Midwest

These are Gender Checks of two sites from the Midwest — St. Louis Post-Dispatch and St. Louis Beacon.

Gender check: 8/11/11 – Midwest

Jasmine R. LinabaryLeave a comment

*Gender Checks are quick examinations of gender representation in individual news articles for the purpose of discovering trends over time. Click here to read more.

Website: St. Louis Post-Dispatch(stltoday.com)

"Congressional pages from St. Louis area lament passing of the program" - Stltoday.com, 8/11/2011

On Stltoday.com, one of the lead articles featured on the home page as of 10:15 a.m. (PDT) Thursday, Aug. 11, was titled “Congressional pages from St. Louis area lament passing of the program.” Its subject was the end of the U.S. House of Representatives’ page program.

Here is its gender breakdown:

–Author: Male

–Human sources (listed in order mentioned):

  1. Male, house page
  2. Female, widow of former U.S. representative (later noted then she succeeded him)
  3. Male, U.S. representative
  4. Male, first appointed African-American page
  5. Female, former page (college junior)
  6. Female, page (high school junior)
  7. Male, page (high school senior)


Website: St. Louis Beacon

On the St. Louis Beacon, one of the lead articles featured on the home page as of 10:15 a.m. (PDT) Thursday, Aug. 11, was titled “A year out, political attacks focus on image — not issues.” Its subject was election campaigns and attacks on the images of candidate and incumbents.

Here is its gender breakdown:

–Author: Female

–Human sources  (listed in order mentioned):

  1. Unknown, top local party official
  2. Male, political science professor
  3. Female, U.S. senator
  4. Male, U.S. representative
  5. Male, unnamed spokesman for lieutenant governor
  6. Male, unnamed spokesman for St. Louis business man (potential candidate)

Notes/analysis: The story also included quotes from releases from political groups.

Gender check: 8/4/11 – Midwest

Jasmine R. LinabaryLeave a comment

*Gender Checks are quick examinations of gender representation in individual news articles for the purpose of discovering trends over time. Click here to read more.

Website: St. Louis Post-Dispatch (stltoday.com)

On Stltoday.com, one of the lead articles featured on the home page as of 10:30 a.m. (PDT) Thursday, Aug. 4, was titled “Justice Department files MSD settlement.” Its subject was a settlement requiring the sewer district to make “extensive” improvements.

Here is its gender breakdown:

–Author: Male

–Human sources (listed in order mentioned):

  1. Female, spokeswoman for attorney general

Notes/analysis: The article also cites two spokesmen who declined to comment.

Website: St. Louis Beacon

St. Louis Beacon, 8/4/2011

On the St. Louis Beacon, one of the lead articles featured on the home page as of 10:30 a.m. (PDT) Thursday, Aug. 4, was titled “Students make gains in MAP scores, but schools still fall far short of leaving no child behind.” Its subject was education officials responses to test results.

Here is its gender breakdown:

–Author: Male

–Human sources (listed in order mentioned):

  1. Female, assistant commissioner for the office of quality schools
  2. Male, U.S. Education Secretary
  3. Female, a school district’s executive director of assessment
  4. Male, superintendent
  5. Male, coordinator for grants

Notes/analysis: The article includes two mugshots — one of a male and one of a female source.

Gender check: 7/28/11 – Midwest

Jasmine R. LinabaryLeave a comment

*Gender Checks are quick examinations of gender representation in individual news articles for the purpose of discovering trends over time. Click here to read more.

Website: St. Louis Post-Dispatch(stltoday.com)

“Missing inmate went through unlocked gate, scaled fence to escape St. Louis jail,” Stltoday.com, 7/28/2011

On Stltoday.com, one of the lead articles featured on the home page as of 8:45 a.m. (PDT) Thursday, July 28, was titled “Missing inmate went through unlocked gate, scaled fence to escape St. Louis jail.” Its subject was a man who escaped the city jail.

Here is its gender breakdown:

–Author: Female

–Human sources  (listed in order mentioned):

  1. Male, city hall operations director

Notes/analysis: Photos with this story were by a male photographer.


Website: St. Louis Beacon

On the St. Louis Beacon, one of the lead articles featured on the home page as of 8:45 a.m. (PDT) Thursday, July 28, was titled “Congress lurches toward endgame compromise if competing plans fail.” Its subject was the status and opinion on the two competing plans regarding the “debt ceiling crisis.”

Here is its gender breakdown:

–Author: Male

–Human sources  (listed in order mentioned):

  1. Male, U.S. senator (D)
  2. Female, U.S. representative (R)
  3. Male, U.S. representative (R)
  4. Female, U.S. senator (D)
  5. Male, U.S. senator (R)
  6. Male, U.S. senator (D)

Notes/analysis: The story includes four mug shots — two of females and two of males.

Gender check: 7/21/11 – Midwest

Jasmine R. LinabaryLeave a comment

*Gender Checks are quick examinations of gender representation in individual news articles for the purpose of discovering trends over time. Click here to read more.

Website: St. Louis Post-Dispatch (stltoday.com)

On Stltoday.com, one of the lead articles featured on the home page as of 11:10 a.m. (PDT) Thursday, July 21, was titled “5-year-old fatally shot by brother, 10, in Belleville.” Its subject was the death of a 5-year-old boy by gunshots, the third fatal shooting involving a child recently in the area (all accidental).

Here is its gender breakdown:

–Author: Male

–Human sources  (listed in order mentioned):

  1. Male, police chief
  2. Male, police captain
  3. Female, grandmother of the boys
  4. Male, neighbor

Notes/analysis: The boys’ mother declined to comment.


Website: St. Louis Beacon

St. Louis Beacon, 7/21/11

On the St. Louis Beacon, one of the lead articles featured on the home page as of 1:10 a.m. (PDT) Thursday, July 21, was titled “Republican legislators announce deal that could affect China hub effort.” Its subject was a deal reached on economic development that also affects the state’s tax credit programs.

Here is its gender breakdown:

–Author: Female

–Human sources  (listed in order mentioned):

  1. Male, spokesman (unnamed) for governor
  2. Male, state House speaker
  3. Male, state representative
  4. Male, chief executive of chamber of commerce and industry
  5. Male, chief executive of regional chamber and growth association

Notes/analysis: The article contains two mug shots, both of males. It also has an image from a press conference where the majority visible are male. As we’ve pointed out before, the majority of those in leadership in the Missouri Legislature are male. At last count, the state’s House of Representatives had 23 women and 34 men. Eight of the 34 members of the state’s Senate were female.

Gender Check: 7/14/11 – Midwest

Jasmine R. LinabaryLeave a comment

*Gender Checks are quick examinations of gender representation in individual news articles for the purpose of discovering trends over time. Click here to read more.

Website: St. Louis Post-Dispatch (stltoday.com)

On Stltoday.com, one of the lead articles featured on the home page as of 8 a.m. (PST) Thursday, July 14, was titled “Federal agents seize 2,300 pounds of pot from truck near Pacific.” Its subject was marijuana in a secret compartment of a tractor trailer parked on the side of the interstate.

Here is its gender breakdown:

–Author: Female

–Human sources (listed in order mentioned):

  1. Male, spokesman with U.S. Immigration and Customs agency

Notes/analysis: This was a developing story.

Website: St. Louis Beacon

On the St. Louis Beacon, one of the lead articles featured on the home page as of 8 a.m. (PST) Thursday, July 14, was titled “Crack cocaine offenders may get early release; neighborhoods hope to avoid reentry problems.” Its subject was a plan to ease sentences of some inmates with crack cocaine sentences.

Here is its gender breakdown:

–Author: Male

–Human sources (listed in order mentioned):

  1. Male, professor
  2. Female, district judge
  3. Male, chief probation officer
  4. Female, associate professor
  5. Male, resident
  6. Male, alderman
  7. Female, resident
  8. Male, federal parole officer

Notes/analysis: The article also contains several of mug shots of sources — two of women and one of a man.