Missing white woman syndrome
Term for increased media coverage / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dear Wikiwand AI, let's keep it short by simply answering these key questions:
Can you list the top facts and stats about Missing white woman syndrome?
Summarize this article for a 10 year old
Missing white woman syndrome is a term used by social scientists[1][2][3] and media commentators to denote disproportionate media coverage, especially on television,[4] of missing-person cases toward white females compared to those males or females of color. The syndrome also encompasses disproportionate media attention to females who are young, attractive, white, and upper middle class.[5][6][7] Although the term was coined in the context of missing-person cases, it is sometimes used of coverage of other violent crimes. The phenomenon has been highlighted in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, and other predominantly white countries, as well as South Africa.[8][9]
Despite the popularity of the term "Missing White Woman Syndrome", there is little empirical evidence to demonstrate its existence.[10] According to a 2019 study, gender is a significant factor in media coverage of missing person cases. Female victims are more often receive coverage overall, and national and out-of-state attention is even more skewed towards women. The 2019 study also found missing person cases involving White people received more media attention than those involving Black people.[10] However, the authors also reported that non-black women of color (such as Asian and Latina women) are just as over-represented as white women in news coverage, suggesting that the racial factor of "missing white woman syndrome" is mainly a function of the under-representation of black women in media cases.[11] Analysis has also found that missing women are twelve times more likely than missing men to receive attention in Louisiana, despite men and women going missing at similar rates nationally.[12]
The phenomenon has led to a number of tough-on-crime measures, mainly on the political right, that were named for white women who disappeared and were subsequently found harmed.[13][14] In addition to race and class, factors such as supposed attractiveness, body size, and youthfulness have been identified as unfair criteria in the determination of newsworthiness in coverage of missing women.[15] News coverage of missing black women was more likely to focus on the victim's problems, such as abusive boyfriends, criminal history, or drug addiction, while coverage of white women often tended to focus on their roles as mothers, daughters, students, and contributors to their communities.[16]