Silence in Benin: Abortion in the Media before its Legalization
This thesis studies the role of silence and stigma in Beninese media outlets coverage and media-makers’ articulation of Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR), particularly abortion. After encountering many silences around SRHR, abortion in particular became legalized under various circumstances in Benin during the last phase of my thesis. Consequently, my research gained societal and scientific relevance with Benin being the first West-African state with relatively liberal abortion laws, as my thesis researched abortion in the media before its legalization. I found that silence, shame, and stigma are intertwined and not studied separately throughout my research. Together, they contribute significantly to a certain discourse that tends to restrict girls’ and women’s choices and behaviours. This study argues that the media is a place for opinions, information, and political normativities. Moreover, the media in SRHR is a biopolitical tool controlling the population’s knowledge, (re)producing and legitimizing the existing discourse of silence, shame and stigma with many harmful consequences for girls and women’s health. Additionally, knowledge about the existing public debates, discourses and attitudes of media-makers around abortion provide meticulous insights into the impact of the media and can result in more informed decisions, interventions and generally better-applied messages in the Beninese media.
Silence in Benin: Abortion in the Media before its Legalization
This thesis studies the role of silence and stigma in Beninese media outlets coverage and media-makers’ articulation of Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR), particularly abortion. After encountering many silences around SRHR, abortion in particular became legalized under various circumstances in Benin during the last phase of my thesis. Consequently, my research gained societal and scientific relevance with Benin being the first West-African state with relatively liberal abortion laws, as my thesis researched abortion in the media before its legalization. I found that silence, shame, and stigma are intertwined and not studied separately throughout my research. Together, they contribute significantly to a certain discourse that tends to restrict girls’ and women’s choices and behaviours. This study argues that the media is a place for opinions, information, and political normativities. Moreover, the media in SRHR is a biopolitical tool controlling the population’s knowledge, (re)producing and legitimizing the existing discourse of silence, shame and stigma with many harmful consequences for girls and women’s health. Additionally, knowledge about the existing public debates, discourses and attitudes of media-makers around abortion provide meticulous insights into the impact of the media and can result in more informed decisions, interventions and generally better-applied messages in the Beninese media.
