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Investigating the News Media Coverage of People v. Turner

Yerrick, Jayne Marie
http://orcid.org/0000-0002-5960-2220
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ouhonors1650538051314283

Abstract Details

2022, Bachelor of Science of Journalism (BSJ), Ohio University, Journalism.
This article investigates the news coverage of the Stanford, California 2015 rape case People v. Turner. Pulling from five national and two local daily newspapers, I conducted a qualitative thematic analysis of 96 news articles. I examine three questions: (1) How did journalists frame news articles in relation to the rape victim? (2) How did journalists frame news articles in relation to the rapist? (3) How often do rape myths and stereotypes appear in news articles about the case? My analysis reveals that the news coverage of People v. Turner frequently mentioned the victim’s alcohol use when discussing consent and mentioned the perpetrator’s alcohol use when excuses were made for his actions. There was indirect and direct coverage of the excuses made for the perpetrator’s behavior, in addition to frequent mentions of his white privilege and status as a star student and athlete. Finally, the analysis demonstrated that rape myths concerning alcohol use, consent, and the rapist image were presented, endorsed, and rejected in the news coverage of the case. These findings shed light on how victims and perpetrators are framed by news media, and the findings also provide insight into how rape myths are used by news media in sexual assault coverage.
Holly Ningard (Advisor)
81 p.
Journalism; Sociology
rape; sexual assault; Brock Turner; Chanel Miller; Stanford swimmer; news coverage; sexual violence; media; people v. turner

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Yerrick, J. M. (2022). Investigating the News Media Coverage of People v. Turner [Undergraduate thesis, Ohio University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ouhonors1650538051314283

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Yerrick, Jayne. Investigating the News Media Coverage of People v. Turner. 2022. Ohio University, Undergraduate thesis. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ouhonors1650538051314283.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Yerrick, Jayne. "Investigating the News Media Coverage of People v. Turner." Undergraduate thesis, Ohio University, 2022. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ouhonors1650538051314283

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

ouhonors1650538051314283
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This open access ETD is published by Ohio University Honors Tutorial College and OhioLINK.