Media Discourses on Gender in the Time of COVID-19 Pandemic in Zimbabwe

Abstract

Media institutions always have a public obligation to disseminate news that is fair, balanced and gender sensitive, more so in times of crisis. Within the context of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) global pandemic, it is important that media provide a diverse, balanced and gender sensitive coverage that reflects existing inequalities in a society rather than merely prioritising statistics of the infection and its death rates. Informed by poststructuralist feminist theory and normative roles of the media, this chapter investigates the discursive parameters of gendered media discourses within the context of COVID-19. This chapter presents results from a case study of two main daily newspapers—the Chronicle and NewsDay—circulating in the country by investigating their representation of gender. Findings indicate that while there was generally more coverage of issues affecting women, both newspapers reinforced deeply rooted biases in their reporting. The findings further show that the emphasis was on gender-based violence with statistics indicating that it was on the rise during lockdown. We argue that newspapers must always strive for sensitive reporting that challenges hierarchical gender relations if the transformative potential of the media is to be realised.

Countering or Reinforcing (Gendered) Inequalities? Ramifications of the Covid-19 Pandemic in and Through Media

“…Those engaged in gender media studies, of course, headed to pandemic inequalities and their negotiation in (social-)media publics-whether in Zimbabwe (Tshuma et al, 2022), China (Zhang, 2022), Jordan (Al-Serhan et al, 2022), the US (Shugars et al, 2021), the UK (Pedersen & Burnett, 2021), or elsewhere. The keyword "COVID" generates 67 results in the archive of the influential journal Feminist Media Studies (as of February 14, 2023), which also dedicated a commentary and critics section (Vol.…”

Mapping the integration of the fields of mental health and psychosocial support with peacebuilding through co-creation.

“…Political violence is also a factor, and it escalates in months preceding elections as tensions increase between the opposing parties, this seen in the post-election violence of 2017 was of the feature in Kenyan history (Bedasso, 2015). Zimbabwe has a long-protracted history of political violence and conflict, which in recent history was evident in occurrences such as the violence during the liberation struggle, the Gukurahundi genocide that happened in the 1980's, violence, and brutality pre and post elections and the use of violent force by the government in response to political unrest (Tshuma, 2019). Context is important as it affects how integration can be done between the fields.…”