Female war reporters are still underrepresented in western media, it is commonly assumed that the prototypical war reporter is a male correspondent. Thus, Korte assumed that the profession of embedded reporters is a world determined by men and in public’s perception war correspondents are still considered to be rather male than female. This paper points out how female war reporters are perceived by western society and interrogates whether Korte’s assumption represents reality or not.
This essay also examines in how far these representations correspond to existing public perceptions regarding female war reporters but also have repercussions for our conception of war correspondents. Since the late 19th century a particular public interest in war correspondents has grown. Today, attention has reached new heights due to public fascination with people who present and organize images of destruction and misery. Public interest in the profession of war correspondents derives from the fact that correspondents deal with socially relevant questions and help to shape people’s perception of war: they may thus be thought of as “essential contributors to the public understanding” of military conflicts.
At a glance
- Grade: 1.7 (1.0 is the best grade)
- Applies Korte’s cultural circuit to representations of war correspondents
- Examines a Ranker list of ten famous war correspondents
- Discusses an IWMF and INSI survey of nearly 1,000 female reporters
- 17 sources in the bibliography
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. Perception of female war reporters: a cultural circuit
3. Gender-related imbalance in news reporting - a myth?
3.1 Female war reporters in the field
3.2 Successful contemporary female war reporters
4. Gendering in the professional field of foreign reporting
4.1 Underrepresentation of female correspondents
4.2 The threat of discrimination, stigmatization and violence
5. Conclusion
Objectives and Topics
This essay examines how female war reporters are perceived in Western society and asks whether the association of war correspondence with men reflects professional reality. It connects media representation and public expectations with correspondents’ experiences and professional opportunities.
- The cultural circuit of representation, perception and performance
- Female correspondents in historical and contemporary conflicts
- Public recognition and prominent reporters’ careers
- Gender disparities in foreign news reporting
- Discrimination, stigmatization and violence
Excerpt from the Book
2. Perception of female war reporters: a cultural circuit
Both male and female war reporters have in common that they need to sell their coverages and, therefore, try to find a commercially successful story. As a consequence, war reporting as a branch of journalism is also determined by the principles of supply and demand. This means that, primarily, the mediatized western society as the target group decides what kind of news should be delivered by whom. First of all, this means that representations are influenced by perceptions and demands of the target group since the media industry tries to fulfill their demands to expand their reach. Furthermore, the non-fictional representations of war reporters in western media are also affected by their performance. Secondly, the expectations and the perceptions of war reporters themselves and others is, thereby, also influenced by the way war correspondents are represented in the media as their representations shape the public idea of a `prototypical` war correspondent. Moreover, their own and their colleagues` behavior also affect the representations of their profession. Thirdly, to complete the circuit, the behavior of war reporters, though, is affected by the images of oneself and others as well as by the way war reporters are depicted. These images which are circulated through representations lead to correspondents` attempts to imitate or distance themselves from the presented version of war reporters.
As a conclusion, the representations of war reporters are framed by the conventions and expectations of the target group and by the performance of the correspondents. However, these representations also frame and control war reporters` perception and behavior. This circuit visualizes the interconnectedness of the expectations and interests of the public, the media industry and the correspondents themselves and highlights how they influence each other.
Chapter Summaries
1. Introduction: The introduction frames the public image of the war correspondent and sets out the question of how women in the profession are perceived. It defines the scope of the term as professional journalists covering wars.
2. Perception of female war reporters: a cultural circuit: This chapter uses Korte’s cultural circuit to explain the relationship between media representations, perceptions and reporters’ performance.
3. Gender-related imbalance in news reporting - a myth?: The chapter considers women’s historical and contemporary presence in war reporting and profiles prominent correspondents, including Christiane Amanpour and Orla Guerin.
4. Gendering in the professional field of foreign reporting: This chapter considers underrepresentation and gender-related barriers, drawing on published statistics, reports and accounts of discrimination and violence.
5. Conclusion: The conclusion brings together the discussion of women’s presence in war reporting and the persistence of gendered public perceptions.
Keywords
female war reporters, war correspondents, public perception, gender stereotypes, cultural circuit, media representation, foreign reporting, underrepresentation, discrimination, sexual violence, journalism, Christiane Amanpour
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the essay about?
It examines public perceptions of female war reporters and their place in foreign news reporting.
What are its central topics?
The essay addresses media representation, gender stereotypes, correspondents’ careers, underrepresentation, discrimination and violence.
What is the main research question?
It asks how Western society perceives female war reporters and whether the association of war correspondence with men reflects the profession.
What method does the author use?
The author develops an interpretive discussion using published scholarship, reports, interviews and examples, with Korte’s cultural circuit as a conceptual framework.
What does the main discussion cover?
It moves from the relationship between representation and perception to examples of female correspondents and gender-related professional barriers.
Which keywords characterize the essay?
Key terms include female war reporters, public perception, gender stereotypes, cultural circuit, foreign reporting and discrimination.
How is Korte’s cultural circuit used?
It provides a framework for discussing how representations, perceptions and correspondents’ performance influence one another.
Which correspondents are discussed?
The essay discusses several reporters, including Christiane Amanpour, Orla Guerin and Carolin Emcke, in relation to their careers or experiences.
What evidence is considered about professional risks?
The discussion draws on published accounts and an International Women’s Media Foundation and International News Safety Institute report concerning violence and harassment experienced by female journalists.
- Quote paper
- Anonym (Author), 2019, What does a war reporter look like? The public perception of female war reporters, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.hausarbeiten.de/document/986251
