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Africa Media Review, Volume 21, Numbers 1&2, 2013, pp. 135–149
© Council for the Development of Social Science Research in Africa, 2015
(ISSN 0258-4913)
Gendered Portrayal of Political Actors in
Nigerian Print Media: What Impact on
Women’s Political Participation?
Idongesit Eshiet*
Abstract
The objective of this paper is to investigate the gendered portrayal of
political actors in Nigerian print media and its impact on women’s political
participation based on an empirical study. The study adopted a combination
of methods – content analysis and cross-sectional survey. A case study
of the coverage of the corruption charges of two former Speakers of the
lower legislature (male and female, respectively) during the 2007-2011
administration was conducted on two purposely selected daily newspapers
– The Punch and The Guardian. To complement the findings of the content
analysis, a cross-sectional survey was conducted on a sample size of 100
respondents on their perception of media portrayal of female politicians.
Findings of the content analyses revealed that the coverage of the cases was
gendered, with the female Speaker’s case being sensationalised, hyped and
trivialised. However, the findings of the survey indicate that a majority of
the respondents saw the coverage as justifiable, believing the media simply
reported the truth about the female Speaker.
Résumé
Cet article se propose d’explorer la représentation sexospécifique des
acteurs politiques dans la presse écrite nigériane et son impact sur la
participation politique des femmes, en se fondant sur une étude empirique.
L’étude a adopté une combinaison de méthodes – analyse de contenu et
enquête transversale. Une étude de cas sur la couverture médiatique des
accusations de corruption à l’encontre de deux anciens Orateurs de la
chambre basse de la législature (un homme et une femme, respectivement),
au cours du gouvernement de 2007-2011) a été réalisée sur deux quotidiens
* Department of Sociology, University of Lagos, Nigeria.
E-mail: doshiet2@yahoo.com
136 Africa Media Review, Volume 21, Numbers 1&2, 2013
choisis expressément – le Punch et le Guardian. Pour compléter les résultats
de l’analyse de contenu, une enquête transversale a été réalisée auprès d’un
échantillon de 100 répondants, sur leur perception de la représentation des
femmes politiciennes dans les médias. Il ressort des analyses de contenu
que la couverture des affaires comportait une dimension sexospécifique,
celle concernant l’Oratrice ayant été traitée de manière sensationnelle,
exagérée et banalisée. Toutefois, la plupart des répondants ont considéré
que la couverture était justifiée, étant convaincus que les médias n’ont fait
que rapporter la vérité en ce qui concerne l’Oratrice.
Introduction
The media as an institution plays a pivotal role in creating awareness and
shaping attitudes in society. Also, the media constitute the real public space
through which citizens understand politics. This role makes the media a
veritable tool for either altering or further entrenching the negative gender
stereotypes that exclude women from politics. In Nigeria, women constitute
a minority in the political scene. Despite several years of democratic rule,
no female has occupied any of the highest political ofces – president,
vice president, governor, senate president, etc. In recent times, female
representation in national government has further decreased from 9 per
cent in the 2007 administration to 6 percent in the 2011 administration.
The questions arise, why the decrease in representation? What role has the
media, as a pivotal instrument of creating awareness and shaping attitudes,
played in enhancing women’s political participation? How do the print
media portray male and female political actors? These are some of the
contending issues that the study seeks to unravel.
The Media and Molitics
In today’s globalised world where information communication
technology has become more sophisticated, the media has become even
more important as a tool of information dissemination. In politics, the
media constitutes the real public through which citizens understand the
‘political’ (Corner 2003:75). In fact, the media have become the ‘playing
eld’ for political actors in the twenty-rst century as voters’ perception
of political gures and issues are shaped principally through the news
media. Lawrence (2004) observes that the media have considerable
power to shape individuals’ understanding of public life, to set the
agenda on key issues and to inuence the political process. Other studies,
for example, Schmitt-Beck’s (1996) study of the 1990 German national
elections, show the power of the media to inuence people who are less
informed about politics or who have weak party identication. The study
137
Eshiet: Gendered Portrayal of Political Actors in Nigerian
revealed that the media and opinion poll information about the perceived
electoral strengths of the competing parties had a measurable effect on
the vote, sufcient in a tight contest to decide the outcome.
Gender and Media Portrayal of Political Actors
The media constitutes one of the key institutions that can shape and
change attitudes regarding gender stereotypes within the political sphere.
Therefore, the ways in which women and men are portrayed; their access
to the media; and their visibility as political agents in the media, certainly
impact on their political career (Mervi 2006). Despite this obviously
important role of the media in enhancing political careers, women do
not have a fair representation vis-a-vis men. Statistics show that women
have poor access to the media. According to Media and Gender Monitor
(2011), women constituted the focus of only 19 per cent of news stories
in politics and government in 2010, while only 24 per cent of news
stories were reported about women globally. Similarly, the Global Media
Monitoring Project (2010) report observes that of the 84 news websites
monitored by the project in 2010, only 23 per cent of newsmakers were
women. These statistics show that men dominate the news and this has
been the situation over the years. An earlier study by Norris (1997) on the
media coverage of women heads of state globally lends credence to this.
The study reveals that measured by the standardised measure of daily
stories per leader, women leaders were covered in fewer stories.
In instances where women are the focus of the news, they are often
misrepresented. Media reports on them are often negative, reflecting
widely held stereotypes in society, which have nothing to do with their
political aspirations (Mervi 2006; Jenkins 2002). Thus, Lawrence (2004)
observes that the media exercises significant effects on the formation
of public opinion about women politicians, which differs from that
about men. In recognition of this negative role of the media on women’s
political careers, the United Nations Fourth World Conference on Women
in Beijing 1995 admonished the media to develop strategies to increase
women’s participation in decision-making through promoting a less
stereotyped image of women and offering them equal access to the media
(Mervi 2006). Decades have gone by since this appeal and there is yet
to be a remarkable improvement in women’s participation in decision-
making globally. Women still hold only 20 per cent of parliamentary
seats globally. Although this is a remarkable increase from the 11.3 per
cent in 1995, the progress is still very slow and there are wide variations
among countries (FORBES 2012).
138 Africa Media Review, Volume 21, Numbers 1&2, 2013
The media often frames women politicians through stereotypes
and traditional societal values. Kahn (1994) observes that there are
differential expectations in the media and the wider community about the
interests and competencies of female and male politicians. For example,
the media tends to stress the compassionate and nurturing qualities of
women, while competencies are emphasised in men. In a similar vein
Lawrence (2004) observes that in the past, the media’s starting point was
that women belonged at home and they were expected to marry and raise
a family. Braden’s (1996) account of the media portrayal of the first
United States congresswoman (Jeannette Rankin) lends credence to this.
The account reveals that the press made her an instant celebrity as she
was regarded as an anomaly and an oddity that had strayed too far from
the cultural norm. There are still elements of this in the treatment of
contemporary female politicians.
Lawrence (2004) observes that the relatively rarity of women in
the political world sometimes means that the few women in politics
attract more attention from the media and are equally perceived as
being more newsworthy by the media, albeit in a trivialising sense.
Jenkins’ (2002) analysis of the biographical accounts of female
politicians by the Australian press reveals that such accounts focused
on gender-based evaluations. Emphasis is placed on age, marital status,
looks, fashion sense and domestic and family lives, rather than on the
substance of decisions and actions. Similarly, a study of British women
parliamentarians by Sreberny-Mohammadi and Ross (1996) reveals that
their outward appearance was the subject of considerably more attention
than that of their male counterparts.
Women politicians are also framed by the media as being ‘outsiders’.
Their representation further reinforces societal perception that women
are outsiders in politics. They are frequently portrayed as exceptions and
‘diversions from the serious male game of politics’. Motion’s (1996)
study of women’s politicians in New Zealand buttresses this fact. The
study reveals that successful women politicians were often portrayed as
lacking feminine characteristics and resembling their male counterparts.
Alternatively, they were depicted as lonely outsiders, unable to adjust
to the world of politics. Similarly, Media Monitoring Project’s (1999:9)
report of a survey of the portrayal of women politicians in the South
African media reveals that they were represented as unfeminine, ‘iron
women’, ruthless, belligerent and doggedly determined. These, the
report observes, are attributes which are positively correlated with strong
leadership by the media when men display them. However, when women
139
Eshiet: Gendered Portrayal of Political Actors in Nigerian
politicians display such attributes, the media criticises and vilifies them.
In the same vein, Norris’s (1997) study of media portrayal of international
women leaders reveals that many of the stories focused on the ‘first
woman’ status (being the first woman to hold such a position) of the
leaders as well as on ‘the breakthrough for women’ (a woman attaining
such a position constitutes a breakthrough for women).
The media also portrays women politicians as the agents of change
who will clean up corruption in politics. Thus, the entrance of women
into politics is commonly perceived by the media and in fact the
entire society as a breath of fresh air. Therefore, female politicians are
expected to behave better than their male counterparts. When these high
expectations are not met, Haines (1992) observes that the condemnation
is all the greater. However, Lake (1994) observes that this softer, more
caring image is often cultivated by the female politicians themselves, as a
means of making themselves more attractive to the electorate. Lawrence
(2004) argues there are dangers associated with these exaggerated, saintly
images of female politicians, as such inflated expectations are almost
certain to be disappointed. This places women politicians between a rock
and a hard place. If they dare to be different, they are seen as a problem,
and if they fit into the bill, they are equally seen as a problem. So either
way, women politicians are criticised and vilified by the media.
The media also belittles female politicians by portraying them as
sexual objects. They are portrayed as passive creatures that are being
wooed and won over by powerful male politicians and their political
positions are represented as tokens in exchange for sexual favours.
Jenkins’ (2002) analysis of the press in Australia shows that one of the
female politicians (Cheryl Kernot) who was touted as a possible future
Prime Minister was portrayed by the media as a sexual object of some
top and powerful political leaders, whom the media presumed were the
ones enhancing her political career.
This discriminative coverage of female and male politicians may
translate into electoral disadvantages for women. This is because
perception of social reality often corresponds with media ‘realities’. Media
images are often internalised and accepted as accurate representations of
reality by media audiences. Thus, differential treatment of female and
male politicians may influence voting decisions in favour of the men.
This may be a contributing factor to the low participation of women
in politics globally and in countries such as Nigeria. It also buttresses
Tuchman’s (1978) argument that the media have attempted to banish
women to hearth and home.
140 Africa Media Review, Volume 21, Numbers 1&2, 2013
Theoretical Framework
The agenda-setting theory of the media constitutes the theoretical
framework of this study. The theory states that media content sets
the agenda for public discussion. Thus, agenda setting illustrates the
powerful inuence of the media in shaping the public’s view of what
issues are important. The theory was rst put forth by McCombs and
Shaw (1972) who argue that although the media may not exactly tell us
what to think, they may tell us what to think about. According to them, in
choosing and displaying news, editors, newsroom staff, and broadcasters
play an important part in shaping political reality. Readers learn not only
about a given issue, but also how much importance to attach to that issue
from the amount of information in a news story and its position. Thus,
once headlines, special news features, discussions, and expert opinions
are focused on an issue in the media every day, the issue will continue to
be a subject of discussion among the public.
This was the case with the female Speaker’s corruption scandal in
Nigeria. The story made the front page headlines everyday in a row
from the day of the first report until the Speaker eventually relinquished
her position. Similarly, special news features, discussions and expert
opinions on the scam, were frequent stories in the media.
However, the coverage of the male Speaker corruption charge was not
this sensational. The story made fewer headlines with few special news
features on it. In fact, discussions and expert opinions on it were toned
down. This correspondingly elicited limited public reaction. Thus, the
male Speaker was not forced to vacate his seat as was the case with the
female Speaker. Yet, at the expiration of his tenure as a Speaker, he was
immediately arrested, detained and charged to court by the Economic and
Financial Crime Commission (EFCC – the organ of government in charge
of fighting financial crimes), for corrupt practices, while in office. The
female Speaker, whose corruption case was sensationalised, had no case
to answer with the Economic and Financial Crime Commission at the
expiration of her tenure.
Research Methods
The study used a combination of research methods – content analysis
and a cross-sectional survey of women’s ‘perception of media portrayal
of women politicians’. A content analysis of the coverage of the corruption
charges of two former Speakers of the lower legislature (male and female,
respectively) during the 2007 – 2011 administration was conducted on
141
Eshiet: Gendered Portrayal of Political Actors in Nigerian
two purposely selected daily newspapers – The Punch and the Guardian.
These newspapers were chosen because of their wide coverage, as they
rank among the leading daily newspapers in Nigeria. The content analysis
covered a period of 72 days (21 August 2007 to 31 October 2007), when
the corruption scam against the female Speaker was reported; and 84 days
(20 October 2008 to 18 February 2009), when that of her successor, the
male Speaker was reported, respectively. Both Speakers were accused
of corruption with regards to the award of contracts. While the female
Speaker was accused of a N628 million contract scam for the renovation
of the ofcial residence of the house leadership (Speaker and Deputy
Speaker), the male Speaker was similarly accused of a scam in a N2.3
billion contract for the purchase of cars for the house leadership and
standing committees. The content analysis assesses the quantum of stories,
number of editorials, and number of paragraphs and headlines written
on each case. Secondly, the contents of the reports of each case were
qualitatively studied, in terms of the manner in which the respective cases
were framed by the newspapers and the implication this had for the image
of the respective Speakers before the public. To complement the ndings
of the content analysis, a cross-sectional survey was also conducted on
women’s perception of media portrayal of female politicians. A structured
interview schedule was used to elicit responses from a hundred randomly
selected female respondents in the Lagos metropolis of Lagos State. The
interview sought to unravel their perception of media portrayal of female
and male political actors, and if such portrayal is gendered, especially in
relation to the corruption reports of the subjects of our case study.
Findings
The analysis reveals that a total of 198 and 155 stories were written by
The Punch and Guardian newspapers, respectively, within a timeframe
of 72days, on the female Speaker as compared with 31 and 15 stories, in
The Punch and Guardian, respectively, for the male Speaker within 84
days. At least, a story was written on the scam every day with regards to
the female Speaker in The Punch newspaper. In terms of paragraphing,
the female Speaker’s story has 3,660 and 2,844 paragraphs in the two
dailies, respectively, as compared to 588 and 266 paragraphs for the male
Speaker (see Table 1).
With regard to editorial, the female Speaker’s story attracted three
editorials in each of the newspapers as compared to only one editorial
in The Punch and none in the Guardian for the male Speaker. Similarly,
the female Speaker’s story has 58 and 53 (sometimes extremely bold)
142 Africa Media Review, Volume 21, Numbers 1&2, 2013
headlines in each of the respective dailies, while the male Speaker has
only eight and six headlines, respectively (see Table 1).
This disproportionate amount of coverage on the scandal involving
the female Speaker confirms observations from scholars such as
Lawrence (2004) that the relatively rarity of women in politics means
they attract more attention from the media, as well as findings from the
Media Monitoring Project (1999) indicating that South African women
politicians were more prone to criticism than their male counterparts. The
female Speaker was the first ever in Nigeria, hence the huge attention
that her corruption scam attracted.
Table 1
However, the ordeal of the female Speaker should not be blamed on the
media alone. Perhaps the greater blame should go to her colleagues in the
same and rival political parties within the legislature, who took advantage
of the media’s agenda-setting role to ensure that the issue remained
in the public domain through incessant negative press interviews and
conferences. These reports from the observations of some of the pro
female Speaker legislators, who lamented about the incessant press
interviews by fellow colleagues, buttress this point:
‘in all the media in the country... newspaper, televisions, magazine or
whatever, the crisis at the house has formed the major news’ (Punch 18
October 2007:43). [Reports often based on negative press interviews by
fellow legislators].
Content Analysis
Female Speaker Male Speaker
Punch
Newspaper
Guardian
Newspaper
Punch
Newspaper
Guardian
Newspaper
Length of coverage 72days 72days 84days 84days
Quantum of articles 198 155 31 15
Number of paragraphs 3,660 2,844 588 266
Number of editorials 3 3 1 0
Front page headlines 58 53 8 6
143
Eshiet: Gendered Portrayal of Political Actors in Nigerian
‘Chairman of the House Committee on media and publicity expressed
concern over the allegation, which has gained currency in the media
(Guardian 24 August 2007: cover page). [Reports often based on negative
press interviews and conferences by fellow legislators],
This action of the legislators of appropriating the agenda-setting role
of the media to keep the issue in the public domain of course elicited
the expected public response. There was outcry from all spheres of the
society, calling for the immediate resignation of the Speaker. In the
male Speaker’s case, the opposition from political colleagues was weak;
the media coverage was similarly not hyped, hence, there was only an
insignicant public outcry for his removal or resignation.
The qualitative analysis of the contents of the coverage in terms of
the manner in which the respective cases were framed shows that the
frames reflected the widely held stereotypes about women and men in
the Nigerian society. The female Speaker’s case attracted more stories
and sensationalism because she had failed to live up to the unrealistic
expectations of the media (and society) that female politicians are
‘outsiders’ and ‘agents of change’. Her entanglement in corruption
charges was seen as an unpardonable transgression. Hence, the issue
attracted three editorials in each of the dailies. In fact, one of the
editorials questioned her leadership capabilities, despite the fact that she
had had three consecutive tenures as a legislator and she was one of the
principal officers in the previous administration. Another of the editorials
admonished her to resign immediately. These excerpts illustrate the
disappointment of the media on her fall from grace.
‘I find it rather sad that the first woman Speaker would engage in the
act. We are disappointed and embarrassed by that. The expectation that a
woman will bring a motherly instinct to management of our resources is
shattered’ (Punch 9 September 2007:43).
‘the attempt by Mrs Etteh (Speaker) to pass the blame to her subordinates
portrays her as weak and incapable of providing the kind of purposeful
leadership and direction that the house requires to deliver results’(Punch
25 September 2007:14, Editorial).
Similarly, many of the stories showed her as the ‘other’ who has
transgressed into the male’s political space. Her ‘rst woman’ status was
constantly reported as well as the disappointment that her action had
brought to the ‘breakthrough for women’. She was commonly referred to
as a ‘disgrace to womanhood’. Equally, some stories portrayed her rst
as a woman before being a politician. She was constantly referred to as
144 Africa Media Review, Volume 21, Numbers 1&2, 2013
‘Madam Speaker’. The stories on her male counterpart simply reported
him as Speaker.
Her educational qualification was downplayed. She has a Diploma in
Law and Beauty Therapy, respectively. She was also an undergraduate
student, studying Political Science atthe University of Abuja. However,
she was ridiculed as an inept and naive hairdresser that is lacking in
political expertise, as these excerpts illustrate –
‘the mere fact that we have this crisis shows that she does not have any
managerial capacity, (and) lacks political skill’(Punch 22 September
2007:A3).
‘when she was elected, the members were fully aware that her highest
educational attainment was that of a hairdresser’ (Punch 25 September
2007:9).
‘to make the transition from a beauty shop to the No 4 position in the
country is no easy feat’(Guardian 30 September 2007:54).
She was portrayed as undeserving of being a Speaker. Her ascendancy
to Speakership was portrayed as a reward from political godfathers as
depicted by these excerpts:
‘she has some very powerful sponsors who anointed her and imposed her
on us’ (Punch 20 October 2007:9).
‘her election as a Speaker was a rare and spectacular reward of loyalty by
a party famous for its treachery’ (Punch 2 October 2007:13).
‘a hairdresser became the Speaker only because of her relationship with the
oga (former Nigerian President) of the previous administration’ (Punch 27
October 2007:A5).
The issue was trivialised and stereotyped along gender-based evaluations.
This nding supports Jenkins’ (2002) and Sreberny-Mohammadi and
Ross’s (1996) observations in Australia and Britain, respectively, which
reveal media reports of female politicians as focusing on gender-based
evaluations such as outward appearance and fashion sense.
‘the Speaker cannot understand that it is not about money, godfather or about
twisting the system around her fancy nails’ (Punch 2 October 2007:13).
‘Etteh (Speaker) should be recalled so that she can return to her beauty salon
and resume work as a hairdresser’(Punch 30 September 2007:7).
‘what would it profit Etteh (Speaker) ...to shrug off this debilitating scandal
and continue in office as Speaker with a handbag full of cracked mirrors, facial
masks and mascara?’ (Guardian 28 September 2007:51).
145
Eshiet: Gendered Portrayal of Political Actors in Nigerian
She was also represented as ruthless, belligerent and doggedly determined as
illustrated by these excerpts –‘a congenital liar and brazen manipulator
of the levers of power’ (Punch 2 October 2007:13); [who did not
demonstrate] ‘an iota of remorse, before, during and after at the panel’
(Punch 25 September 2007:9) [and whose appearance while at the panel
set up to investigate the scam] ‘looked like a champion boxer determined
to defend her title’ (Guardian 28 September 2007:51) [and was also]
“vividly ill at ease”(Guardian 28 September 2007:51). Her response to
the accusation was represented as ‘emotional and sentimental comments’
(Punch 27 September 2007:14).
On the other hand, the media construction of the male Speaker’s case
was issue based. The case was neither hyped nor trivialised by either daily.
Stories focused on the core issues involving the scam as demonstrated by the
excerpts below. Hence, the scam elicited minimal attention from the public.
‘The crisis in the House of Representatives over the purchase of 380
committee vehicles worth N2.3 billion worsened on Thursday. The
leadership of the house under Speaker Bankole has been accused of
profiting from the contract’ (Punch 7 November 2008:6).
‘House referred the controversy surrounding the purchase of 380 cars
for committee duties to its committee on Ethics and Privileges for
investigation. Keyamo alleged a fraud of overpayment or misappropriation
of about N42.5 million in the deal’ (Punch 21 October 2008:8).
‘Keyamo had accused the House leadership of short-changing the Nigerian
tax payers of over N500million when it purchased cars from PAN’
(Guardian 31 October 2008:9).
Comparison between the two newspapers reveals that the Guardian
newspaper was more issue-based in its style of reporting than The Punch.
Similarly, the quantum of stories, front page headlines and the number of
paragraphs on both issues were less in the Guardian newspaper than in
The Punch (see Table 1).
To further buttress the findings from the content analysis, a cross-
sectional survey was conducted on a sample of 100 randomly selected
females in the Lagos metropolis, using a structured interview schedule.
The interview sought to unravel their perception of media portrayal of
female and male political actors [in light of the corruption scandals] and
if as women they considered such portrayal as gendered?
The socio-economic background of respondents as revealed by the
analysis show that a majority of them were middle aged (40-49 years –
35.4%); married (56.0%); and educated with about 40 per cent being first
146 Africa Media Review, Volume 21, Numbers 1&2, 2013
degree holders. About 48.0 per cent were engaged in the public sector,
while only 10 per cent were self-employed. Also, a majority (52.3%) of
them earned monthly incomes of less than N100, 000.00.
An analysis of their political orientation shows that a majority of the
respondents (80%) were interested in politics and of those interested
in politics, 51.0 per cent were members of political parties. For party
members, only 21.6 per cent held executive positions in parties and
among this, the leader position constitutes 63.6 per cent of positions held.
Respondents’ assessment of women’s representation in politics shows
that a majority (70%) acknowledged women’s low representation in
politics and attributed this to the marginalisation of women within the
political space, due to the commonly held notion that politics is for men.
An analysis of the corruption scams of the female and male Speakers
reveals that a majority (more than 90.0%) of the respondents had paid
attention to the scandal involving the female speaker as compared to
61 per cent who had followed the case of the male Speaker. A majority
(80%) had followed the story on television, although a good number
(41%) had read it in print. The remainder had followed the issue on the
radio (34%) or via social media (21%).
In terms of the nature of coverage, a majority (61%) of the respondents
admitted the female Speaker’s case was not hyped, arguing that the media
simply reported the truth. However, 39.0 per cent of them admitted the
coverage was biased and sensationalised because of the ‘woman’ factor.
Similarly, 58.5 per cent of them did not consider the media coverage
had influenced the outcome of the case (the removal of the Speaker).
For them, the Speaker’s removal was just. In fact, they commended the
media for exposing the Speaker who was a ‘disgrace to womanhood’.
However, 41.5 per cent saw her as a victim of negative media coverage
and attributed her forceful removal to the sensationalism that the media
created about the case. They argue that for simply being a ‘woman’, who
dared to tread upon a strange terrain that is an exclusive preserve of men,
her mistake was seen as an unpardonable sin, hence the intense media
coverage. However, for the male Speaker, being in politics was a natural
domain and a man being involved in corruption was nothing strange,
hence his case did not generate as much interest in the media as that of
the female Speaker.
An analysis of respondents’ general assessment of media coverage of
female politicians reveals that about 57.0 per cent believed the media was
gendered in its coverage of female politicians, as women politicians were
often portrayed negatively. However, about 43.0 per cent said there was
147
Eshiet: Gendered Portrayal of Political Actors in Nigerian
no biased reporting. With regard to the medium most culpable of negative
coverage of women’s politician, findings reveal the television (52%) as
the most culpable, followed by the print media (26.0%) and then radio
(22%). However, respondents did not attribute the low participation of
women in politics to the negative media portrayal of female politicians.
About 68.0 per cent said the media portrayal of female politicians is not
the reason for the low participation of women in politics but rather the
marginalisation of women within the political space.
Conclusion
The media is an important tool for changing attitudes and creating new
perceptions. In today’s world, the media has become even more important
in providing knowledge and shaping attitudes, especially with regard to
political behaviour. This study has shown that the portrayal of political
actors in Nigeria by the print media is gendered. This nding corroborates
the ndings of other studies (Braden 1996; Motion1996; Sreberny-
Mohammadi and Ross 1996; Media Monitoring Project 1999; Lawrence
2004; Jenkins 2002) in other parts of the world. The study has further
revealed that public perception including those of women is in support
of this gendered portrayal. The reason for this is not far-fetched. Women
being products of their cultural environment do have images that are in
consonance with prevailing cultural perceptions of women. These images
are further reinforced by the stories in the media as Mervi (2006) observes
that media reports on female politicians are often negative, reecting widely
held stereotypes in society. This probably informs the ndings of the study
that the gendered media portrayal has not inuenced the low participation
of women in politics in Nigeria. However, it is my opinion that the media
can help ameliorate the low participation of women in politics in Nigeria,
due to its enormous power in shaping political behaviour as evidenced
by empirical data (see Kahn 1994; Schmitt-Beck 1996). Therefore, the
Nigerian media report of female politicians should be issue-based, devoid
of trivialisation and sensationalism, as was the case of the female Speaker’s
corruption charge. The media should sensitise the public to the idea that
women’s participation in political life is an essential part of democracy.
Probably with the assistance of the media, more women will encroach
upon the political terrain, thus increasing women’s representation from the
present paltry 6 per cent.
148 Africa Media Review, Volume 21, Numbers 1&2, 2013
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