Network of Women in Media, India

NWMI is a forum for women in media professions in India.

Origins of NWMI, from “Genesis and Evolution” section of NWMI website:

The informal association emerged gradually through a slow, participatory, bottom-up process that built upon earlier initiatives by media women in different parts of India.  In the first phase (2000-2002), three regional workshops were held: in Bangalore (November 2000), Jaipur (March 2001) and Shillong (September 2001). These meetings sought to determine whether or not women journalists across the country wished to come together and, if so, for what purpose and towards what end.  Several local networks came into being as a result of the regional meetings; journalists from Bihar who had attended the Jaipur meeting went back and organised a large state-level meeting of women journalists a few months later. The first national meeting in Delhi brought together over 100 media women from 16 states to discuss a variety of issues relating to gender and the media, as well as to decide on the character and form of the proposed network. The NWMI was collectively conceptualised, unanimously endorsed and formally launched on 30 January 2002.

NWMI hosted conference and panel on February 3, 2024 called “Can independent media survive in the new Bharat/India?” at Mumbai Press Club. Panelists included independent journalist Kalpana Sharma, moderator; Dhanya Rajendran, editor, The News Minute; Naresh Fernandes, editor, Scoll.in; Meena Kotwal, editor, Mooknayak; and Mihi Desai, senior lawyer.

NWMI collaborated with Reporters Without Borders to train women journalists prior to the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. From a joint statement at RSF.org:

"When RSF approached us, the Network of Women in Media, India (NWMI), offering an opportunity to organise training on election coverage for women journalists in India, there was a lot of enthusiasm in the network for the idea. With the national elections due to begin, nearly 80 women journalists expressed interest in the workshops that covered a range of topics — from data journalism to multimedia storytelling and solutions journalism. The organising process was a democratic, collective one, with a few members coming forward to help put the workshops together and conduct them, in keeping with the spirit of the NWMI. Eventually, more than 60 women journalists participated in the five workshops that were conducted."

Local networks operate in Srinagar, Delhi, Patna, Guwahati, Shillong, Imphal, Kolkata, Bhubaneshwar, Hyderabad, Chennai, Kerala, Bengaluru, Pune, Mumbai, and Ahmedabad.