News media representations of women who kill their newly born children

Abstract

This paper presents a first quantitative analysis of language in media reports of neonaticide and a comparative examination of language use within the reports. One thousand twenty-seven Austrian print media reports from 2004 to 2014 were retrieved; after exclusion, 331 were analysed using the Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count (LIWC) software. After a preliminary analysis, a comparative analysis was carried out between reports on the Graz case and all other cases. The preliminary analysis revealed that a majority of media reports were related to one repeat neonaticide case (Graz) despite not being clinically different from other cases identified for the same period. The comparative linguistic analysis shows some statistically significant differences relating to the domains of emotional words (less words of anxiety, sadness) and family and in the category of insight and certainty (more words). The unexpected media attention on the Graz case and the ensuing verdict, which was in contradiction with the Austrian infanticide act, might have been influenced by the way language was used by journalists and the media. The authors suggest guidelines on sensitive media reporting are required.

Honour Killing and Criminal Justice System in Pakistan

“…Both a quantitative content analysis 43 and a qualitative theme evaluation 44 were performed on this data. This particular type of analysis uses a variety of methodologies.…”

Australian news media portrayals of filicide: depictions of mental health and the flawed mother trope

“…Through their choice of what is covered (and not covered) and how key information is conveyed, the news media has the potential to influence the community generally, and those who have a role in the investigation and resolution of criminal behaviours, including prospective jurors, judicial officers, and law enforcement personnel (Easteal et al, 2015;Orthwein et al, 2010). This influence can be heavily informed by gendered expectations that are evident within news media reporting (Barnett, 2006;Eisenwort et al, 2021;Goc, 2009). Buiten and Coe (2022) suggest that the way in which issues are reported can evidence the type of discourses that are available when attempting to understand behaviours, such as filicide.…”

“…Journalists often rely on prevailing myths and cultural stereotypes to explain challenging events, such as filicide, to their readership (Eisenwort et al, 2021;Naylor, 2001). As Barnett (2005a, p. 8) noted 'myth becomes a means to simplify complex information, reinforce cultural values and norms, and offer explanations for events that seem baffling or troublesome'.…”

“…There are notable differences in community perceptions and news media portrayals of paternal and maternal filicide offenders. Drawing from previous research into filicide and news media coverage of offenders (Barnett, 2005a(Barnett, , b, 2006Cavaglion, 2008;Eisenwort et al, 2021;McCluskey, 2019;Nikunen, 2006;Razali et al, 2016;Saavedra & de Oliveira, 2017;Wright & Washington, 2018), this paper examines the presence and portrayal of mental health issues in relation to news media coverage of male and female offenders, and the use of the 'flawed mother' trope in the news media framing of filicide in an Australian context. The 'good mother/flawed mother' discourse underpins this study and provides a framework for the analysis.…”