The method of content analysis is useful in this study because it shows the evolution of the way in which news media has approached the discourse of sexual violence over time, starting five years before the popularization of the #MeToo movement through five years after its rise. The sampling frame I used is news articles published by the New York Times over the time period of 2012 through 2022. The purpose of using this time period is to examine if and how the New York Times’ portrayal of sexual violence has changed over a period of ten years, with the #MeToo movement occurring in the middle of the time period in 2017. The research is also relevant in today’s cultural climate because more women, as well as men, are coming forward to share their experiences with sexual assault, sexual harassment, and other forms of sexual misconduct. The #MeToo movement was an impetus for a greater discourse surrounding the topic, which is why it is being used as the independent variable within this analysis. Using the New York Times as the unit of observation will reveal any changes in language and volume of reporting on incidents of sexual misconduct.
Sampling Method
I used the method of convenience sampling to collect 55 news articles from the New York Times, with five articles from each year within the sampling frame. I used Google News to collect the data sample database of articles. This was the best search engine for my project because it allowed for the filtering of articles by news site and time period. I used Google News to search the term “sexual misconduct” and narrowed the search to “site:nytimes.com” so that all of the articles I sourced were from the New York Times. Then, I used the “Tools” option and created a “Custom Range” for each individual year between 2012 and 2022. I selected five articles that fit within the sampling frame from each year. This process yielded 55 data items as a sample of articles discussing the topic of sexual misconduct from 2012 to 2022 in the New York Times.
Coding
Each article was both quantitatively and qualitatively coded in accordance with the codesheet. Through a quantitative approach, I examined how the article was presented in terms of frequency of word usage (#MeToo, sexual assault, victim, survivor, etc), description of legal action, and details of the misconduct itself. This included whether or not the perpetrator(s) and/or victim(s) were named, their gender, and if the perpetrator held a position of power at the time of the misconduct. Through a qualitative approach, I examined how the article was presented in terms of visual imagery, linguistic depiction of survivor and perpetrator, and tone of quotations included in the reporting.