Domestic Violence and Women of Color: Representations in Contemporary News Media

• In Event: Victimization in the Digital World

Abstract

Prior literature infers that portrayals of female victimization in mass media serve as one of the many factors that contribute to the continued subjugation of women. Citing several problematic elements of violence against women related journalism, critical scholars note that news media often differentially report and represent victimized minority women, compared to their white counterparts. Little research has been done to inquire about this disparity beyond the Black/White racial dichotomy. Thus, the purpose of this paper is to analyze domestic violence victimization, women of color (i.e., Black, Latina, Asian, and Indigenous women), and representations of news media within a single study. Sampling from the most widely circulated newspaper outlets across the United States, this mixed methods content analysis (1) examines the extent to which domestic violence has been captured by U.S. news media from the years 2014 to 2024, and (2) elucidates the implications behind the differential reporting of victimized women of color. Preliminary findings support the prior literature, showcasing that victimized women of color are more often depicted by news media via a less sympathetic, and more critical lens.

Author

• Dominique Austin, John Jay College of Criminal Justice / CUNY Graduate Center