Australian Media Messages: Critical Discourse Analysis of Two Intimate Homicides Involving Domestic Violence

Abstract

This study uses critical discourse analysis to examine news reporting of two cases of intimate partner violence in Australia. The fine-grained analysis of newswriting and news-editing practices focuses particularly on the lexical features and referential strategies used to represent the perpetrator and the victim, the crime, and the location of the crime. Findings show that reporting often omits social context, sensationalizes, and acts to shift blame in ways that do not increase public understanding of the nature of domestic violence. These results build on international findings and add to the evidence base about media reporting of violence against women.