Two countries: one pattern : a comparative study of gender representation in the news of Norwegian and Turkish newspapers

Abstract

SUMMARY

In this study we try to show that unequal gender representation as portrayed in Turkish and Norwegian mainstream media contribute to the social reproduction of cultural values and structural dynamics of dominance with respect to gender disparity in the coverage of news. The broad objective of this study is to enable media professionals and ordinary consumers of the media products to critically view the messages conveyed by the mass media, especially with regard to women, and develop an understanding of the factors which govern and shape media content and emphasis. We have deliberately chosen Norway and Turkey as research countries to show that gender imbalance of the news media is a global problem despite the countries` socio-economic structure or levels of development. The challenge is not simply to notch up a few percentage points in women’s share of time on air or in print. The issue is the structural values and routines that determine how news issues are selected and presented and how these routines are creating the same gender imbalance in two different countries. Media politics of gender deserve much more critical attention than they have typically received to date. We try to address the multiple interconnections between news, gender and power. We have to deal with the issue to draw upon the rich sources of feminist or gender-sensitive critique with the aim of providing fresh insights into a various set of debates.

SUMMARY

In this study we try to show that unequal gender representation as portrayed in Turkish and Norwegian mainstream media contribute to the social reproduction of cultural values and structural dynamics of dominance with respect to gender disparity in the coverage of news. The broad objective of this study is to enable media professionals and ordinary consumers of the media products to critically view the messages conveyed by the mass media, especially with regard to women, and develop an understanding of the factors which govern and shape media content and emphasis. We have deliberately chosen Norway and Turkey as research countries to show that gender imbalance of the news media is a global problem despite the countries` socio-economic structure or levels of development. The challenge is not simply to notch up a few percentage points in women’s share of time on air or in print. The issue is the structural values and routines that determine how news issues are selected and presented and how these routines are creating the same gender imbalance in two different countries. Media politics of gender deserve much more critical attention than they have typically received to date. We try to address the multiple interconnections between news, gender and power. We have to deal with the issue to draw upon the rich sources of feminist or gender-sensitive critique with the aim of providing fresh insights into a various set of debates.