Domestic Violence against Men: The Media Agenda

Abstract

In intimate partner relationships, disagreement and conflict are a reality with each partner a potential perpetrator and victim. These conflicts and disagreement have resulted in what is popularly known as domestic violence. The media as a socializing agency provides a common knowledge to the public on social issues including issues on domestic violence. Based on emphasis placed on issues in the news, the people go beyond mere acquisition of factual information from the news media, to further learn how much importance to attach to such issues. In other words, the news media can set the agenda for the public's attention to that group of issues around which public opinion forms. It is against this back drop that this paper examines media agenda as it concerns domestic violence against men. It goes further to find out what role newspaper reports have played in creating a stereotype of women as victims of domestic violence, and men as the perpetrators. The study finally recommends ways to balance media report of domestic violence, emphasizing the importance of balanced reporting in shaping both individual and public opinion. This study's premise is that domestic violence against men is reported less often than it occurs in the society and this plays a dominant role in establishing the saliency of issues.