Analysing local newspaper coverage of murders involving street sex workers

ABSTRACT

Based on victim hierarchies, news media framing of murdered sex workers is especially pejorative, often shaped by notions of deviant feminine sexuality and sex workers’ social and legal marginalisation. The analysis presented in this article explores these themes by focusing on five murders involving young women linked to sex work in a large town in the North of England. It corroborates themes identified in the previous literature relating to shallow and derogatory framing, as well as the way women are reclaimed as victims via the family trope and notions of community. Lastly, the article explores representational tensions in coverage, between acknowledging victimhood and victims’ place within their communities, whilst also continuing to Other victims.

KEYWORDS:

• Homicide
• street sex work
• newsprint media representation
• local news

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Louise Wattis

Louise Wattis is a senior lecturer in criminology at Teesside University. She is interested in gender, victimisation, and representation and has published widely on the representation of sex workers as murder victims. E-mail: [email protected]