Download full text
(external source)
Citation Suggestion
Please use the following Persistent Identifier (PID) to cite this document:
https://doi.org/10.17645/mac.v11i1.6056
Exports for your reference manager
Representing Life and Death in Care Institutions: Between Invisible Victims and Suffering Old Women
[journal article]
Abstract The article examines the representation and (in)visibility of ageing people in German care institutions during the Covid-19 pandemic. Within the framework of a qualitative content-analytical and discourse-analytical study of 185 articles, including 108 images from German newspapers, the authors trac... view more
The article examines the representation and (in)visibility of ageing people in German care institutions during the Covid-19 pandemic. Within the framework of a qualitative content-analytical and discourse-analytical study of 185 articles, including 108 images from German newspapers, the authors trace the patterns behind the representation of ageing people. In so doing, they argue that in the media discourse ageing people are often represented without agency and in a strongly homogenised way as “others.” By emphasising pre-existing conditions and vulnerability, older and disabled people appear naturally at risk. The article also problematises the mere counting of life and death in care institutions, which contributes to a naturalisation and symbolic annihilation of the death of ageing people. Furthermore, the authors identify the notion of the suffering old woman as a key figure in pandemic media discourse, performing a critical function. She embodies an appeal to society to show sympathy and solidarity and to act reasonably with respect to the pandemic measures yet contains no elements of discursive agency or personal characteristics beyond that. Additionally, the suffering old woman reinforces traditional patterns of patriarchal representation. The authors conclude that the pandemic has placed the German care crisis in settings of institutionalised geriatric care into the media spotlight. However, the comprehensive inclusion of ageing people has been absent. Emphasising one’s own ability and thus adapting to the midlife years seems to be the only way to precarious inclusion for ageing people in the discourse.... view less
Keywords
Federal Republic of Germany; newspaper; vulnerability; aging; nursing home; elderly; epidemic; nursing care for the elderly; content analysis; image of women
Classification
Media Contents, Content Analysis
Gerontology
Print Media
Free Keywords
Covid-19; German newspapers; agency; institutionalised care; media representation
Document language
English
Publication Year
2023
Page/Pages
p. 163-172
Journal
Media and Communication, 11 (2023) 1
Issue topic
Global Inequalities in the Wake of Covid-19: Gender, Pandemic, and Media Gaps
ISSN
2183-2439
Status
Published Version; peer reviewed