rhetorical construction of the female politician in newspapers: How national newspapers portrayed Katherine Harris and Hillary Clinton during controversial times

This essay examines rhetoric regarding Katherine Harris and Hillary Clinton published in three national newspapers during a critical point in each woman's political career. By using the methods of content analysis and feminist rhetorical critique, it was found that national newspapers construct an image of political women as power-hungry "bitches" with poor taste in fashion who are accustomed to getting what they want and will stop at nothing to do so. Thus, it appears that patriarchal biases continue to shape the foundation of political reporters. Given that most Americans gather their knowledge of politics through the media, this thesis argues that the messages in these newspapers may have an effect on the public's opinions of the qualifications for women in the political arena.