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20 Criminology, Crim. Just. L & Soc'y 80 (2019)
Media Messages Surrounding Missing Women and Girls: The "Missing White Woman Syndrome" and Other Factors That Influence Newsworthiness

handle is hein.journals/wescrim20 and id is 310 raw text is: VOLUME2O, ISSUE 3, PAGES 80-102 (2019) Criminology, Criminal Justice, Law & Society E-ISSN 2332-886X Available online at https :iischolasticah .com/ciininology-criminal-justice-law-societv/ Media Messages Surrounding Missing Women and Girls: The Missing White Woman Syndrome and Other Factors that Influence Newsworthiness Danielle C. Slakoff a Henry F. Fradellab a Loyola University New Orleans b Arizona State University ABSTRACT AND ARTICLE INFORMATION An analysis of news articles reveals a consistent trend: Missing White women and children are more likely to garner media attention than missing minority women. The glorification of missing White women and children has been dubbed the Missing White Woman Syndrome. Despite the popularity of this concept, few scholars have examined the differential representation given to missing White and minority women and girls in the news media. This content analysis explores whether the Missing White Woman Syndrome exists in print media and examines which other factors-including age, job status, and motherhood status-influence story narratives. While missing White women and children were overrepresented in the news and more likely to receive repeated coverage, the researchers found the media used a Black missing woman or girl's legitimate job status to humanize her. Indeed, stories about missing women and children were significantly impacted by the missing person's age and job status, and the media described some missing women and girls as innocent while others were described in a salacious manner. The implications of the Missing White Woman Syndrome's existence for theory and professional practice in journalism and criminal justice, as well as those for justice policy, are discussed. Article History: Received July 5, 2019 Received in revised form September 4, 2019 Accepted September 25, 2019 Keywords: missing white woman syndrome, black feminist theory, media issues, race in mass media, missing persons © 2019 Criminology, Criminal Justice, Law & Society and The Western Society of Criminology Hosting by Scholastica. All rights reserved. Corresponding author: Danielle Slakoff, PhD, Loyola University New Orleans, 6363 St. Charles Ave Campus Box 55 New Orleans, LA, 70118, USA. Email: dcslakof kloyno.edu CRIMINOLOGY, CRIMINAL JUSTICE, LAW & SOCIETY

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