Women and Political Media Coverage Paper Assignment
This assignment is designed to get you doing some hands-on analysis of media coverage in regards to women and news. Media coverage shapes our perceptions of what and who is important and which types of citizens are credible as public officials, experts, and journalists. Much of this is subtle or invisible thanks to its ubiquity. This exercise should help you to “see” what you have been watching for years.
Part I: Watch/ read/
listen and analyze
You need to look at one example of each of the following: a local TV news program, a cable network news program (or PBS's News Hour if you don’t have cable), a newspaper (full scale – not the Hornet, but rather the Sacramento Bee, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, etc.), and one radio news program on NPR. As you do this, you will be doing a sort of content analysis of the program or newspaper, looking for the things outlined below. You should make hash marks under each category, (such as male field reporters), and make notes on each story looking for tone and content. Specifics for each type of news:
TV (one local, one cable)
The TV viewing should consist of the first ½ hour of a news program (though some, like CNN’s Headline News only last half an hour anyway). It would help to record the program so that you can go back if needed. The program should be generalized news, NOT a newsmagazine or political argumentation show like “crossfire” or “The O’Reilly Factor”.
Female Male % female
Journalists:
Anchor(s)
Field Reporter(s)
Weather/ entertainment/ sports
Subjects:
Newsmakers in political stories:
(candidates, govt. officials, etc.)
Newsmakers in non-political
(entertainers, sports figures, etc.)
“Experts” interviewed
(politically related stories)
“Experts” interviewed
(non-political stories)
Ordinary person/citizen
Victim
Topics:
Number the topics covered (only count an actual story – not “teasers” or 10 second mentions, etc.) Record the topic covered and how it is framed. Then determine if the topic is typically considered a “women’s issue”, an issue that would primarily concern men, or one that would concern both equally or be neutral.
Topic Frame W/M/N
Tone and other
details:
Look for other specifically relevant information. Are there any subtly sexist terms used, like “girls” for “women”, or “mankind”? How about phrasings that assume a male point of view, like “bring your wives and children”? How respectful is the tone in regards to women’s voices or opinions? Is there any evidence of dismissiveness? Are female journalists presented in decorative or sexualized ways? How about the women they cover or interview? Is there discussion of a woman’s appearance where it wouldn’t be brought up in a similar story about a man? Are women generally seen as central or as auxiliaries to the story or issue? Are women entirely absent?
Terms
Dismissive? Respectful?
Women as submissive, sexual objects, decorative
Female talked over, interrupted, etc.
Discussion of woman’s appearance or demeanor
Women as central vs. as auxiliaries to story/ issue
Absent altogether?
Newspaper
Analyze the first 5 articles beginning on the front page that are related to government or politics. Also look at who the editors are (editorial page) and determine the ratio of women to men.
Journalists
Female Male % female
Reporters
Editors
People covered or
quoted:
Newsmakers in political stories:
(candidates, govt. officials, etc.)
“Experts” interviewed
Ordinary person/citizen
Victim
Topics:
Topic Frame W/M/N
Tone and other
details:
Dismissive?
Sexist stereotyping?
Other:
Radio – NPR
Listen to ½
hour of an NPR news program, beginning at the top of the hour. You may use Morning Edition (weekdays 6-9 AM),
Weekend Edition (weekends
Female Male % female
Journalists:
Anchor(s)
Field Reporter(s)
Weather/ entertainment/ sports
Subjects:
Newsmakers in political stories:
(candidates, govt. officials, etc.)
Newsmakers in non-political
(entertainers, sports figures, etc.)
“Experts” interviewed
(politically related stories)
“Experts” interviewed
(non-political stories)
Ordinary person/citizen
Victim
Topics:
Number the topics covered (only count an actual story – not “teasers” or 10 second mentions, etc.) Record the topic covered and how it is framed. Then determine if the topic is typically considered one that would concern primarily women, primarily men, or both equally.
Topic Frame W/M/N
Tone and other
details:
Dismissive?
Sexist stereotyping?
Other:
Part II: Write up
results
Once you have completed the four content analyses and you have calculated the percentages in each category, you are ready to begin the write-up. The write-up should include two main sections. The first is a report of results section, which should include a brief description of exactly which programs/ papers, you looked at, including the date and time (if relevant), and the results of your tabulations. Cover each of the 4 programs/ papers one-by-one. The second section is a compare and contrast section. In this segment, you should identify the similarities and differences between the different media formats you looked at. Also, you should look for the overall patterns in your findings – what does your mini-study tell us about the state of women in political coverage?
The write-up should be at least 5 pages long, written in scholarly tone, and in Times font or similar. The paper should include an introduction, body, and summary. You should also include your notes and documentation attached to the back of the paper. If you reference any outside work, you need to cite it in a bibliography section.
Good luck and enjoy!