Abstract:
During the term of President Rodrigo Duterte from 2016 to 2022 there has been a spur of
misogynist attacks against women in general. One of the fields of women greatly affected by this
is women in the media because their coverage played a critical role in the relationship with the
state. The research focused on assessing how women journalists dealt with misogynist political
pressure in their media coverage under the Duterte administration by utilizing Steiner’s Feminist
Media Theory (2014) and Mills’ Model on Sexism (2008). The frameworks use lie in the
assumption that existing patriarchal society affects the culture that shapes the stereotypes against
women. In the field of media, feminists push back against the patriarchal structure by giving
women more opportunities and platforms to have a better understanding of the plight of the
marginalized.
A qualitative research design was used and employed key-informant interviews with
women journalists to gain in-depth information on their jobs as fourth estate during the Duterte
administration. Drawing from the literature, the researchers confirmed that the existing
patriarchal culture in the Philippines contributed to the misogyny women journalists are facing
but was strengthened during the Duterte administration because as the highest position holder in
the Philippines, his remarks are powerful enough to influence the Filipino people. The research
found that the misogynist political pressure both mainstream and alternative women journalists
experienced affected their coverages. Some women journalists opted to resort to collective
debriefing while other journalists continue to engage in adversarial writing.
