'Every Gossip Girl has Something to Recall': Representations of Sexual Violence in Russian Digital Tabloids

Abstract

Polina Erofeeva – PhD, teacher, Nizhny Novgorod State Linguistics University, Nizhny Novgorod, Russian Federation. Email: polina.erofeeva@gmail.com

Mass media affects social beliefs about sexual violence. The expansion of digital media featuring user comments has improved our understanding of how consumers of different media vary in their perception of the issue. This article examines representations of sexual violence against women in digital tabloids
as manifested in users’ comments on sexual violence. User comment is conceptualized along the lines of Ibarra’s narrative identity theory. This follows a three-step process of role model participation in identity development: (1) role model selection and prototyping; (2) role model behaviour experimenting and
personalization; (3) internal and external validation of new behaviour among significant others. The process of identity formation takes place within a selfnarrative: a story told to make a point about oneself. Using Ibarra’s framework the article analyses readers’ comments as a form of self-narrative where referencing (commenting) to a role model (the subject of media text) is followed by external validation from other users ('like/dislike'). Spletnik.ru, a Russian digital tabloid targeting a female audience, was selected for empirical exploration. The site has a rather hybrid format, mixing the patriarchal discourses typical of tabloid genres with feminist elements common to women’s magazines. Spletnik.ru provides ample space to observe the interplay between the two discourses in readers’ opinions on sexual violence. We argue that, with its extensive celebrity coverage, Spletnik.ru produces and distributes material for role-model prototyping and self-narrative development. Female readers are able to compare their personal experience with celebrity stories and often approve of public discussion of the issue of sexual violence on the part of celebrities. Yet, readers’ discussions ignore the role of men in preventing sexual violence. The concluding section discusses the potential of female-orientated digital tabloids to change the public
discourse on sexual violence against women in Russia