Sex scandal blows up in Radio Africa newsroom

Radio Africa Group, the publisher of the Star newspaper and owner of a number of radio stations including Classic 105 FM, is treading on very creamy ground, with allegations of sexual abuse being raised against some of its senior male employees.

It is understood that the management and human resources office are investigating charges by younger female employees who accuse their editorial bosses of demanding sexual favours in return for kind treatment or professional help. The allegations touch on senior editors of the Star newspaper, with investigators zeroing in on the individual who has been fingered most.

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The accusations come just over a month after Nation Media Group fired an editor accused of threatening a lady intern for sex. Some allege he even brandished a gun, but Nation never made its investigations report public.

This is why the Star case will is being closely internally at Lion Place and by the media industry at large.

The matter was sparked by a lady who reported a case of her boss sexually harassing her to Human Resources Director Kathy Kageni-Oganga, who called up a meeting of all female employees in the company to advise them on handling sexual abuse issues at the workplace.

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According to those who attended the meeting, more ladies opened up and, for the first time, revealed how they are often abused sexually by some of their managers. The issues shocked the HR director, who immediately launched investigations and asked ladies to swiftly report any cases of sexual abuse at the office.

Sexual abuse is a very sensitive issue at any workplace, in a society where sex remains a taboo subject, more so in media which advocates against the vice.

In the newsroom abuse can come in many forms. For instance, when an editor demands sex from a lady so he can assign her strong beats that guarantee story usage or main stories.

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Secondly, an editor could withhold certain privileges for a lady which include, as it were, being denied ‘hot’ assignments, or not publishing her articles at all to make her look irrelevant. There are also cases where editors force ladies to dates outside office hours, hoping to warm themselves into their hearts.

This is something that the media can no longer shy off from as it could be one of the reasons there are fewer lady journalists in newsrooms, especially newspapers which are dominated by male bosses.

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[crp]