24
ISSUES: Racial & Ethnic Discrimination
Chapter 1: Racism & discrimination
Racist and sexist assumptions endured in UK
media coverage of MalalaYousafzai
A
new study has found that seemingly positive media
coverage of feminist campaigner Malala Yousafzai
is actually full of patronising assumptions about
women in Muslim countries.
The study analysed more than 140,000 words of coverage of
activist Yousafzai in the nine months after she was attacked
by the Pakistani Taleban. It found the fearless and eloquent
campaignerwas reduced toapassive victimby theBritishmedia.
In some cases, she was simply referred to as “Shot Pakistani Girl”.
The study was carried out by Rosie Walters, a postgraduate
researcher at the University of Bristol’s School of Sociology,
Politics and International Studies. She said: “The West has often
been guilty of portraying women in Muslim countries as passive
and as victims. Malala Yousafzai challenges that stereotype in
every way, which is why I wanted to analyse the coverage of her.
“She even said herself that she doesn’t want to be portrayed
as the young woman who was shot by the Taleban, but rather
as the young woman who bravely fought for her rights. Sadly,
the findings of this study show that the British media is far from
granting that request.”
The research, published in
The British Journal of Politics and
International Relations
, used a form of discourse analysis that
analyses thewords andterms associatedwithaparticular subject
(in this case both Malala Yousafzai and her native Pakistan), the
assumptions that have to be made for these associations to
make sense, and the way in which these assumptions position
subjects in relation to one another.
Walters’ research found that in more than 140,000 words in
The Daily Mail
,
The Guardian
,
The Independent
,
The Sun
and
The
Telegraph
, the word feminist was used just twice, and on neither
occasion to refer to Yousafzai, despite her tireless campaigning
for the rights of girls and young women. The underlying
assumption this demonstrates is that a Pakistani woman cannot
be a feminist.
“The coveragepositions theUKas inherently superior toPakistan
because it has supposedly already achieved gender equality,”
saidWalters.
“Yet it simultaneously shows that this is far from true. One article
even advised Yousafzai on how to dress and behave in her new
school inBirminghamso she doesn’t come across as toomuchof
a geek. It seems astonishing that a youngwomanwhohas come
within centimetres of losing her life fighting for her right to an
education is being advised to tone down her ambition, in case it
makes her seemuncool or unattractive to boys.
“If anything, it suggests that Malala Yousafzai has a great deal
she could teach us about fighting to be judged on one’s intellect
and abilities, and not on gender.”
Another interesting contradiction the research identified was in
media coverage of Yousafzai’s move to the UK, and the medical
treatment she received here. While all five newspapers were
quick to express pride in the NHS care that she received, they
were also keen to emphasise that all her expenses would bemet
by the Pakistani Government.
In fact, just two weeks after an article in
The Sun
proclaimed:
“…the NHS should be proud of its success in treating the brave
schoolgirl…”, the tabloid published another article with a
headline “NHS ‘too good to migrants”, claiming many doctors
were refusing to treat people who weren’t British citizens.
Walters said: “The overwhelming outpouring of support and
admiration for Malala Yousafzai in the months after the attack
represented a real opportunity to re-examine some of the
assumptions we make about Muslim women, and also about
the kind of people who migrate to the UK in search of safety.
Unfortunately, it seems that opportunity was missed.”
Although the study focuses on some individual articles to
illustrate wider trends, Walters, whose research on girlhood
and international politics is funded by the Economic and Social
Research Council, was keen to emphasise her study is not a
criticismof journalists.
“The point of the study is not about individuals and the
vocabulary they use. It’s about identifying patterns across many
different texts, which tell us a great deal about how we as a
nation represent ourselves in journalism, and how we represent
other cultures and countries.
“In this case, what it clearly shows is that in our society, it is far
easier to label Malala Yousafzai a ‘victim’ than it is to call her
powerful, a survivor, or even a feminist.”
19May 2016
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The above information is reprinted with kind permission
from the University of Bristol. Please visit
for further information.
©University of Bristol 2017
