial countries. Based on interviews, field notes, and analysis of selected collages, the study explores discourses shaped by political, historical, cultural, and religious factors that influence the formation of female identity. “The research aims to present the experiences and knowledge of women from postcolonial countries–voices that have long been marginalized–in a European context,” she adds.

Trans People and Sport

Kateřina Turková, Veronika Macková, Alice Němcová Tejkalová, and Anna Hrbáčková examine in an upcoming study how Central European sports media portrayed transgender athletes in 2023 and how these portrayals shaped public perceptions. Their findings suggest that media often frame transgender athletes as problematic or controversial figures–especially when they compete in women’s categories.

Gender Disinformation

Since 2025, Lenka Vochocová has been researching digital media as part of the project Gender aspects of disinformation dissemination and reception from the perspective of the theory of social media performativity and identity theory. As the main researcher, she and her team map the users spreading gender disinformation and so-called anti-gender narratives. “In addition to clear-cut misinformation, we are also interested in people and institutions spreading hatred towards women or LGBTQ+ people, attacks on so-called gender ideology and feminism, but also profiles that emphasize the gendered identities of women and men – it could be a man advising others on how to be ‘real men’, or a woman advising women on how to be properly feminine,” she explains. You can find out more here.

Media and Feminism

Barbora Osvaldová wrote the book Česká média a feminismus (Czech Media and Feminism), which maps changing perceptions of women and describes their representation in journalistic roles as of its publication in 2004. She is currently preparing a new text titled Ty druhé (The others), presenting prominent Czech women journalists in the interwar period (1918–1948).

Socially Sensitive Language

Tereza Klabíková Rábová and Soňa Schneiderová authored the academic article Attitudes of Students in Communication Disciplines towards Socially Sensitive Language. The study examines how students in communication fields perceive socially sensitive language–a way of speaking that aims to be considerate toward different groups and avoid stereotypes or problematic expressions. The research explores students’ attitudes toward this type of language, how important they consider it, whether they use it themselves, and what practical barriers they perceive in communication.

Gender Stereotypes in Sport

The PhD dissertation of Anna Hrbáčková examines how audiences and elite athletes perceive the work of women sports journalists. “Sport is a huge social phenomenon. For many women, however, it is challenging to succeed in the ‘male’ world of sports journalism, as they face numerous stereotypes and their expertise is often underestimated. My research aims to understand how women sports journalists are perceived in the Czech Republic. The data so far show that they are viewed as competent and knowledgeable about sport–something earlier studies from other parts of the world did not confirm.”

Working Conditions of Women Journalists

A team from the ICSJ is responsible for the Czech part of the world’s largest comparative study on working conditions in journalism. Alice Němcová Tejkalová, Sandra Lábová, Barbora Součková, and Anna Hrbáčková also examine gender issues within this research.

Gender differences are the focus of two articles currently under peer review. Women journalists–both in the Czech Republic and internationally–tend to have lower pay, less representation in managerial positions, and less autonomy over their work. Many also leave the profession during their reproductive years and do not return due to insufficient conditions for balancing work and family life.

Reality Shows

Irena Reifová focuses in her research, among other topics, on popular culture and reality shows. She has long studied how media construct social reality and represent different social groups. A gender perspective is also part of her scholarly work, through which she analyzes how gender roles and relationships are portrayed in television production.

We study gender equality for a simple reason – it matters.