They are more and more present, but still speak less than men.
For the first time, women were in the majority presenting TV and radio programs last year, but their overall speaking time remains much lower than that of their male colleagues, reveals an annual study published Tuesday by Arcom .
If “great progress” in the “representation of women on set” is to be welcomed, “certain results are stagnating”, regrets the audiovisual regulator in a press release.
In 2023, the proportion of female presenters on set rose to 51%, a level not seen since 2016 and the creation of the study, carried out in collaboration with the INA (National Audiovisual Institute).
Overall, Arcom notes a clear improvement since 2016 in the presence of women on set (journalists, columnists, guests, etc.).
While they were only 38% in 2016, they were 43% in 2023, a stable level since 2021 (44% in 2022).
But as in previous years, the overall speaking time of women (on and off set) remained much lower than that of men.
It is even in slight decline: in 2023, it was 34%, less than in 2022 (36%).
An indicator that has been stagnating for several years, since it was already limited to 36% in 2019.
Guests always in the minority on the sets
In detail, 11 channels reached or exceeded parity on the plateau last year, one more than in 2022: TF1, France 2, M 6, C8, France 24, W9, Paris Première, 6ter, NRJ 12 , Chérie 25 for TV, and France Culture for radio.
Thirteen channels (including Canal +, RTL and France Inter) report between 40% and 49% women on set and five (including France 3, BFMTV and CNews) report between 30 and 39%.
Finally, three had less than a quarter of women on their sets in 2023: L’Équipe, RMC and RMC Découverte.
The regulatory authority thus notes that the sets of sports programs are those which represent the least women, "in particular in the commentary of men's sports broadcasts", a trend which has been confirmed for several years.
She underlines more broadly that parity on set only concerns presenters, since 2022, while journalists and columnists as well as guests remain “nevertheless a minority” (41%).
A striking figure is that, for example, women politicians only benefit from a quarter of the political speaking time, even though they represent, among other things, 37% of deputies in the Assembly.
Women are also less solicited on certain subjects, in particular "in times of conflict": they have been "less invited on the sets of news programs during the media coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict", illustrates Arcom.
However, she welcomes “great progress” regarding experts, who are increasing in number.
Their share has increased by 13% since 2016, reaching 43% last year.
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The regulator also looked at the differences between the media, noting that there are more women on television than on radio throughout the day (45% versus 42%) but that the trend reverses during peak audience times (43% on radio, 38% on TV).
In addition, the presence rate and speaking time of women on set are better on public service than on private channels: after years of improvement, the gap will widen again in 2023 (45% versus 41% ).
Faced with all these findings, Arcom is publishing a list of recommendations, recommending in particular that chains define quantified progression targets, so that the proportion of women progresses towards overall parity.
But also to pay particular attention to speaking time, while ensuring “a fairer distribution” of both “the themes on which women and men are called upon to express themselves” and “the roles” that they are called upon to appear on the air.