Lusaka’s Fat Bills for No Water, Times of Za...
Lusaka’s Fat Bills for No Water, Times of Zambia
Date: January 1, 1970
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Residents in Lusaka complain of receiving and paying high bills for water which no longer flows from the taps in their homes.
Residents in Lusaka complain of receiving and paying high bills for water which no longer flows from the taps in their homes.
This article may be used to:
- Explore when women make the news.
- Examine gender stereotypes and the portrayal of women in the news.
Trainer’s notes
When women make news
The majority of sources in this story about exorbitant water bills, but no water for
Access to water for the home, mainly to ensure that the domestic duties are performed, is seen as a woman’s domain, perpetuating the gender stereotype that women’s main concerns revolve around the home. No men are accessed in this story, other than the council official. Both men and women are affected by the lack of water in the home, but the male perspective is missing from the story.
The image which accompanies the story shows women, men and children searching for water, while the story presents the issue as a women’s concern only.
The angle of no water from the city council is tagged by the media in this case as a women’s issue.
Portrayal of women
The women are portrayed as passive victims who have no choice but to pay the high bills they receive even though they do not receive the service. The male reporter describes them in one paragraph as “hurting hearts”. The women appear not to be taken seriously by the council which claims, through the male official quoted, that it is not aware of the residents’ problem.
The first unidentified woman source in the article is portrayed as hostile because she refuses to speak to the reporter. The reporter’s tone in describing his exchange to explain the difference between the council and his newspaper with her is patronising.
The story also is written in a tone which presents the issue as the women’s word against the council official in terms of the numerous complaints and meetings the women say they have had with the council to solve the problem.
Gender stereotypes
The story conveys the message that the women are not able to challenge authority and that while they may complain, they accept the situation they are in, and look for other means to survive.
Training exercises
Exercise one: Read the case study and discuss the following:
- Would you categorise the feature as a gender story? Why or why not?
- Is the piece written from a gender perspective?
- Who are the main sources in this story?
- Which perspectives have been left out?
- How has this story been pigeonholed by the reporter and editor?
Exercise two: Analyse how the different women sources in the story are depicted by the reporter. Use adjectives or descriptive phrases to illustrate the messages conveyed to the reader about the various women. Follow up this discussion by discussing the following questions:
- Why are the majority of sources in the story women?
- What message is conveyed about the role of women?
- Except for the council official sources, why are men absent from this story?
- If the sources had been men, how would they have been portrayed?
- What gender biases emerge through the reporter’s portrayal of the women residents?
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