The Expert Women – Ten Years On conference was held on October 8th 2024 in the Northampton Suite at City St George’s, University of London. It was supported by the Journalism Department. 90 delegates including women experts in various fields, plus journalists, academics and politicians attended. This was the last in the Women on Air series of conferences which began in April 2014.
The research figures for the period of November 2023 to April 2024 were announced and can be seen in details on our figures page Figures since 2014 – Expert Women Project 2014 – 2024 The Expert Women campaign has been going for ten years and these are the final results. In ten years, the ratio of men to women experts on six flagship TV and radio news programmes has decreased from 4-1 to 2-1. The Expert Women campaign has been widely credited with significantly contributing to making this happen Endorsements – Expert Women Project 2014 – 2024
The keynote speaker for the 2024 conference was Harriet Harman, Baroness Harman. She remarked on the fact that despite the success of the expert women campaign, there were still twice as many men as women experts on air in news bulletins. She called for the BBC to be given quotas to increase the number of women experts.
Other speakers included Stella Creasey, MP; and Monica Dolan, actor, who first endorsed the Expert Women campaign in 2015.
The editors of all the programmes surveyed made up a panel reacting to the survey results.
Our international partners in Ghana also provided a presentation.
See the full list of speakers on the agenda below.
The Expert Women Project was supported in this conference by the Academy of Medical Science and additional survey research was provided into the treatment of healthcare patients, their families and supporters, in news items on TV and radio news. The survey research demonstrated a change in the way patients have been treated on air in recent years, particularly since the Infected Blood Inquiry. Patients are now more likely to be treated as experts, and their families and supporters as campaigners. In the past patients have been treated as victims or as examples, not as experts on their own conditions. The surveys also indicated that patients’ families and supporters are more likely to be women. This change in attitude is resulting in a small increase in women being seen as people of authority and expertise on news programmes
There was significant press coverage of the event which can be seen on our press page Press coverage – Expert Women Project 2014 – 2024
The agenda for the conference is below.
Expert Women – Ten Years On
City St George’s University of London Journalism Department, supported by the Academy of Medical Sciences
8th October 2024, 0830 – 12 noon
Northampton Suite Rooms B&C, City St George’s, University of London EC1V 0HB
0830 – 0835 Welcome from Professor Anna Whitelock, Dean of the School of Communication and Creativity, City St George’s University of London.
0835 – 0845 Professor Lis Howell announces results of the 2023/24 survey research on the number of expert women interviewed on six flagship UK news programmes.
0845 – 0915 Panel of Editors from – BBC News at Ten (Jessica Benton); ITV News (Diane Ridley, Head of Newsgathering); Channel 4 News (Laura Wilshaw); Sky News (Laura Scott); Channel 5 News (Debbie Ramsay); Miranda Holt (BBC 50/50 Equality leader and former Assistant Editor, ‘Today’). Chair: Professor Lis Howell.
0915 – 0930 Regulation and Management: Vikki Cook, Director of Broadcast and Media, Ofcom; Ade Rawcliffe, Director of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion ITV; Chair: Professor Suzanne Franks
0930 – 0945 Expert Women Project International – The Ghana Project. Betty Kankam-Boadu. Chair: Professor Suzanne Franks.
0945 – 1000 Coffee break
1000 – 1030 KEYNOTE interview. Cathy Newman (C4 News) interviews Rt Hon Baroness Harriet Harman.
1030 – 1100 Women in Politics: a qualitative look at the experiences of women politicians and women journalists in news and politics: Baroness Harman; Professor Rosie Campbell, King’s College, London; Becky Johnson, Sky News; Anushka Asthana, Deputy Political Editor ITN; Stella Creasy MP. Chair: Cathy Newman, C4 News. Supported by ITN.
1100 – 1135 Women and Patients in Health News: new survey research on the dramatic change in coverage of health stories. Heather Evans, widow, Infected Blood Inquiry; Tom Feilden, BBC Radio 4 Science Correspondent; Lynn Laidlaw, Co-Investigator COVID Shielding Voices; Catherine Jones, Channel 5 News Health Correspondent; Professor Tom Solomon CBE, Chair of Neurological Science at the University of Liverpool and Director of The Pandemic Institute. Chair: Jacqui Thornton, health journalist. Supported by the Academy of Medical Sciences.
1135 – 1150 Monica Dolan – actor Sherwood, Mr Bates versus the Post Office, and author and performer of The B*easts – talks to Cathy Newman about women and confidence.
1150-1200 – Video round-up of the Expert Women Campaign – with archive news film showing the portrayal of woman in the past.
1200 -1400 Lunch: The Pavilion, ground floor main building City University of London