Representation of Women in Nigerian Political News: Analysis of Online Newspapers

In the 21st century, women in Nigeria still face challenges in politics both in the local and national offices. In a world where media is one of the most important agencies of identity construction and representation, it is important to study how the media represents women in Nigeria. This thesis looks at the representation of the women in Nigerian political news during the general election in 2015. The Guardian and Vanguard online newspapers have been reviewed covering the period of February to April 2015. In doing so, the study employs textual analysis from a gender perspective to analyze and understand the approaches used by the media. The finding reveals that, in political news in Nigerian online newspapers women are marginalized and represented only with “supportive” roles. Women stories mostly covered if the news portrays women under the shadow of men; as wives or/and mother. The study concludes that the online print media in Nigeria portray politics as a male dominated sphere. The study points out the need for a change in the media coverage of the women stories and news in Nigerian political news, for the benefit of the society. Keywords: political news, online newspaper, Nigeria, Women, Representation, media coverage, general elections.