The Image of Women in News Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

The Image of Women in News - Research Paper Example There are many existing newspapers and studies that portray women and how such portrays perceive or shape them in public in addition to practices and newspapers. This paper seeks to explain the image of women in media, most specifically in Los Angeles Times, Nov 29, 2011 5.40 PST.Retrieved from: http://www.latimes.com/. It is important to audit and review the representation of women in newspaper, as there is still hope of women being represented and encouraged to enter into the business field, and not only to advertisements and show off their bodies like what the media had portrayed them as earlier on. Question B In Los Angeles Times, Nov 29, 2011, The number of women who appears in new picture in four sections is; News( the front section) is 4,in Sports 3,Business, 4, In lifestyle (Calendar, Arts, Home)11.The number of men in news photo is 14, while the total number of people in news photos is 36. Question C Both men and women play a large role in new stories. Rakow and Kranich arti cle Pg 1, reveals that 21 percent in news media are women, while the remaining 79% are women. After 20 years of transition, women are still underrepresented in the media or news content. To add to this, there are only 25% of women who are newsmakers and it will take some more years to achieve gender equivalence in matters to do with newspaper representation and reporting, (Synder, 2005, Pg 12-14). Newspapers are still trying to diversify their general content, from their sources, readers, story ideas, the bottom point being to attempt to include women as much as possible. Women Institute for Freedom of the Press (1997, Pg 21) also writes that newspapers have come up with a strategy of writing articles and ideas which reflect issues of women narrowly. This issue has become an umbrella that is ambiguous under a category of themes and stories which are gathered. Some of the roles men and women play in news stories are, to start with, readers, journalists, advertise, sports and entertai nment news. This can be well explained by Rakow and Kranich article on â€Å"Woman as sign in Television News†. They write that women appears as subjects and sources in news, where they represent them as feminist voices and role that are ritualized in the mainstream which are designees of females that are homogenous. Women as signs Chart Woman signs categories Men in My Research (14) Women in research (22) Private individuals 20% 10% Authorities 22% 8% Celebrities 8% 20% Political activists 30 % 22% Unidentifiable 10% 30% Feminists 10% 10% In category 1, Women are represented in media as relatives or mothers. Ecompanion states that 32% of women and 24% are represented in this category. If a woman speaks in news, she does so as mother, sister, wife, consumer, neighbor, and a housewife. They speak as witnesses and passive reactors instead of participants in public events. This comprises of 30 %. In this category, men are represented by women, because women speak for them as wiv es, as mothers or sisters. Men represent a 10% of this unidentifiable category. In category 2, women as sources will carry on instead of creating meaning of the stories they appear in. They are used to demonstrate the private consequences of public actions and