Periphery of the peripheries: Women in Al Jazeera Arabic news

In: Journal of applied journalism & media studies, Volume 10, Issue 3, p. 359-379

Abstract

Since its inception in 1996, Al Jazeera has branded itself as an alternative voice in the global media landscape. While scholars argue that Al Jazeera has brought the Global South's voice from the periphery to the centre, there is little scholarship on Al Jazeera's representation of women. Building on intersectionality literature, this article aims to investigate the intersection of gender and geopolitical positionalities in relation to Al Jazeera Arabic's (AJA) representation of the Global South's women. This article concludes that women were minimally represented in AJA news. Interviews and document analysis highlight that the Al Jazeera network does adopt gender-neutral policies on reporting news. By failing to recognize the intersectionality of gender and geopolitical positionality of Global South women, AJA privileges men's experiences and voices and consequently women remain at the periphery of the peripheries in Al Jazeera news. Al Jazeera needs to address this gap through institutional and policy lenses.