Abstract:
Across many areas of the Pakistan, women face obstacles in exercising their agency in the political, social
and economic arena. As the media plays a large role as a socializing agent, cultivating and sustaining the
culture of society, the aim of this research is to analyze the manner in which the idea of feminism is portrayed
in the electronic media, why it is depicted in the manner that it is and what the impact of this representation
has on the masses of the country. This study examines feminism and related cases on the electronic media
using discourse analysis and semi-structured interviews of relevant personnel in the fields of government,
media, civil society and academia. This research finds that the portrayal of feminism, women’s movements
and related cases were depicted in a negative manner with five major themes identified: structure of the talk
shows, female articulation style, male articulation style, socio-religious paradigms, and perpetuation of
traditional stereotypes. The prejudice of the portrayal of feminism and related cases/incidents heavily impact
the perception of the notion on society which in turn aggravates and sustains the gender inequality present in
the country. Initiatives must be taken at both public and private levels in order to create a safer community
for women which increases their agency and opportunities.
