Disbelief and counter-voices: a thematic analysis of online reader comments about sexual harassment and sexual violence against women

ABSTRACT

Research about online comment fields on news websites tends to foreground their potential for deliberative discussions whilst little attention is given to the ways these spaces reinforce existing gender inequalities. This study analyses online newspaper comments on articles about gender based violence to establish whether the historic marginalisation of women within public discussions is being reasserted online. Using thematic analysis, this study found that responses were characterised by disbelief. Posters questioned the type and nature of evidence that had been provided, they questioned whether these problems resulted from sexism and they questioned the feminist agenda behind the blogs. While voices expressing disbelief were dominant, there were counter-voices attempting to critique the scepticism by advocating for the importance of the lived experience women and girls. The study demonstrates that online comments on news websites operate as gendered spaces that can marginalise women from the public discussion of social problems.

KEYWORDS:

• Online comments
• gender
• sexism
• feminism
• sexual violence
• public sphere

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Emily Harmer

Dr Emily Harmer is a Lecturer in Media at the University of Liverpool. Her research explores the relationship between gender, media and politics. She is the co-editor of Online othering: Exploring digital violence and discrimination on the web [email: [email protected]].

Sarah Lewis

Dr Sarah Lewis is an independent scholar who researches digital health, gender and online methods [email: [email protected]].