DIGITAL SILENCING OF FEMALE JOURNALISTS IN PAKISTAN: EXPLORING CYBERBULLYING, ITS FORMS, CONSEQUENCES, AND COPING MECHANISMS IN PESHAWAR

Abstract

This research article explores how cyberbullying is acting as an obstacle to female journalists living in a patriarchal society where journalism is considered a male job. The research has examined the forms and consequences of cyberbullying and how female journalists in Peshawar are coping with such bullying. The high rate of growth of digital media has offered more opportunities to reach a mass audience easily; it has also exposed female journalists to a wider variety of online abuse, including trolling, sexual harassment, threats, doxing, impersonation, and character assassination. The study used a quantitative research design, sampling 30 female journalists working in Peshawar through snowball sampling. Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) was used to analyze the collected data through descriptive statistical methods such as frequencies and percentages. The results indicate that cyberbullying is a long-term issue experienced by female journalists and has serious psychological, professional, and social implications, such as stress, anxiety, lack of confidence, self-censorship, and fear for physical safety. The research also shows that female journalists are more inclined to use emotion-centered coping strategies like blocking abusive users, self-care, and restricting exposure to social media, whereas institutional reporting mechanisms did not experience high usage. The study provides a conclusion based on Spiral of Silence Theory, Feminist Media Theory, and Coping Theory that cyberbullying is a gendered silencing practice that deprives women of freedom of expression and reinforces structural inequalities within journalism in Pakistan.