Whose news, whose views? Tabloids do little to bridge the gender gap

Those who argue in favour of tabloids say that they are close to
the people, reflecting more accurately their views, voices and
concerns. Tabloid editors maintain that if one looks past the blatant
gender stereotypes often found in front page headlines, the inside
pages are full of stories about ordinary women that would not be
found in the mainstream press. The first phase of a Gender Links
(GL) study on gender and tabloids in Southern Africa shows that
while tabloids have more human interest stories than their
mainstream counterparts and are clearly more accessible, women’s
views and voices are just as under-represented in this medium as
in the mainstream press. Blatant and more subtle gender stereotypes
abound in tabloids. These often breach basic journalistic ethics
of fairness, accuracy, and respect for human dignity. The monitoring
did, however, yield examples of gender aware reporting in tabloids.
These suggest that tabloids, with their more popular and accessible
approach, could potentially play an important role in promoting
gender equality. The next phase of the research will focus on
audience responses. This will be used to amplify the content
analysis before final conclusions are drawn.

Publisher: Gender Links
Edition: 3rd Edition
Year of Publication: 2007
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