Closing the Gap: An interview study with Swedish newspaper publishers and editors on the lack of consistency between commitments on media and gender and actual representation

Abstract

Women are grossly underrepresented as news subjects globally. This is a direct violation of the universal human right of freedom of expression, as well as a major hindrance to global sustainable development and societal gender equality, as addressed by the United Nations. Vast research has been carried out to find possible answers to this problem, and different explanation models include journalistic routines, organizational structures, and deeply rooted societal norms. Sweden is one of the most gender equal countries in the world. Still, this image is not reflected in the Swedish news content, which shows the same patterns of gender inequality as the rest of the world’s media. At the same time Swedish media organizations fight a constant battle to find sustainable business models and increase revenue in times of globalization and increased competition. The purpose of this Master’s thesis is to find possible explanations as to why gender parity in news content is taking so long, from the point of view of people who produce news content. The aim is to find alternative solutions to speed up the process, going outside the traditional evaluations of the issue of female underrepresentation. The empirical data consists of ten deep interviews with publishers and editors of the largest newspapers in Sweden. The theoretical framework is based upon the well-known hierarchal model of news selection by Pamela J. Shoemaker and Stephen D. Reese, as well as on other theories and concepts regarding media, gender and power structures. The result of the analysis indicates that there is a big gap between the global commitments on media and gender and the newsmakers’ awareness of the same. This creates an opening for co-operation between international actors in this arena and the media to jointly drive change. A change that could generate both new business models as well as new standards for contemporary journalism.