Examining Girls’ Violence in Canadian and American News Media Between 2000 and 2020

• In Event: Media Depictions of Crime Perpetration: Bias, Stereotypes, and Trends

Abstract

This qualitative grounded theory study explores news coverage of violent girls in top circulating American and Canadian print-media outlets. The purpose of this study is to better understand how media frames girls’ violence and aggression over time. We applied a qualitative multi-case study design and retrieved print-media articles published between January 2000 and December 2020 in top circulating paid daily newspapers and weekly news magazines. We chose a purposeful sample of news outlets with high circulation rates to reflect the potentially significant impact of the stories on the opinions of the American and Canadian news-consuming public. Building on previous research that explores the emergence of the moral panic of girls' violence in the 1980s and 1990s, particularly girls in gangs, the current research uncovers cultural shifts in gender roles and expectations. Beginning in the early 2000s, the portrayal of girls’ violence shifted to a concern about suburban girls’ violence committed by seemingly innocent white girls. This study adds to the research on portrayals of girls’ violence in Canada and the United States, while also providing nuance to existing international research on girls’ violence as it shifts throughout modern history.

Authors

• Jennifer Silcox, King's University College at Western University

• Tia Andersen, University of South Carolina

• Hannah Jane Walsh, Queen's University