Gender violence and the press : the St. Kizito story /

This study examines the print coverage of a crime that occurred in a Kenyan secondary school in July 1991. Male students at the school murdered 19 girls and raped or gang-raped more than 70. The study analyzes how four Kenyan newspapers, three dailies and one weekly, covered the crime during a one-year period. Steeves (Univ. of Oregon) focuses on the role of the media in conducting what she assesses to be a hegemonic process, that is, the process of securing consent for male-dominant or patriarchal views while allowing some openings for challenges to them. The research assumes the significance of mass media as contributors to cultural ideology and describes news as a hegemonic process. The St. Kizito story alone is compelling; the author's thorough analysis of each story, letter, and editorial forces the reader to see and understand the powerful influence the media has in shaping attitudes and perceptions about human experiences. An excellent contribution to the literature on media representations of gender violence and oppression. All collections. J. D. Hamlet; Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania