Degree Name

MA (Master of Arts)

Program

Communication, Professional

Date of Award

12-2001

Committee Chair or Co-Chairs

John M. King

Committee Members

Michaela Iver, Patricia Burant

Abstract

This study examined how women were represented globally in online newspapers. Depiction of men and women in online newspapers was investigated via cropping of photographs. The photograph was examined to determine if emphasis was placed on the face or body of the human image.

The researcher used the Body Index Scale coding instrument. A simple random sample of 1,969 published photographs in 750 global online newspapers was examined.

A major finding was that men dominate the front screens on global online newspaper Web sites. The data concluded men were cropped with an emphasis on the head, emphasizing intellect. Women were often cropped with emphasis on the body.

The significances of this study were that global online newspapers have an increasingly large impact on society. The manner in which men and women are depicted in global online newspapers play a role in how visual images can dictate stereotypes in mass culture.

Document Type

Thesis - unrestricted

Copyright

Copyright by the authors.

Included in

Communication Commons

Share

COinS