Publication Type: Proceeding

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Review Method: Peer Reviewed
Abstract: This paper explores how exotic dancers negotiate the presence of female customers in strip clubs, which are conceived of as explicitly male spaces. We conducted ethnographic research at four strip clubs in southern California, employing an active participant researcher role. Drawing on Goffman’s (1959) dramaturgical analysis, particularly his use of “front stage” performance, we observed three main interactional processes through which dancers contend with the participation of female customers in club activities: passing over, sidestaging, and tailoring. We find that women in strip clubs are unable to fully adopt the role of customer because gender remains a master status. The techniques that dancers use in dealing with female customers, combined with the organizational design of the club, prevent women from participating in strip club activities in a way comparable to that of male customers.

Publication Type: Proceeding

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: Media coverage plays a significant role in shaping and reinforcing cultural values and images. Sport coverage has been maintaining gender differentiations by not only reporting about male athletes more often than about female athletes, but also by one-sidedly putting emphasis on attributes like athleticism and physicality when depicting sportsmen. The authors' research examines these patterns by analyzing German newspapers' coverage of sportsmen and -women competing in Biathlon or Cross-country skiing during the 2004/05 season. The results suggest that there is no inherent media bias towards one gender over the other. On the contrary, both genders are covered in a very similar way – both formal and content wise. These findings fortify the assumption that the level of professionalization of a sport affects media attention to a stronger degree than the factor of the athletes' gender.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Review Method: Peer Reviewed
Abstract: How do the media frame the first lady? What are the
effects of this framing on public approval of first ladies? First
ladies receive much attention from the press and public. However, no
political science research has attempted to comprehensively and
systematically categorize and quantify all of the ways in which the
media frame first ladies. Nor has any research mapped the frequency of
these frames onto public approval ratings of first ladies. Studies of
media framing of first ladies ignore effects on public opinion, while
studies of public opinion about first ladies lack attention to the
influence of media framing effects. Part I of this project is a content
analysis of New York Times and Washington Post articles about Barbara
Bush, Hillary Clinton, and Laura Bush. In this section, I code and
categorize all of ways the media frames these first ladies. In
addition, I quantify the frequency of these frames for each individual
first lady. I find that the media frame the First Lady dichotomously,
according to her adherence to or deviation from the roles of “First
Political Partner” and “First Housewife.” When the media discuss her
involvement or lack thereof in administration politics (the “First
Political Partner” frame), they portray her in these more specific
sub-frames: “Co-President” vs. “He’s in Charge”; “Non-Traditional
Political Activist” vs. “Traditional Political Activist”; “Expresses
Personal Viewpoints” vs. “Doesn’t Express Personal Viewpoints”
(including whether her views are the same as the president’s and
whether she will try to influence the president); “Decorative Emissary”
vs. “Substantive Emissary.” And when the press comment on the extent to
which she resemble a traditional wife and mother (the “First Housewife”
frame), they portray her in these more specific sub-frames: “Career:
Kept It Up” vs. “Career: Gave It Up”; “The State of Their Union?”;
“Mistress of Ceremonies” vs. “Ceremonial Activist”; “Public
Housekeeper”; “First Volunteer”; “First Mother”; “Nurturer in Chief”;
and “First Fashion Plate.” Part II tests the following hypotheses: The
higher the frequency of media framing of the first lady as “First
Political Partner,” the more negative her public evaluations will be.
The more she is framed as adhering to the roles of “First Housewife,”
the more favorable her public evaluations will be. This section maps
her public opinion ratings onto the frequencies of the media frames
throughout the entire span of the three presidential administrations.
These data ultimately demonstrate support for the hypotheses. This
project has implications for the fields of media and political
communication and women and politics. First, it contributes to the
debate over “media effects.” This project demonstrates strong, clear
evidence that the media have power to shape public opinion about the
first lady based upon how they frame her. Second, numerous scholars
have deemed the first lady the symbol of American womanhood. Since the
framing analysis shows that she is judged by the extent to which she
adheres to or departs from “traditional” or “activist” duties, and
since the public opinion examination shows Americans still prefer a
traditional first lady, this reveals that a large strand of American
society is still not comfortable with women assuming political roles
and that there is still a tendency to largely evaluate women according
to their involvement in the domestic sphere.