Reproduction of Violence Against Women by Media Selection of Visual Elements

Abstract

The image of women, which is used in the mainstream media, especially in the channels that make news on the internet, is built on the dominant discourse and gender inequality. The inequality in question is reproduced through prejudices against women. When evaluated both in terms of discourse and language and the visuals used in news content, it is seen that the dominant ideological discourse is based on a sexist point of view. Within the scope of our article, between October 2020 and April 2021, the internet news sites of the three largest newspapers in the mainstream media in terms of circulation were examined in terms of the visuals they used in their news of harassment. It has been determined that the majority of the images used in the news of harassment are depicted as passive and helpless in the face of men. While it is observed that the dominant discourse builds the representation of women on "victimization" within the framework of news of harassment and violence, it has been observed that it reproduces this "myth of victimization" with the visuals it uses. In particular, it is seen that the media, as one of the ideological apparatus of the state, infiltrates all areas of society and acts as the carrier of the dominant ideology and as a means of reproduction. Violence, which is seen as one of the means of the sovereign's struggle for power, turns into an ideological pressure as a result of the concepts of persuasion and consent that occur in unequal relations. It is seen that the media is used in the news of violence and harassment. It is seen that the special news is evaluated in terms of their choices and use, and the victim is presented as the victim in violence. The practice of this used image can be devised and designed to fit the target goal.