“He will take care of our security better than Her”: Examining socio-cultural conceptions of gender in israeli and american press coverage of female candidates for top political positions, 2008-2009

This study argues that distinct differences between two cultures and two political campaigns, may result in different press coverage of women running for leadership positions. To demonstrate this, we undertook a content analysis of Tzipi Livni’s and Hillary Clinton’s 2008-2009 campaigns in four Israeli and American popular and elite newspapers, examining coverage of nine gender-oriented media frameworks. We found that while the press in both countries strongly emphasized gender-oriented elements in covering the two leaders, the Israeli press was significantly more gender-biased, particularly due to military and religious influences. Additionally, the popular newspapers in both countries were more gender-biased than the elite newspapers, especially in “sensationally” highlighting candidates’ sexuality and appearance.