New Zealand: BBC recognizes sexist title after Jacinda Ardern’s resignation

The day after Jacinda Ardern announced she would not run for another term as New Zealand Prime Minister due to a lack of energy in reserve, the BBC admitted it had used an “inappropriate” headline in an article about her resignation. New Zealand’s head of government announced on Thursday that, at age 42, she will step down in early February after five and a half years in office, given that she “no longer has the strength” to push for a new mandate.

While covering the announcement, BBC World then shared an article on their social media titled: “Jacinda Ardern resigns: can women really have it all? The wording caused an uproar on social media, with many netizens denouncing the gender bias.

“What world do you live in? an irate surfer asked on Twitter. “It’s a shame @BBCWorld,” another said, adding, “Jacinda Ardern has been a longtime leader and international hero. Thanks to her, many other women have big aspirations and will do better. She’s done it all.” »

“We quickly realized that the original name didn’t fit and changed it. We have also deleted the tweet associated with the article,” a BBC spokesman told AFP on Friday.

VIDEO. Jacinda Ardern announces her resignation as prime minister next February

The youngest member of the New Zealand Parliament, Ardern achieved meteoric rise in the Labor Party. She took office in October 2017, heading a coalition government. Three months later, she announced that she was pregnant with her first child. She will be on maternity leave next summer. Neva, 3 months old, is the first child to attend the United Nations General Assembly in September 2018, listening to her mother speak in her father’s arms. Three years after his arrival at the head of the government, Ardern for the first time since 1946 received more than 50% of the vote for the Labor Party and an absolute majority of seats in Parliament.

During her tenure, the head of government faced the worst attack in the country’s history: in 2019, 51 Muslim worshipers were killed in two mosques in Christchurch by a white supremacist. After the massacre, it banned semi-automatic weapons and offers to purchase tens of thousands of weapons in circulation. She also always refused to give the name of the man who carried out the attack, Brenton Tarrant. She then faced a particularly deadly volcanic eruption.

Hugely popular overseas, where she has graced the covers of Vogue and Time magazines, she has long had record approval ratings in New Zealand, where the media sometimes even refer to her as “Jacindamania.” His handling of the pandemic, which was hailed at first as exemplary and highly instructive, has stumbled over its duration as restrictions have been lifted only bit by bit.