The Persistence of Misogyny: From the Streets, to Our Screens, to the White House

Abstract

In the introduction, the book’s editors introduce the topic of mediated misogyny. They begin with a brief analysis of the 1913 Women’s Suffrage March and the 2016 U.S. presidential election as a way to contextualize the current moment of misogyny. They do this with a specific focus on how Trump uses media and Twitter to target, humiliate, and harass women. The chapter outlines how mass media, including advertising, film, journalism, and television, have a long history of marginalizing and trivializing women’s roles in society through the objectification and sexualization of their bodies. This provides context for analyzing how the Internet contributes to ongoing harassment of women. They identify the gendered nature of women’s online experiences and examine trends in gender-based harassment. The chapter also introduces the aims and scope of the book alongside some key takeaways.