In recent decades, given the crucial role played by the news media in fighting to eradicate violence against women, several organisations and legislative initiatives have begun self-regulating. This study analyses news coverage of gender-based murders in the Basque media over the course of three years, beginning with approval of rules for self-regulation. The results show that the media actively contribute to raising visibility of violence against women as a social problem, although reduced compliance with some of the recommendations indicates difficulty in practically applying them and disparate criteria from one journalist to another.