Douglas College SOCI 2240: Women in Society Media Analysis Report

This report presents a media analysis of an article by Gaby Hinsliff, focusing on gender equality in the workplace. The analysis examines the article's summary, main themes, and sociological perspectives, particularly addressing the pay gap and the importance of respect and recognition for women. The report highlights the historical context of gender inequality, the impact of sexism, and the evolution of women's rights in the workplace. It references key figures and examples from the article to support the analysis, concluding with the need for societal change and equal treatment. The report also answers questions related to the article's message, title, credibility, and target audience, reflecting on the significance of the media's role in shaping public perception of gender-related issues. The student demonstrates an understanding of gender bias and its impact on women in society.

Running head: MEDIA ANALYSIS
MEDIA ANALYSIS
Name of the student:
Name of the university:
Author note:

1MEDIA ANALYSIS
Workplace gender equality is when people regardless of gender are able to access and
enjoy the same opportunities, resources and rewards (Beronio, Skopec & Glied, 2014). Today
there are many countries that have shown significant progress towards the gender equality in past
few decades specifically in education, health and female workforce. The aim of the essay is to
analyses the media which in paper is the analysis of an article. The article is based on gender
equality at workplace that is written by Gaby Hinsliff. The paper discusses the summary of the
article followed by identification of theme and sociological perspective.
The article ‘Gender equality at work is a matter of respect, not just money’ is written by
The Guardian columnist Gaby Hinsliff. The author writes about the sexism that still lingers
heavily on every aspects of society. The author says that it is not just money that women seek
through equal pay but it is respect that is the main concern. Since there is a direct relation
between a person’s salary and the person’s social status the debate is in the same accordance
(Stevens, Browne & Graham, 2013). It took a very long time to reach to this point where women
are getting salaries that are only satisfactory however they are still lower when compared to the
other male employees. Therefore, after pulling the women salaries close to the amount of male
employees it was necessary to demand for recognition. It is not about money and it has never
been about money. Money is only a factors that is used to understand the existing difference that
the society has created between the two genders (Andersen et al., 2013). The existing sexism is
often measured and identified through the remuneration offered to women. Giving the example
of Carrie Gracie, the author showed the way she has been insulted by the company. The whole
debate of equal pay is that it is the respect and recognition that women want and know that they
are as good as anyone else. Giving the companies same amount of work like other male
employee and yet not receiving the equal salary gives out the message that women are disposable

2MEDIA ANALYSIS
and they are not necessarily required. It is even mortifying to go public about being underpaid
along with other mental pressures such as stress, self-doubt, low self-esteem and forces to
wonder the lacks one might be possessing. The article mentions about Helena Morrissey who
tells women to get better at asking money for the work they do. The old days are not dead
however it is rare and women need to stand for their rights. There are several things that does
unwitting discrimination between women and men. Lastly, the main point that the article give
out is the fact that the determinant of salary should be only on skills, talent and qualification and
not gender, race or any other prejudice.
The theme of the article was emphasizing on the pay gap that is existing in the society.
When the theme is seen from a broader lens, it is perceived how the women are given the lower
status compared to men. Women are seen inferior and often seen working best only as
homemaker (de Oliveira et al., 2014). The notion of women depending of men is not dead till
now and therefore when a men is given a certain amount of salary it is assumed as the main
source of income in a family. Unlike the same way the salary paid to women is seen a pin
money. The entire article was based on women, women rights and inequalities faced by the
women in the society.
The story gives out several examples such as the Barbara Castle, Carrie Gracie, Helena
Morrissey and few more to show that improvements chronologically. The article has shown
several ways through which women face gender inequalities in the society. The fact that it is not
about money but respect and recognition is a fact that needed to be highlighted for the society as
often the money is seen as the major significance however it is important to understand that
money is underlined by several social injustice and prejudices faced by women.

3MEDIA ANALYSIS
The article can be considered as the mark of progress for the fact it has addressed the
present state of women. Along with the inequalities faced by women, it has also identified that
the situation of women has become little better than how it was 60 years ago. It has provided
insights regarding the present state as well as provided information that should be adopted by
women. The article has shown how women are often over pressurized and how women’s
decisions are shaped by the gender bias norms and regulations.
The reason was I drawn towards to this particular article was for the question that has
always been in me about equal salary. The question is in regard to the salary that is why is it so
hard to accept that women’s salary can be the main source of income in the house. Since I have a
keen interest in sociology I was already familiar with the topic however the article has helped be
gain more information.
Gender bias is a major issue in society and it is reflected in various way. In the same way,
the equal pay is also a reflection of the gender inequality. In the end, it can be concluded that the
article was a helpful media that helped in gaining the information regarding the gender inequality
existing in the society. There is need for women to act accordingly and it is even for the society
to treat women equally.

4MEDIA ANALYSIS
References:
Andersen, S., Ertac, S., Gneezy, U., List, J. A., & Maximiano, S. (2013). Gender,
competitiveness, and socialization at a young age: Evidence from a matrilineal and a
patriarchal society. Review of Economics and Statistics, 95(4), 1438-1443.
Beronio, K., Po, R., Skopec, L., & Glied, S. (2014). Affordable Care Act will expand mental
health and substance use disorder benefits and parity protections for 62 million
Americans. Mental Health, 2.
de Oliveira, S. F., de Lima Cardoso, K. R., de Almeida, C. A. P., Cardoso, L. R., & Gutfilen, B.
(2014). Violence against women: profile of the aggressors and victims and
characterization of the injuries. A forensic study. Journal of forensic and legal
medicine, 23, 49-54.
Gaby Hinsliff, 2018, Gender equality at work is a matter of respect, not just money, The
Gardian. Retrieved from:
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/feb/02/gender-equality-work-respect-
money
Stevens, J., Browne, G., & Graham, I. (2013). Career in mental health still an unlikely career
choice for nursing graduates: A replicated longitudinal study. International Journal of
Mental Health Nursing, 22(3), 213-220.

5MEDIA ANALYSIS
Part 2
Question 1. What was the main message the article wanted to convey? State in brief.
Answer: The main purpose of the article is to establish the point regarding equal pay at
workplace. The significance of equal pay is that it is associated respect, recognition and
social status even when Barbara Castle nudged into creating the Equal pay act.
Question 2. How well the title of the article fit with the article? Give reason.
Answer: The author writes about the sexism that is existing on every aspects of society and in the
corporate world. The author says that it is not just money that women seek through equal
pay but it is respect that is the main concern and the main idea is clearly explained in the
title.
Question 3. What are the information regarding pay gap that developed the credibility of the
article?
Answer: The information drawn from history such as the stories of women who fought sexism
helped develop the credibility of the article. The way Carrie Gracie, Helena Morrissey inspired
women think differently made the article’s credibility strong.
Question 4. Which paragraph was the most suitable as per the current age and which paragraph
was obsolete (if there are any, considering the gender aspect)?
Answer: there is not paragraph that is obsolete. The paragraph beginning with “Half a century on
from the Dagenham strike, the overt discrimination of the 60s isn’t quite dead but it’s
rare…” is one of the paragraph that says about the present situation of women.
Question 5. Who do you think the audience is?

6MEDIA ANALYSIS
Answer: the audience is mostly for the corporate workers who need to know what changes
should be bought and what are the issues women face due to unequal pay gap.