An analysis of headlines about occupational sexism in tabloids and broadsheets: focus on stylistic features and news values

In Great Britain, the press system is divided into two different categories: tabloids, which have always addressed a popular target (e.g. the Daily Express and The Sun), and broadsheets, known as 'the quality press' (e.g. The Guardian, the Telegraph and The Times). The power of these media consists in the influence they have on audience behaviors and preferences (Bednarek and Caple 2012). In particular, combining news values (i.e. factors that transform an event into a piece of news) and linguistic devices, they can control the readers' emotional reactions. That is why it is interesting to study news values, because in so doing we can understand how topics such as immigration, marriage equality, climate change or sexism are represented in the news and what makes them worthy of being reported (Bednarek and Caple 2017). This dissertation aims to analyze how the news is 'sold' by carrying out a news values analysis within tabloids and broadsheets' headlines. I will focus on headlines because they are interesting both linguistically and discursively. First, they are more visible than other parts of news article and catch the reader's attention by means of keywords and rhetorical strategies. Second, they reflect the power of the media, as explained above. Specifically, I will consider headlines from tabloids and broadsheets dealing with a very controversial and sensitive topic, namely sexism. The investigation will be focused on this argument because it is an underestimated problem. Although it is a vast subject, I will take into account sexism in the job place. I will explore what the main news values are to talk about this topic and how they reflect the tabloids' and broadsheets' approach to this theme.