Analysis of Press Coverage of Feminicide in Mexico: Between Impunity and Machismo

Abstract

According to the Executive Secretariat of the National Public Secu-rity System, between 2015 and 2017, 1,761 suspected cases of feminicide were reported throughout Mexican territory. These murders of women, linked to a culture of machismo, occur within a context where impunity rates have remained consistently high throughout the country’s history. The purpose of this article is to analyze the coverage of feminicide in the Mexican press during the most violent year of President Enrique Peña Nieto’s six-year term, from January 1st to December 31st, 2017. A content analysis was employed to examine a total of 988 journalistic texts on femicide during 2017, encompassing the seven most widely read newspapers in Mexico: La Jornada, El Universal, Milenio, Excélsior, Reforma, El Economista, and El Financiero. The coverage provided by the Mexican press extended beyond reporting on the murders of women, to various aspects related to the phenomenon, including political and governmental actions to address and prevent violence against women (design and implementation of public policies, programs on violence and impunity), social actions and demands (the feminist movement), and the dissemination of research and other content related to cultural and recreational activities. The research reveals a notable diversification in the published content on femicide and a shift in sources, with witnesses, family members of the victims, and perpe-trators no longer serving as the primary sources of information on femicide.