Arts, Faculty of
Journalism, Writing, and Media, School of
DSpace
UBCV
Ariffin, Nurul Ashiqin
Master of Journalism - MJ
University of British Columbia
This study addresses media representations of women politicians during the Malaysian 15th General Election (GE15) of 2022, examining how two of Malaysia's biggest news media framed female candidates and how gender intersects with political partisanship and new media. Previous studies cite biased coverage of women politicians in Malaysia due to Malaysia being a patriarchal society. Religious-culture beliefs and gender stereotyping create barriers to women accessing leadership in politics. Media prefer to associate female politicians with their male relatives, rather than viewing them as individual beings. This study analyzes how and in what way gender and political loyalty influence media narratives, as well as how gender stereotypes persist in news coverage. The study employs quantitative and qualitative content analysis of Malaysiakini (an independent news source) and The Star Online (a politically aligned news source) news articles. Data were collected from online news portals for a month before and after the election (October 19 to December 19, 2022), capturing campaign and post-election reporting. 285 articles were coded using a 17-question coding booklet and analyzed using SPSS. These main results replicate previous coverage of English language media, specifically in the repetition of gender stereotypes and the use of positive frames, a phenomenon also observed in Malaysiakini’s reporting during the 2018 election. This echoes the double bind identified in Western studies, where women in politics often face contradictory expectations. This research contributes to the existing literature by demonstrating the presence of gender stereotypes in both news outlets examined, while notably identifying a greater use of neutral frames in one. This suggests a more objective outlook, which fosters a more level playing field in the portrayal of female politicians within the larger political discourse.
FAMILY APPENDAGES OR FEMINIST POSSIBILITIES? A FRAMING ANALYSIS OF FEMALE CANDIDATES IN THE 2022 GENERAL ELECTIONS (GE15) IN MALAYSIAKINI AND THE STAR ONLINE by Nurul Ashiqin Ariffin M.A in General Journalism, Istanbul University, 2019 A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF JOURNALISM in The Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA (Vancouver) April 2025 © Nurul Ashiqin Ariffin, 2025 The following individuals certify that they have read, and recommend to the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies for acceptance, the thesis entitled: Family appendages or feminist possibilities? A framing analysis of female candidates in the 2022 General Elections (GE15) in Malaysiakini and The Star Online submitted by Nurul Ashiqin Ariffin in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Journalism in Journalism Examining Committee: Mary Lynn Young, Professor, School of Journalism, Writing, and Media, UBC Supervisor Kai Ostwald, Associate Professor, Department of Political Science, UBC Co-supervisor ⅱ Abstract This study addresses media representations of women politicians during the Malaysian 15th General Elections (GE15) of 2022, examining how two of Malaysia's biggest news media framed female candidates and how gender intersects with political partisanship and new media. Previous studies cite biased coverage of women politicians in Malaysia due to Malaysia being a patriarchal society. Religious-culture beliefs and gender stereotyping create barriers to women accessing leadership in politics. Media prefer to associate female politicians with their male relatives, rather than viewing them as individual beings. This study analyzes how and in what way gender and political loyalty influence media narratives, as well as how gender stereotypes persist in news coverage. The study employs quantitative and qualitative content analysis of Malaysiakini (an independent news source) and The Star Online (a politically aligned news source) news articles. Data were collected from online news portals for a month before and after the election (October 19 to December 19, 2022), capturing campaign and post-election reporting. 285 articles were coded using a 17-question coding booklet and analyzed using SPSS. These main results replicate previous coverage of English language media, specifically in the repetition of gender stereotypes and the use of positive frames, a phenomenon also observed in Malaysiakini’s reporting during the 2018 election. This echoes the double bind identified in Western studies, where women in politics often face contradictory expectations. This research contributes to the existing literature by demonstrating the presence of gender stereotypes in both news outlets examined, while notably identifying a greater use of neutral frames in one. This suggests a more objective outlook, which fosters a more level playing field in the portrayal of female politicians within the larger political discourse. ⅲ Lay Summary This study examines the media coverage of female politicians during Malaysia’s 15th General Elections (GE15) in 2022, specifically how two prominent journalism organizations framed female candidates in the lead-up and immediately following the election, and the common news framing applied during the election cycle. With Malaysian electoral authoritarianism, media ownership tended to be related to political parties, except for some alternative media. Analysing the framing of news coverage by Malaysiakini and The Star Online revealed that both outlets showed persistence of gender stereotypes, even though both outlets dedicated significant time and space to cover female politicians’ political agenda. Stereotypes such as family appendages and emphasis on background, education, and marital status were perpetuated by both outlets. This suggests that while there is some progress within Malaysian media that supports gender equality, the media industry still has a long way to go to do female politicians any justice in their reporting. ⅳ Preface Throughout my research and thesis writing, and with the approval of my supervisor, I utilized ChatGPT 4.5, Gemini, Microsoft Co-pilot and Grammarly as tools to help me brainstorm ideas, clarify complex concepts, and enhance the overall structure of my arguments. Additionally, they assisted in refining my writing by offering suggestions for grammar, style, and coherence. While the GenAI tools served as a valuable supplementary resource, all final interpretations, conclusions, and analyses remain my own, ensuring that the work reflects my original thought process and academic integrity. I did not import any results generated into my thesis or included any sources from GenAI tools but it rather serves as a reference point to see the type of studies that are being cited. All figures and tables are my own work using SPSS and Google Doc. ⅴ Table of contents Abstract........................................................................................................................................................iii Lay Summary.............................................................................................................................................. iv Preface...........................................................................................................................................................v Table of contents..........................................................................................................................................vi List of tables.............................................................................................................................................. viii List of figures...............................................................................................................................................ix Acknowledgements...................................................................................................................................... x Dedication....................................................................................................................................................xi 1. Introduction.............................................................................................................................................. 1 1.1 Research questions............................................................................................................................ 6 2. Literature Review.....................................................................................................................................7 2.1 Gender, media, and election.............................................................................................................. 7 2.2 Media and political environment in Malaysia................................................................................. 11 2.2.1 Malaysian political background............................................................................................. 11 2.2.2 Participation of women in Malaysian politics........................................................................16 2.2.3 Media ownership in Malaysia................................................................................................ 19 2.3 Previous coverage of female politicians in Malaysia..................................................................... 23 2.4 Theoretical framework.................................................................................................................... 27 2.4.1 Framing theory.......................................................................................................................27 2.4.2 Types of framing.................................................................................................................... 30 3. Methodology........................................................................................................................................... 33 3.1 Media Selection for Analysis.......................................................................................................... 34 3.2 Framing and Content Analysis........................................................................................................ 37 3.3 Data Collection and Analysis.......................................................................................................... 39 3.3.1 Coding scheme and process................................................................................................... 41 3.4 Limitations.......................................................................................................................................44 3.4.1 Assessing cultural differences inthe interpretation of the gendered nature of the results.....45 4. Findings...................................................................................................................................................46 4.1 Coverage on female politicians by the news outlets........................................................................46 4.2 Number of female politicians mentioned in news reports...............................................................46 4.3 Common framing of female politicians during GE15..................................................................... 49 4.4 Appendages to family members and reference to gender stereotypes.............................................56 4.5 Mention of male relatives in news articles...................................................................................... 57 4.6 News framing applied to female politicians from different parties.................................................63 5. Discussion................................................................................................................................................66 5.1 The lingering persistence of gender stereotypes..............................................................................68 5.2 Emergence of common news framings............................................................................................69 5.3 The different manifestations of gender stereotypes.........................................................................69 ⅵ 5.4 Framings according to political parties.....................................................................................70 6. Conclusion...............................................................................................................................................72 References................................................................................................................................................... 75 Appendix: Coding booklet.........................................................................................................................88 vii List of tables Table 1:Mainstream media’s ownership and relations to political actors/ parties……………..............….21 Table 2: Table 2: Digital media weekly online reach in Malaysia………………………...……………....35 Table 3:Types of framing and descriptions for coding sheet…………………………..……………….…43 Table 4: Number of female politicians mentioned in Malaysiakini…………………………………...…..46 Table 5: Number of female politicians mentioned in The Star Online……………………………………46 Table 6: Framing of female politicians in Malaysiakini……………..…………………..…………….….50 Table 7: Framing of female politicians in The Star Online Online……………………..……………...….51 Table 8: Reference to gender stereotypes by news outlets……………………………………….……….62 Table 9: Crosstabulation of framing on female politicians and political party…………………………...63 affiliations in Malaysiakini Table 10: Crosstabulation of framing on female politicians and political party……………………….…63 affiliations in The Star Online viii List of figures Figure 1: Percentage of common news framing applied by Malaysiakini and The Star Online…...…….49 Figure 2: The sentiment of news reports by Malaysiakini……..………………………………….…..…..53 Figure 3: The sentiment of news reports by The Star Online………………………..................................53 Figure 4: Mention of male relatives in a news article in Malaysiakini….……………………………..….56 Figure 5 : Mention of male relatives in a news article in The Star Online……………….……………….56 ix Acknowledgements I would like to express my sincere gratitude to my supervisors, Dr Mary Lynn Young and Dr Kai Ostwald, for their guidance, giving me space to learn, and ensuring that I get the best as I embark on my academic journey. The extensive knowledge and experience that both supervisors shared were instrumental in helping me complete my thesis and, most importantly, learn. To Dr. Young, no words can adequately express how much I appreciate the kindness, understanding, and compassion you have shown me throughout our time together. Thank you for showing and inspiring me to pursue my dreams of becoming an educator. Thank you to Dr Ostwald for your time, resource,s and valuable perspectives. United with the same interest, I am always grateful for your constructive feedback. Every single time we got off a call, I was always given a new perspective, which I truly appreciate and will continue to cherish the experience that I gain from working together. Thank you again for your patience in taking me under your supervision. I would also like to express my gratitude to the UBC Journalism faculty members and staff for their endless support throughout this journey. Thank you for consistently ensuring that I maximize my experience here at UBC and for your support whenever I need it. Last but not least, I would not be here if it were not for my husband, family, and friends. Thank you for believing in my craziest and weirdest idea of pursuing another degree, and most importantly in me! Thank you for not giving up on me. ix Dedication I dedicate this thesis to myself, my husband, and my son. I am endlessly thankful to the creator for granting me the will to keep going, and I am proud of myself for taking the time and doing the effort to continue to unlearn some things and learn new stuff during this whole program and ultimately during this thesis writing. I am glad that I did not stop when things got harder or different circumstances arose. For my husband, thank you. Words cannot describe how much I appreciate you, and the way you believe in me is beyond me sometimes, but I truly see it now. Thank you for the constant assurance, support, and endless celebrations of the small wins and strides that I made throughout this journey. I cannot imagine going through this alone. To my son, who is currently nestled in my tummy, your presence is a constant reminder for me to keep going and, truly, a blessing that I am fortunate enough to have during some of the toughest days. I hope you know that you are on my mind, always, when I was finishing my thesis. Thank you for keeping me company by giving me a kick of motivation just when I needed ,it and hopefully, inshaallah, I’ll see you very soon, sayang. This is just the beginning; more to come. I love you both, and thank you for always being there, rain or shine. x 1. Introduction My experience as a journalist in Malaysia covering the 2022 General Election made me realize how far Malaysian society still has to go to achieve gender equality, starting with politics. It dawned on me when I was on the ground, covering one of the political party’s ballot-counting watch parties, that male politicians dominated the environment with few women at election venues. This disparity informed my research interests in how female politicians are represented in Malaysian media. Gender disparities are not new in the country, even though women have been part of political struggles (especially during the nation's establishment and independence from the British), with their means for participation influenced by the expectations of gender roles (Hirschman, 2016; Mohamad, 2018). According to the Global Gender Gap Index 2024, Malaysia has regressed to 114th from 102nd in 2023 out of 146 countries. The evaluation was based on four categories: economic participation and opportunity, educational attainment, health and survival, and political empowerment. For political empowerment, Malaysia ranked 134th between Azerbaijan and Algeria out of 146 countries. Malaysia is among the bottom 20 countries with low female participation in politics, which directly points to the indicators of a lack of equal gender participation in politics at different levels, such as women's representation in parliament and ministerial positions. Gender stereotypes, gender roles, and male dominance are among the common challenges faced by female politicians in Malaysia, leading to the current state of gender imbalance within the country's political scene. The media depiction of female politicians plays a role in these inequalities, as indicated by a number of studies. Few studies, however, have focused solely on questions of gender representations in Malaysian elections. Azmi et al., (2024) studied the political ambitions of Malaysian female politicians and found that participating in a masculine and patriarchal environment, such as Malaysian politics, limited the 1 opportunity for female politicians to achieve success, particularly in leadership positions, but many female politicians remain ambitious to participate in politics. The few that do, found media coverage of female politicians marked by gendered framings such as feminine characteristics assigned to gendered ministerial portfolios such as women’s welfare and education in the country (Mohd Aminuddin & Azlan, 2024). The studies also tend to focus on elections that occurred before the 2018 governmental shift, which saw a renewed motivation for country reform among voters and the complexities of coalition governments vis-à-vis gender equality in politics. This study area in Malaysia is underdeveloped due to various limitations that hinder academic development, such as data availability and access, as well as a lack of press freedom in the country. My study contributes to existing research from Journalism Studies on female Malaysian politicians and the relationship between strong patriarchal cultural conditions and the portrayal of women politicians (Adcock, 2010; Mullany & Yoong, 2016). In Malaysia, a predominantly Muslim nation where traditional gender roles are highly valued, women in politics often encounter an extra layer of attention, especially regarding their roles as leaders, mothers, and wives. Abdul Manan (2019) and Rajaratnam et al., (2020) found that media narratives on female politicians are still grounded in implicit and explicit gender stereotypes, as revealed through qualitative studies on media coverage of prior elections. These studies frequently incorporate notions of appropriate public behavior for women, shaping public opinion in ways that disadvantage female candidates. Studies also indicate that Malaysian media tend to follow stereotypical coverage patterns for female candidates found in other nations during elections, by emphasizing personal details (Abdul Manan, 2019; Adcock, 2010; Kaur & Shaari, 2012; Mullany & Yoong, 2016; Rajaratnam et al., 2018, 2020). This study advances this prior research by examining the media coverage of female politicians during Malaysia’s 15th General Election (GE15) in 2022. Specifically, it addresses how two prominent journalism organizations framed female candidates in the lead-up and immediately following the election. 2 This study is particularly interested in the relationship between gender, political partisanship, and media. This study is timely, as GE15 was the first election following the historic government change in General Election 14 (GE14) in 2018, which saw the loss of the longest-reigning government in 60 years and was followed by a period of political instability marked by an unelected government. That instability was characterized by three successive prime ministers from three parties ranging in different ideologies from social justice under Alliance of Hope (PH) to religious conservatism backed by National Alliance (PN) and finally to national conservatism, which brought the country back under the administration of National Front (BN) amidst the global pandemic (MOTEN, 2023; Sun, 2022). This specific election is also historically significant, as it marked the first hung parliament in the country, and the results were inconclusive, with no political party able to win a majority of votes (Chin, 2023). The outcome of the election led to 19-party coalition government helmed by Anwar Ibrahim, which consists of four major coalitions including Alliance of Hope or Pakatan Harapan (PH), National Front or Barisan Nasional (BN), Sarawak Parties Alliance or Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) and Sabah People’s Alliance or Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS)(Wong, 2023b, 2023a). In terms of the involvement of women in politics in Malaysia, previous research by Balakrishnan (2023) indicates that the number of female ministers increased almost twofold since earlier elections, and a similar progression was observed during the 15th general election. Female ministers are usually assigned less prestigious portfolios and are not part of the core ministerial portfolios. However, this changed under Anwar’s cabinet, when female ministers were assigned health and education portfolios that had previously been held by male ministers (Wong, 2023a). The health and education portfolios in the Malaysian context are the top three ministries that were allocated the most budget allocation in 2023, apart from the finance ministry, with RM 36,139 million and RM 55,569 respectively, which signaled the two ministries as important portfolios (Hutchinson, 2023). Balakrishnan (2023) argued that some ministries can be divided into three categories of prestige based on the budget allocation, such as high, 3 mediu,m and low prestige. The same categories can also be assigned to a different range of gendered categories, such as feminine, neutral, and masculine. The health and education portfolio, for example, falls under medium prestige and tends to be neutral, neither feminine nor masculine. Although by western standards, the health and education portfolios are often associated with feminine portfolios (Goddard, 2019; Kroeber & Hüffelmann, 2022). Another significant element of studying Malaysia’s 15th general election is to look at the effect of media changes and reform post the 14th general election. Media in Malaysia have long been under the subject of control as ownership and legal provisions that were maintained to ensure that the media stay as part of the political apparatus during the administration of the National Front’s coalition from 1957 to 2018 (Houghton & Nain, 2018). The political media control have eroded public’s trust on media and Venkiteswaran (2020) mentioned that Malaysian media faced different possibilities under the new government, though legal reform might be difficult, there are changes that are on the horizon after the governmental change such as more freedom to report on issues that are previously prohibited. Another important aspect of this study is the type of media that is being studied, which involves mainstream and alternative media, which consists of legacy media and new media. Mainstream media that are typically traditional media in Malaysia with direct link to political ownership have shown pronounced bias towards the previous government, while the alternative media, which usually consists of online media, have shown fair and accurate reporting (Houghton & Nain, 2018). Therefore, this study fills essential gaps in the literature on media coverage of elections, gender, partisanship, and digital media. With the political, governmental, and media reform that took place after the 14th general election, studying the media coverage during the 15th general election, including coverage for female politicians, is paramount to see how much the media have progressed against the backdrop of political instability. A number of studies have examined how Malaysian media frame female politicians during general elections in 2008, 2013, and 2018. They found a common practice of news 4 coverage associating female candidates with their family members, particularly males, such as husbands or fathers. “The use of “classic stereotypes of femininity” as wives and mothers function to delegitimise women political candidates and hinder their political career.” (Abdul Manan, 2019, pg 18.) This served as a reminder of the traditional gender role that female politicians adhere to. By positioning female politicians as dependent on male family members, the media diminishes their political agency and reinforces patriarchal norms that limit women’s autonomy in politics (Abdul Manan, 2019). Kaur & Shaari (2012) examined the 2008 election and found more nuanced results, which employed content analysis on a much more expanded purposive sampling that includes newspapers from mainly spoken languages in Malaysia, such as English, Malay, Chinese, and Tamil daily newspapers. Marital and familial status signifies the capacity of female politicians to juggle different responsibilities compared to male politicians. (Kaur & Shaari, 2012, p 397.) While there has been considerable research on the representation of female politicians during elections in Malaysia, much of this work has centered on gendered portrayals without addressing the role of partisanship and how media ownership could influence the coverage of female politicians. This gap is significant given Malaysia’s political climate, media system, and female political participation. Previous studies also focused on the media coverage of female politicians in the last general election, but not for the 2022 election cycle. This study seeks to fill these gaps by analyzing the interplay of gender and political party allegiance influences media narratives, offering confirmation of whether Malaysian media continue to perpetuate gender stereotypes of female politicians. 5 1.1 Research questions I aim to investigate the representation of female politicians among the two key Malaysian online news outlets through these two research questions: RQ1: How did the media frame female politicians during the election cycle, focusing on two prominent news outlets RQ2: What are the differences in news framing for female politicians from different parties in two prominent news outlets? My hypotheses emerge from the literature and are as follows: H1: Female politicians tend to be represented as an appendage of male family members who are also in politics, such as husbands and fathers, while female politicians who are not related to any male politicians tend to be associated with their personal information, such as marital status, age, or occupation. H2: Media ownership influences the stereotypical coverage of female politicians, whereas independent media is less stereotypical. In contrast, a non-independent media outlet tends to be more stereotypical in its news reporting. H3: The nature of ownership affected the coverage of the political parties affiliated with the news outlet's stakeholders. 6 2. Literature Review 2.1 Gender, media, and election Gender, media, and elections are deeply interconnected, with research consistently showing that gender influences media coverage, particularly during political events like elections. Early studies in the 1990s in the United States highlighted inconsistent media coverage between male and female political candidates. In a content analysis of newspaper coverage of a U.S. Senate campaign, Kahn (1992) suggested that male candidates received more favourable coverage and were considered more competent or politically suitable to hold a position in the Senate than female candidates. Although male candidates were seen to be more qualified, female candidates were much more favoured when they discussed women-related issues. Moving forward, another research study also indicated that the media have gradually become less biased in the last 30 years. The media has influenced how politicians are covered in the press and eventually shaped how the public perceives political actors, particularly women. Oftentimes, media practices have fortified certain stereotypes that affect the credibility and electability of female politicians (McKay, 2020). Among the challenges women politicians face is the “double bind,” where they are expected to balance strength alongside likability in many ways that male politicians are not likely to do the same (Teele et al., 2018). At the same time, media coverage tends to emphasize surface-level traits such as appearance, personality, and tone over policy expertise, which ultimately affects how female leaders are perceived and judged (Andrich et al., 2023). Arias (2019) argued that media not only offer new information that could affect specific individuals or target audiences to start thinking as they intended, but also provide information about what other people are thinking. Therefore, the media is imperative in framing political narratives, which usually highlight gender stereotypes that influence how political candidates are perceived. 7 The media have been a big proponent in reinforcing certain gender stereotypes. An analysis by Bauer (2019) highlighted that the media coverage, particularly for female politicians in the United States, is more inclined to favour masculine narratives, which continues to uphold the nature of male dominance in politics. With the reinforcement of masculinity characteristics by the media, this could lead female candidates to focus on being more masculine to get the attention of the media or more coverage. In other parts of the world, such as the Netherlands, Aaldering & Van Der Pas (2020) studied media portrayals of political leadership, which focuses on male and female leader stereotypes. This phenomenon can be more pronounced during non-campaign periods by employing content analysis of all Dutch national newspapers that span between September 2006 and September 2012, with the hypothesis that male politicians tended to be associated with certain political traits. The results indicated that male politicians are generally covered by the media more than their female counterparts, eventhough gender stereotypes could be the reason behind the gender bias that exists within the coverage of the media on leadership traits. Interestingly, Aaldering & Van Der Pas's (2020) study revealed that this pattern is much more prominent during routine periods that tend to be understudied compared to the campaign period. Women in politics are often treated differently from their male counterparts. Previous studies across different countries (Bauer & Taylor, 2023; D’Heer et al., 2022; Semetko & Boomgaarden, 2007) have shown that media coverage of political actors of different genders has been imbalanced, primarily influenced by media coverage of politics, where the coverage of politics can be seen to be focused on male politicians, particularly during elections. This can be seen from the issue coverage that male politicians try to highlight as part of their electoral manifesto, while the same coverage was not reciprocated towards women politicians. This is what was attributed to the inadequacies of coverage and female representation in politics. (Robertson et al., 2002) One theory about female politicians worldwide can be traced back to the media, which is accountable for producing and reproducing sexism within its media practice. This phenomenon could potentially be 8 perpetrated through a mechanism called the bystander effect. Sexism or discrimination is further enhanced by reinforcing traditional roles among media consumers who are female and are exposed to the representation of women in politics that is often portrayed by the media. This is especially true when female politicians are given less agency, less credibility, and unequal treatment. This creates a perception that women must break the glass ceiling in politics to have a successful political career. (Haraldsson & Wängnerud, 2019) Even when female politicians manage to break the glass ceiling, there is an inherent institutionalized bias embedded within traditional media practices such as media tokenism, which refers to the practice of selecting a small number of marginalized communities to be featured in the media (Hegarty, 2024). Another study shed more light on media coverage after female politicians continued advancing their political progression. There is a specific understanding that even when many more women are in the field, only several female politicians will make it to the top. This led to marginal coverage of female politicians in the media, even when the number of female media practitioners in the media outlets increased, which reflects women advancing in their careers in journalism as it is in politics. Nonetheless, the reproduction of certain biases is deeply rooted in newsrooms and is more likely to influence the tone and framing of gender than the journalists themselves. (Courtney et al., 2020) Media scholars also further argued that the media have rigid gender structures and resist changes in a way that having more females in the higher editorial positions only brought in subtle impacts when it comes to news production and framings applied to it, as newsrooms tend to continue applying male-ordered framings. (Ross & Padovani, 2017; Shor et al., 2019) Women's representation in media is skewed. In certain events, particularly elections, the differences in coverage are stark compared to male coverage. Election campaigns are the ultimate political public display, especially for women candidates. These campaigns can undoubtedly enhance their media visibility from the coverage of their manifesto, promises, and relationships with the constituency; female 9 candidates are contesting to create an appealing package for the media to cover. Nonetheless, this visibility may not always work to their advantage. Ross (2017) argued that journalists' prioritization of details to include in the coverage of female politicians could damage the latter as other irrelevant pieces of information, such as wardrobe, family, and marriage status, are considered crucial alongside their policy track record. The discussion about female politicians’ personal details has direct repercussions on their image as there is less space and time to discuss their capability to lead. (Gibbons, 2022) Bligh et al., (2012) found female politicians are cautioned to be more attentive than male politicians to how the media campaigns depict them. The results from this study highlighted that media institutions have a specific influence on the public’s opinion and judgments of female politicians in terms of likability, which is closely linked to perceived gender roles. Nonetheless, the same study also pointed out that women in leadership or positions of authority tend to be classified as competent but, most of the time, not favoured due to their perceived violations of feminine gender roles, which are usually led by men who tend to dominate leadership positions. Bauer (2015) studied feminine stereotype activation from campaign communication materials and their material distribution through media and communication channels such as newspapers and television. This study found another perspective that female candidates are at a disadvantage only when stereotypes are ‘activated’, and some of those stereotypes are feminine characteristics or situational signs such as news of pregnancy or family background, such as husband and children. The study also pointed out the inconsistent results from previous studies regarding stereotypical perceptions of female politicians. Voters typically rely on feminine stereotypes to form their judgment on female candidates, which is usually highly conditional. It all goes back to the type of information that voters have access to throughout the election campaign. In recent years, Bauer (2024) has shown that the same treatment of news coverage towards female politicians has hardly changed from both national and local newspapers in the United States. Evidence further indicates that male candidates receive significantly more media coverage than their female 10 equivalents throughout campaigns. Study by Gessler et al., (2024) of the 2015 and 2019 Swiss elections revealed that while the media gap between women and men narrowed in 2019, more coverage went to men in both years.. The research also showed that ‘electability’ is not directly correlated with the candidates' gender in 2019, compared to the earlier election in 2015. Over the years, female candidates were observed to receive more coverage when they touched upon topics other than the economy, finance, and taxes, like social security, immigration, and gender. Gender-related topics were emphasized more in 2019, when there was an increase in the number of articles covered about this particular topic. (Gessler et al., 2024) This was supported by another recent study on the current issue of the underrepresentation of female leadership positions within a decade, which entailed findings that inequalities are much more apparent when it comes to policy-related topics such as national security, which tend to be associated with being masculine, which male politicians are deemed more competent in handling (Andrich & Domahidi, 2024). The same study, however, contends that healthcare is no longer a topic that is associated with feminine policy issues; instead, it is a topic that the media do not necessarily associate with gender. Another interesting finding from the same paper revealed that female politicians from a conservative party are covered as part of the leadership much less than their counterparts from a more progressive or liberal party. 2.2 Media and political environment in Malaysia 2.2.1 Malaysian political background To understand Malaysia’s partisanship, which is closely aligned to its history and social composition, the country’s political system is considered a dominant-party regime since its first direct elections to the Malayan Federal Legislative Council in 1955 (Croissant, 2022). The political landscape has been predominantly shaped by the hegemony of the Alliance Party coalition, subsequently reorganized as the 11 Barisan Nasional (BN) (D. Mauzy, 1993). The sudden uprising of Malay nationalism is not an isolated case as the Japanese occupation has further bolstered ethnonationalism among Malay people, which has directly impacted and fostered political activity among the Malay population and, at the same time, opened more access to government administration job opportunities to locals and changed the dynamic of ethnic relations in the country, unlike the British which keeps one ethnic isolated to another. The Malay camp primarily consisted of two key organizations: the Nationalist Party (comprised of anti-British Malay) and the Malay Congress Party (comprised of pro-British and English-educated Malay). Malay elites at the time believed that the proposed constitution and federation would threaten the Malay race and rights as the country's Indigenous people. The Malay Congress Party eventually transformed into the current party, United Malays National Organization (UMNO), whose main objective is to fight, promote, and protect Malay interests. (Hawkins, 2001; D. K. Mauzy, 2006) This abolishment of the Malayan Union and the British selection of UMNO as the main party solidified UMNO’s emerging reputation and secured its position in the evolving political landscape, lasting 60 years as the country’s ruling government. The 1955 election, which resulted in a self-rule administration, saw UMNO, under Tunku Abdul Rahman, forging a political alliance with the MCA and MIC. This move reflected a pre-existing but largely unseen collaboration among Malay, Chinese, and Indian leaders, with British involvement (Syed Jaafar Albar, 2023). Following the 1969 racial riot, the Alliance Party transformed and was renamed the National Front, also known as Barisan Nasional (BN), which comprised 14 political parties by 1974. It maintained its victories, securing a two-thirds majority in parliament following its win in the general elections from 1974 to 2004. The racial riot on May 13th, 1969, ultimately changed the trajectory of Malaysia’s political scene and economic policy. The watershed moment led to the implementation of the New Economic Policy (NEP) in 1971, accompanied by restrictions on media independence, including censorship laws and the banning of foreign publications (Kow & Khoo, 2023). The NEP was established to improve the socioeconomic 12 status of all Malaysians, alongside its focus on unity following the riots through social justice (Jomo, 2023), with an emphasis on addressing the basic needs of the poor. Another critical function of NEP is to ensure social restructuring or affirmative action for the native, also known as the Bumiputera (Lee, 2023). The affirmative action portion of the policy had a significant impact on the country's political economy, particularly concerning the newly formed coalition, the National Front (BN). The coalition managed to secure a two-thirds parliamentary majority in every election except those held in 1969, 2008, and 2013 (Ostwald, 2017, pg. 4). The hegemonic power of UMNO within the coalition has afforded it access to constitutional amendments over the years, as well as systemic and institutional reinforcement through asserting its influence and maintaining the status quo since the country's independence. This also allowed the coalition’s control to penetrate every single institution in the country, leaving no room for opposition or neutral bodies or agencies to assert their power (Ostwald, 2017). When it comes to media, it is part of BN and UMNO’s most important tool in their bid for voter manipulation. For a long time, traditional media were observed to perpetuate pro-government, or more specifically, pro-BN and UMNO bias. The print media, mostly under the claws of the BN coalition, is a well-oiled machinery that continues to carry the coalition’s talking points and criticizes the opposition parties (Ostwald, 2017). This was also tied to the media ownership by the parties within the coalition, which allowed them to monopolize the coverage and control the narrative from public and privately held traditional media institutions. This includes the takeover of Utusan Malaysia, the Malay language's oldest newspaper, in 1962, which carried a reputation for covering the coalition in a positive light despite facing resistance from local journalists. Apart from that, the NEP also reinforced BN's position in gaining ownership of local media, such as the New Straits Times, in 1972 by consolidating its position through the quota system introduced by the policy (Kow & Khoo, 2023). 13 Before its rude awakening in 2004, the BN coalition maintained its power within the government, where the same prime minister, Dr. Mahathir Mohamed, ruled the country for two decades from 1981 to 2003, despite heavy opposition from within the government and the opposition parties (Gomez, 2016). According to Gomez (2016), over the years since the coalition was formed, UMNO has continued to maintain its hegemonic position within the membership, which is seen as the anchor that enables it to win elections, on which MCA and MIC are heavily dependent to secure seats in general elections. BN dominance of power in the country through UMNO have reassured the Malay-Muslim dominance of politics which seeps into the policies issued by the government including affirmative action initiatives and programs which affect the economy and certainly, political leadership (Chinyong Liow, 2004) The political dominance and grip of BN have also spilled over into the control of mainstream media through direct and indirect ownership, which can be done through political actors and proxies of which have connection to the coalition, this will allow the control of narratives through privately owned mainstream media apart from the state media like Radio Televisyen Malaysia (RTM) leaving no gaps for alternative media that provides check and balance to the government (Kim, 2001) Nonetheless, BN faced opposition parties, the Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party (PAS) and Democratic Action Party, which are not ideologically strong (Nadzri, 2018). In 1999, another opposition party coalition was formed, mobilized by the then-sacked finance minister, Anwar Ibrahim, who started the wave of movement called ‘reformasi’ (reform) to demand the abolition of nepotism, cronyism, and collusion (J. P. Abbott, 2000). It also marked the birth of another opposition party called the People’s Justice Party or Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR), unlike UMNO, which focused on multiethnic demography. The reformasi movement has mobilized the Malaysian civil society to organize and align themselves with issues that are related to advocacy, which allowed them to demand democracy as well as systematic reform. The same groups then started to organize demonstrations to fight for their agendas, which also contributed to the 14 alignment of different organizations from various backgrounds to collaborate together, which became the onset of political reform in the country (Weiss, 2003). As for female participation in politics, the reformasi movement has opened the door for a female major political leadership. Dr. Wan Azizah Wan Ismail emerged as the political party leader, replacing her husband, Anwar Ibrahim, who was jailed for challenging Dr. Mahathir Mohamed in 1999. She took the lead to helm the newly established opposition party, which is a rare occurrence not just in Malaysia but also in the region during the time for a female figure to step into the political leadership role(Thompson, 2002). The general outlook on female empowerment among political parties in Malaysia received a warm welcome. However, no tangible steps are being implemented to increase the number of female politicians in politics or civil service, especially from the BN coalition (Ng & Endut, 2011). Over the years, the opposition parties also formed a coalition starting from Demoratic Action Party (DAP) who have been advocating for multiethnicity. DAP first collaborated with Gerakan who shared similar ideology of multiethnicity in 1968. However due to lack of coordination and organization, the coalition was dismissed (Ong, 2022) . PKR, DAP and PAS came together under the People’s Alliance or Pakatan Rakyat (PR) from 2008 to 2015(Wong, 2023b). Fast forward to the 2018 general election, however, was a milestone moment when the opposition coalition, Pakatan Harapan (PH), won power, and the possibility of the long-standing political order changing. Wai Kinn & Cheng Guan (2020) argued that government change was not entirely reflected on the systematic change of how the government was run, in fact the institutional change was significant to bringing change to the electoral system however, it do not have the enough political power to bring changes to the overall reforms of the government which warranted limited changes and unchanged perception of the people towards the governing body. However, Ostwald (2024) argued that the government change in 2018 did not exert enough momentum to completely change the system. He said: 15 In Malaysia, institutional reforms following UMNO’s defeat in 2018 were relatively limited, leaving the core institutional framework UMNO built to reinforce its dominance extant: such features as the high degree of centralization, the absence of regulation on political financing, and the electoral system that conferred particular biases, for example, were all generally unaffected by the transition. (Ostwald, 2024, p.16) More recently, the rise of Perikatan Nasional (PN) as a serious political contender, particularly at the 2022 general election, suggests the direction of even more fragmentation and increasing complexity in the Malaysian political landscape (Wong, 2023a). The transition from the dominant party to a more competitive and multi-polar environment means that the political dynamics of partisanship in Malaysia will likely change significantly. Moreover, the very powerful position of ethnicity and religion in Malaysian politics cannot be overlooked (Washida, 2023). Such firmly rooted social identities are likely to be the factors that affect the nation's form and intensity of partisanship. They can create specific types of political loyalty and opposition to others within democratic systems. 2.2.2 Participation of women in Malaysian politics Women have always been part of modern Malaysian politics since the country’s negotiation and establishment in 1945, during the country's negotiation and establishment (Mustafa, 1999). During the nationalism phase, Mohamad (2018) examined the role of gender during the nationalist struggle and found that female involvement in the political party coalition building was purely influenced by religion and race. While women were mobilized to support independence movements, their roles were often limited to traditional and reproductive spheres. This involvement led to a politicization of women's roles. It sparked debates about their rights to education and political participation, highlighting the intersection of gender and ethnic identity in the context of nationalism. Post-independence, nationalist discourse increasingly relegated women to symbols of cultural preservation, with Malay-Muslim women frequently portrayed as custodians of tradition and morality, in line with the state’s ethno-religious priorities. 16 In the early days of UMNO’s establishment, women's political participation and Malay nationalism were also legitimized. A prominent feminist figure in Malaya, Ibu Zain Sulaiman or Hajjah Zainon Sulaiman, the second Malay woman to attend an English school, participated as UMNO's founding member and the Women’s wing leader. Ibu Zain’s main fight during that time was to encourage women and girls to get proper education and participate in civil society, which opened doors for women to participate in politics, economy, and education in the long run (Mohd Noor, 2020) . However, Mustafa (1999) mentioned that women's roles at the time were limited to campaigning and voting. Another movement under UMNO, called ‘Pergerakan Kaum Ibu’ or women’s section, has historically shaped how Malaysian women leverage their role in propagating the position of women in civil society. Nonetheless, according to Nagata (1982), Kaum Ibu’s movement has also influenced how women are perceived, which has rather confined women’s status to traditional gender roles and duties such as wife and mother. Nagata (1982) pointed out that: On most issues Kaum Ibu members, even those long exposed to urban and Western lifestyles and education, have loyally followed established party policies rather than challenging or creating them, serving as assistants or the traditional helpmate to UMNO males. Both Malay men and women still agree that women's participation in public life is acceptable only so long as it does not deflect her from the fulfillment of domestic duties and virtues. Accordingly, most of Kaum Ibu's activities are concerned with health, welfare, charities, morals and religion, resulting in a proliferation of sewing, cooking and religious classes, spiced with cake baking for soldiers on the front.(Nagata, 1982, p.885) Within UMNO, Kaum Ibu was later renamed Wanita UMNO (UMNO Women) in 1971(Rogers, 1986, p. 323), and other political parties have also established women’s wings, such as MCA. Women are typically assigned duties such as conducting door-to-door campaigns, fundraising, and public talks to mobilize the grassroots. Although women contribute to the party, they are not given proportional representation as political candidates. On some occasions, women contestants are even urged to drop their bid when faced with male rivals. Further, the party would instead value women for their achievements as part-time canvassers at winning vote-soliciting attention during election periods. Despite there being a push for 17 women to constitute 30 per cent of the election candidates, the GE13 outcome indicates that the number of female candidates remains very much behind male candidates (Azmi et al., 2024). Our findings showed that these women were highly motivated in their political activities and were capable and confident. The patriarchal structure may have led them to claim that they were not looking for leadership positions and to opt for serving the party in different ways, but they were firm in their ambition to practice their values in the political arena. Thus, an understanding of women’s positions in Malay politics calls for a more nuanced understanding of political ambition that supersedes the present discourse of the glass ceiling. (Azmi et al., 2024, p.45) In recent years, senior female politicians such as Wan Azizah Wan Ismail have emerged to have ‘broken’ the glass ceiling for Malaysian women in politics as she helmed the opposition party after the ‘reformasi’ movement and when her husband, Anwar Ibrahim, was in jail. Political parties and the state government have introduced different initiatives to adhere to the global call for a 30 percent quota for women in politics and legislative seats, such as the state of Penang and Selangor, which are administered by the Democratic Action Party (DAP) and People’s Justice Party (PKR), respectively. Both states implemented initiatives to empower female participation in various sectors, including public office. They also started a campaign that eventually became part of the opposition’s coalition pledges to increase the number of women participating in the public and political sectors (Mohamad, 2018). This indicated that some parts of society are open to the idea of involving women in the conversation. Still, there needs to be emphasis on the legislative reform to achieve a much more significant impact. However, Balakrishnan (2023) and Yeong (2018) argued that numbers are not the most important contributor to improving the public’s trust in female politicians. Still, the involvement of female politicians in cabinet portfolios is the way to go. According to UN Women (2025), as of January 2025, there are 30 (13.5 per cent) female members in Malaysian parliament out of 222. Malaysia was ranked 154 out of 183 countries for women in parliament alongside Cambodia and Côte d'Ivoire, and is part of the bottom four categories of parliament with the lowest women's participation. As for cabinet ministers, Malaysia only has three (11.1 per cent) female 18 ministers who are leading their ministries, out of 27 cabinet ministers. Malaysia is among five other countries that received the same ranking based on the percentage that each country received based on involvement of women in the cabinet. Ranked at 148 from 181, other countries include Bhutan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cambodia, Qatar, and Vietnam. 2.2.3 Media ownership in Malaysia Mass media in Malaysia are largely controlled by the government and political organisations through legal provisions as well as through ownership by entities that are directly linked to political parties through shares and investments. The direct and indirect ownership of the media provides leverage for the government and parties to establish their narratives through the avenues available to it in managing the information disseminated by media outlets (Kim, 2001). In terms of legal control, one of the laws that acts as a means of control is the Printing Presses and Publications Act (PPPA). This law allows the Minister of Internal Security to regulate media control by issuing a publication permit. It will enable the minister to stop the production, printing, sale, import, distribution, or possession of a publication based on reasons he believes could jeopardize the national interest, security, or anything that contains provocative elements under section 7(1) (Anuar, 2014). Another Malaysian media scholar pointed out that the law imposed in the country has prohibited Malaysians from getting information about public interest from local to international media or publications. (Nain, 2002) Media ownership in Malaysia has exerted a grip on information dissemination, mainly media owned or affiliated with political parties. During its tenure, the National Front (BN) coalition was found to be one of the stakeholders of several mainstream and essential news outlets in the country. The ownership of some media outlets can be directly or indirectly affiliated with a political party through political patronage or proxies. Abbott (2011) studied the government control over the media via electoral authoritarianism during the 60 years of BN’s administration. In his study, Abbott mentioned that most commentators said that most major newspapers in the country are owned or controlled by individuals directly connected to 19 the political coalition. However, it is worth noting that pinning down details of political connections to media ownership can be tedious due to a lack of transparency. Political parties, particularly those in the now-defunct Barisan Nasional coalition, have exerted tremendous influence over media ownership in Malaysia. Media giants like Media Prima have been linked to or owned by component parties like the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO). Political parties' ownership and control of media outlets, directly or indirectly, are grave causes for concern over biased reporting and media use for political propaganda. Party-aligned media outlets will serve the interests and agendas of their respective parties, where the voices of disagreement could be muzzled and public opinion may be swayed, particularly during elections (Djankov et al., 2003). UMNO is not the only one that has some stake in media organizations. Other BN component parties, such as the Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA) and the Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC), have also applied the same approach by gaining control of several mainstream media. English newspaper, The Star Online, is owned by Huaren Management Sdn Bhd, which is also an investment arm of MCA. Under Huaren Management, MCA also directly controls weekend English dailies, Sunday Star, Chinese language newspapers: Nanyang Siang Pau and China Press (Anuar, 2007; Kim, 2001). Historically, The Star Online was afforded a level of editorial autonomy and could raise issues critically by veteran columnists and editors. However, that ended when the government revoked its publication license during a government-led operation called Operasi Lalang in 1987 for its critical reporting. Kim (2001) pointed out that: Like the NST, The Star Online, being allocatively controlled by a component party of the ruling coalition, invariably propagates the agenda and policies of its owners in order to maintain the hegemony of the ruling group.(Kim, 2021, p.7) 20 News Outlet Relations to major political actors/parties New Straits Times (English) JAG Capital Holdings Sdn Bhd ( Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani - UMNO politician) Berita Harian (Malay) JAG Capital Holdings Sdn Bhd ( Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani - UMNO politician) Utusan Malaysia (Malay) Formerly owned by UMNO The Star Online (English) Huaren Holdings Sdn Bhd (MCA investment arm) Nanyang Siang Pau (Mandarin) Huaren Holdings Sdn Bhd (MCA investment arm) Tamil Nesan (Tamil) Former MIC minister, Sami Vellu TheSun Daily (English) Vincent Tan (connected to UMNO politicians) Table 1: Mainstream media’s ownership and relations to political actors/ parties (Kim, 2001) Azmawati et al.,(2018) provided more details in their research on Malaysian news reporting case studies, which demonstrated how The Star Online was used as a tool for MCA to control certain narratives, especially during elections. Malaysian mainstream media widely practiced conflict-driven journalism, pitting one community against another, and focusing on the political alliances within each community. This type of reporting is considered stereotypical and promotes antagonism and remorse between different communities in Malaysia. Azmawati et al., (2018) also emphasized that: Another divisive political campaign strategy of the BN is to separately target the same community through two newspapers—New Straits Times (NST) owned by UMNO and The Star owned by MCA. NST would highlight the failure of Parti Islam SeMalaysia (PAS) to include hudud law in the opposition election manifesto as a sign of PAS conceding to the demand of DAP, hence betraying the aspiration of the Malay community. On the other hand, The Star would highlight the persistence of PAS to implement hudud law and this is a mistake for DAP to be part of the opposition political cooperation. (Azmawati et al., 2018, p.273) Independent online news portals such as Malaysiakini arose, challenging the dominance of traditional media and providing a space for alternative voices and potentially greater media pluralism, circumventing some of the traditional controls on mainstream media. Malaysiakini was established by two former Malaysian journalists, Stephen Gan and Premesh Chandran, using their own funding of $10,000 after witnessing excessive control of access to neutral and critical reporting within the Malaysian media 21 (Steele, 2009). The pair also received a private equity transaction with the MediaDevelopment Loan Fund (MDLF) to continue strengthening the financial viability of the news outlet (Steele, 2009). The news outlet continues to sustain itself by applying the 50-50 split between subscription and advertising model (Kumar, 2022). The limited media choices then had pushed some Malaysians to seek information elsewhere. With the rise of new media and the height of political conflict and economic downturn, especially in 1999, this trend became more pronounced. Things got even worse when then Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad sacked his Deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim due to irreconcilable differences on political and leadership matters that led to the “Reformasi” movement that triggered political and social reforms. Many Malaysians seek alternative media as a source of information rather than relying on mainstream media; therefore, Malaysiakini, among news media platforms, served as more than just a news platform, but a counter-narrative for propaganda materials propagated by mainstream media. (Anuar, 2014; Chin, 2003; Steele, 2014) Steele (2014) emphasized that, being an independent news outlet, Malaysiakini was established to offer critical and in-depth reporting without political influence. Therefore, it embraced a degree of professionalism that allowed the news outlet to report on matters objectively. It embraced new journalism reporting by incorporating new and progressive approaches, such as the Citizen Journalism program that allowed regular public members to be trained and report on issues from a local lens. Gan, the co-founder of Malaysiakini told Steele (2014) that the news outlets tried to be inclusive by incorporating all sides of the story and at the same time, emphasized that the news outlet also have its own agenda which is to be more transparent in prioritizing the act of “giving a voice to the voiceless”. Steele (2014) also wrote in another paper that: …Malaysiakini’s understanding of objectivity is a mechanistic one, in which the balance is attained by including multiple points of view. With competing constituencies among its readers (pro-Pakatan, pro-Hindraf), conflicting reports from its reporters on the ground (Athi, the citizen 22 journalists) and so many competing narratives, Steven Gan resorted to what Vicknesan once referred to as the ‘valid point’ test. As Steven explained, in a situation in which there were so many competing agendas, it was not Malaysiakini’s job to determine who was right. (Steele, 2014, p.75) In terms of highlighting the underreported issues, especially concerning Indigenous Peoples’ issues in Malaysia, another study compares the coverage of this particular topic between Malaysiakini and The Star Online, which positions the online media as more progressive. Nonetheless, the study found that Malaysiakini, unlike The Star Online, represented the Orang Asli, but its representation was not always positive. Although they intended to be inclusive, the Orang Asli were still primarily shown as marginalized and powerless (Ka Chun et al., 2023). This indicated a certain degree of limitation of coverage and repetition of stereotypes that even independent media, such as Malaysiakini, still perpetuate despite offering more coverage compared to mainstream media. 2.3 Previous coverage of female politicians in Malaysia There are five main studies of the media coverage on female political actors in Malaysia in the 21st century from a range of disciplines, such as media studies, linguistics, as well as language and identity. They examined the media coverage of female politicians across three election cycles (2008, 2013 and 2018) with the main objective of investigating how female politicians are represented in Malaysian media (Abdul Manan, 2019; Kaur & Shaari, 2012; Mullany & Yoong, 2016; Rajaratnam et al., 2018, 2020). All the studies found an influence of patriarchal cultural norms on how women in politics are portrayed in Malaysia, a predominantly Muslim-majority country, with traditional gender roles highly valorized, and in which women in politics often face additional scrutiny, not just as leaders but also as mothers and wives. For example, the notion of appropriate behaviour for women in public life frequently found its way into media narratives, shaping public discourse in ways that disadvantaged female candidates. As Kaur & Shaari (2012), for example, studied the 2008 Malaysian election and found: “… there appeared to be subtle stereotyping in several of the newspaper reports examined with a few cases of blatant stereotyping of the women and their traditional roles. There was a lack of emphasis in the coverage given to issues important in the public sphere that were defended by 23 women candidates. The reports also did not appear to give sufficient credence to the leadership strength of the women candidates. Their involvement in the “soft” social issues often found in the private domain, like single mothers and vernacular schools, were emphasized. However, the issues associated with the women political candidates as covered in the newspapers may be the result of either issues the women candidates themselves promoted, or what the newspapers chose to cover and how they framed them” (Kaur & Shaari, 2012, p.397) Previous studies also showed that most Malaysian media abide to some extent by the stereotypical coverage template for female political candidates during elections by focusing on or including personal information about the candidate. As such, scholars have also observed that the language used to describe female politicians in mainstream media during elections is part of the contributing factors to worldwide gender-stereotyped coverage (Adcock, 2010). An applied linguistics analysis conducted by Mullany and Yoong (2016) on the coverage of Malay female politicians running against male candidates in mainstream media during the 2014 by-election contributed to negative gender identity construction. They studied two digital news portals, and their results indicated that The Star Online associated female candidates with their age, body, or appearance, a lack of political rigor, and experience. “In contrast, Mah (male politician) is portrayed as the reliable, experienced choice, with the most desirable political qualities. His professional qualifications are highlighted, whereas Dyana’s status as a lawyer and her previous political experience are either ignored or backgrounded by textual positioning” (Mullany & Yoong, 2016, p.437). A recent study by Abdul Manan (2019) of the media coverage of the 14th General Elections, drawing from English and Malay news outlets, found that gender bias was perpetuated reporting on female candidates, with some instances where female candidates were portrayed positively, including framings of political acumen, professionalism, and wisdom. Nonetheless, most of the coverage indicated that female political actors were not given full agency to report on their merit, as some news agencies would include male figures such as husbands or fathers as part of the story. “...the media appeared to have the inclination to portray these politicians as appendages to their husbands or fathers who have attained remarkable achievements in life. In short, these women were not given full agency to be in complete control of things” (Abdul Manan, 2019, p.17) 24 Another study on the same 2018 General Elections conducted by (Rajaratnam et al., 2020) revealed that Malaysian mainstream media of three different languages had included personal information in their reporting on female candidates during the election however, personal information tends to focus on the candidate's profession instead of marital status or the description of physical appearance. The profession of female candidates was mentioned to ensure the credibility of the candidates and justify their participation in the election through their non-politics-related experiences. Despite this, most mainstream media outlets were observed to have positive reporting on female candidates, especially among those directly affiliated with or owned by political parties, such as Utusan Melayu and The Star Online. This was done to uplift or promote the gender representation agenda in their parties. “... there was a high level of positive reporting of women political leaders by both English and Malay dailies, which are known to be directly or indirectly owned by political parties…This suggests efforts to boost women’s representation by their respective parties, although the coding in this study did not differentiate those from, or partial to, the ruling coalition or opposition in the run-up to the elections. (Rajaratnam et al., 2020, p.119) Rajaratnam et al., (2018) and Abdul Manan (2019) also highlighted the shift in how female political candidates were reported in the independent news portal, Malaysiakini. Between the two elections in 2008 and 2013, scholars identified the change seen through the analysis of the news articles, which focused on professional leadership, competence, and outcomes instead of the typical personal attributes such as family and physical characteristics. According to Rajaratnam (2010): “...the news media seem more responsive to the messages sent by male candidates. The society's cultural baggage where men's views in politics are seen to carry more weight than women's adds to this problem. Thus, the media's agenda more closely resembles the agenda issued by male candidates…This systematic difference in press treatment of male and female candidates may hinder women as they strife for political office” (Rajaratnam, 2010, p.403) From the perspective of media practitioners in Malaysia, journalists are generally aware of the difficulties that female politicians face in navigating the Malaysian political scene. Arsad et al.,(2024) found that 25 Malaysian journalists have cited a few factors that affect their reporting on female politicians. They include inclusivity, reactions towards female politicians, politicians’ behavior, political competence, and difficulties faced by female politicians in politics. Arsad et al., (2024) said While the study suggests that Malaysian journalists do not harbour inherent mistrust towards female politicians, the latter’s portrayal can still be influenced by factors like inclusivity and the perceived limitations faced by women in politics. This, in turn, can lead to underrepresentation of female voices and potentially, prime audiences to view them as less qualified leaders. (Arsad et al., 2024, p.27) The study pointed out that journalists who are working at various media organisations of different platforms, from broadcasting to digital publication in Malaysia strive to provide balanced perspectives from both genders in inclusivity, reactions towards a female leader that are inclined towards hope and optimism, especially when there is a female figure who broke the glass ceilings like Wan Azizah, the behaviour of female politicians that were distinctively different than the typical male politicians who tend to be more nonchalant and most of the time underprepared. Arsad et al., (2024) mentioned that the informants in their study mentioned that: Malaysian journalists also perceived female politicians as having the potential to enhance their skills in terms of leadership and survival within the political arena. They acknowledged that female politicians have been somewhat underperforming. This is evident in the accomplishments of female politicians that needed greater visibility to foster stronger public connections with them. (Arsad et al., 2024, p.25) Political competence was also cited, and many journalists said more work is warranted from female politicians in climbing the political ladder, to advance further their position in the party leadership, that are known to be male-dominated. Lastly, the difficulties that female politicians experience refer to the acknowledgment of gender bias and stereotypes by society that female politicians are inferior to men. (Arsad et al., 2023) “...one of the key stereotyping elements that Malaysian journalists write against female politicians is revolved on the male dominance and male confidence in politics. This factor might lead to the underrepresentation of female politicians in the media” (Arsad et al., 2023, 175) 26 Many Malaysian journalists do not express distrust towards female politicians, but given that Malaysian politics is dominated by men, female politicians face inherent challenges. Arsad et al., (2023) found that highlighted that gender disparities were also contributed by the low engagement of female politicians' media representation, that are part of their communication strategies that lack communication with media practitioners. On top of that, a previous study also confined media portrayals of female politicians in Malaysia to traditional gender roles such as wife and mother, compared to a strong leadership role. The impact of the emphasis of stereotypes by the media on details such as gender role, appearance, and personal lives has contributed to its influence on the larger society, which suggests that female politicians cannot hold leadership roles in politics. (Mohd Aminuddin & Azlan, 2024) 2.4 Theoretical framework 2.4.1 Framing theory Framing theory offers a valuable perspective on how mass media influence public understanding of various issues. This theoretical framework typically moves beyond merely selecting topics for public attention, focusing instead on how these topics are presented and communicated. It underscores the role of media in constructing narratives, influencing how audiences interpret the information they receive. Framing is also helpful in understanding what each media outlet wants the readers or audience to focus on. It facilitates exploring what is essential to each media organization, which can be done through content analysis of news reports. Scholars pointed out that a few sources of influence facilitated the production of frames in the newsroom. A prominent scholar in framing theory, Robert Entman, provided a highly influential framing definition in communication scholarship. He defined framing as the process of selecting and making salient some aspects of a perceived reality in order to establish a specific problem definition, causal interpretation, moral judgment, and/or treatment recommendation. Entman provided four frame functions within a 27 communicating text: problem defining, cause diagnosing, ethical judgments, and remedy recommendations (Entman, 1993). Entman's research revealed the power of media texts to structure audience awareness in line with the strategic use of framing. The theory incorporates various variables, such as ideology, attitudes, and professional norms, are elements that contribute to the process of how journalism frames news and coverage. Apart from that, contributing factors such as “organizational routines” can also be part of the framing, such as the political orientation of the company. Other than that, external sources of influence can also contribute to how journalists develop news framing. (Scheufele, 1999) Roslyng & Dindler (2023) argued that while framing theory recognizes that policy and media can manipulate bias and exert institutional power, it often neglects the underlying, unconscious ways institutional contexts organize media texts. In recent years, Liang & Tiung (2024) investigated how different media organizations in Malaysia used framing techniques and strategies to cover the 2022 General Election in the country. The study compares two leading English news portals: The Star Online and Free Malaysia Today. The distinction between the two news outlets is the market position of the news outlets, of which The Star Online is one of Malaysia’s legacy media. At the same time, Free Malaysia Today is categorized as alternative media. Nonetheless, both news outlets are affiliated with a political party. The results of the study confirmed previous scholars' findings regarding the distinction of attribution of responsibility to emphasize Malaysia’s democracy and peaceful government transition during the election (N. W. Liang & Tiung, 2024). Other than that, this study also corroborates similar dominant frames outlined by Semetko & Valkenburg (2000), which include game, responsibility, conflict, horserace, and economic consequences. Communicators use media frames to help convey their message and shape how an audience perceives a topic related to a person, event, or issue. Frames are conveyed in words, images, or another medium and disseminated via a mediated channel. Whether the communicator is an individual or an organization like a 28 news outlet, the frame provides a context for the information. D’Angelo (2017) iterated that media frames are deeply intertwined with journalism, primarily consisting of news stories that serve as primary texts where framing is embedded and ultimately translated to audiences who pick up on the frame while processing the text. Previous studies also showed that the words media framing, as well as news frames are used interchangeably, but both words refer to the same meaning. D’Angelo (2017) also emphasized that news framing is shaped by journalists, their knowledge, ‘house style,’ which refers to the newsroom's style of writing news, and routines. This was also supported by Scheufele (2000) as he highlighted that there are five contributing factors to how journalists frame any issues, which include social norms and values, organizational pressures and constraints, pressure of interest groups, journalistic routine,s and journalists’ political orientation. D’Angelo (2017) also said: Communicators use media frames in an attempt to influence individuals and/or groups to think about, evaluate, and act on a topic in line with the contextual information encoded in the frame of reference. In the media framing process, communicators alternate as senders and receivers, and even erstwhile audience members can make and send media frames, particularly since technological developments in Internet-based communication allow almost anyone to reach an audience. Theorists generally stop short of calling media framing a process of persuasion: Whereas media frames shape the bases by which individuals and groups think about, interpret, evaluate, and act on a topic, persuasive messages are designed to change opinions or attitudes about a particular object, such as an issue or person. (D’Angelo, 2017, p.2) At the heart of Framing Theory is the distinction between "frames in thought" and "frames in communication"(Chong & Druckman, 2007). Frames in thought are the cognitive schemata, interpretations, and simplifications of the world that individuals have. An individual's overall disposition on a subject can be a combination of positive and negative evaluations along multiple dimensions, each varying relative emphasis. These dimensions impact a human's evaluation and build their frame in mind. Conversely, frames in communication denote a transfer of frames between different actors. A communication frame helps establish a shared reality by assigning meaning to events as they unfold. Media frames, as forms of communication, often employ typical keywords, clichéd expressions, stereotypical images, and established information sources in news reports. They are involved in shaping the public's thinking frames through media messages (Chong & Druckman, 2007). 29 Framing Theory has been widely applied to study news coverage of various issues, and it provides significant insights into how the media frame public knowledge. In the case of political campaigns, news frames the story based on multiple factors such as scandals, policy positions, and the personality of candidates. How a campaign is framed can significantly affect how the voters perceive the candidates and the election itself, and therefore the final outcome. Political communicators utilize framing as a strategic tool to craft their messages in a manner that resonates with their target audiences and shapes public opinion. For instance, a news report might frame a politician's economic strategy by emphasizing its potential benefits for small businesses, encouraging a positive interpretation. Alternatively, it could be framed as primarily benefiting wealthy individuals through tax cuts, leading to a more negative interpretation (Gubitz et al., 2019). For this study, framing theory facilitated the setting up of the coding frameworks, which include framing categories that help determine news framing applied by news organizations specifically towards female politicians during the election and campaign period. Analysing the news framing of the coverage is useful in uncovering the stereotypical and gendered aspects of coverage that may be explicit, as well as implicit, which are part of the expectations of this research study. Apart from that, the theory allowed for an examination of how different media outlets approach the coverage of female politicians during elections, in an effort to understand the stance and agenda each outlet is taking. 2.4.2 Types of framing Journalists can take a different approach to framing a news story. In recent years, Bauer & Taylor (2023) purported that gender framing can be divided into explicit and implicit categories. Explicit gender frames can be as apparent as describing any female politicians with feminine traits or referencing traditional gender or social roles, such as appearance and maternal roles. Implicit gender frames, on the other hand, 30 refer to elements that reveal identifiable information about politicians, which can be used to describe both genders. According to Bauer & Taylor (2023) also elaborated that: The intent of implicit frames in candidate coverage, like explicit frames, is to delineate a contrast between two political candidates but to do so in ways that are not overtly sexist or biased. The effect of such frames is to characterize one candidate as fitting into the masculine framework for politics while characterizing the other candidate as lacking the masculine qualities necessary for political office. These frames will most likely emerge in coverage about topics that do not appear, on their face value, to be about gender stereotypes and for which journalists or readers can make a reasonable case that such topics are “objective” areas for coverage.( Bauer & Taylor, 2023, p.310) Bauer & Taylor (2023) argued that applying gender stereotypes to describe the qualifications of politicians or electoral candidates, regardless of gender, as journalists usually employed in news writing, will trigger implicit bias. Therefore, applying framing theory as part of the theoretical framework for this study allowed the opportunity for me to track both explicit and implicit gendered framings that are presented within the news coverage. Qualifications in this case can be in the form of candidates’ political, professional, and academic background and experience. This allows journalists the background and expertise of the candidates, which can sometimes be used to draw comparisons of what the candidates are capable of. Another newly discovered frame is “electability,” an important component that could yield richer results in proposing a candidate's capability of defeating another political candidate. A study suggested the need to better understand electability with a focus on specific candidates or individuals. Through the study, it is essential to note that there is a pattern of the salience of focus on women’s uncertainties of being the stronger candidate, paving the way for the media to frame other candidates, mainly male, to be deemed as the safest candidate (Gibbons, 2022) Scholars have proposed several approaches to analysing news framing in media coverage regarding applicable news framing types. There are two types of news framing: some frames only apply to particular topics and may be labelled as issue-specific frames. The other type of framing can be referred 31 to as generic framing, which can be used in different issues, across different timelines, and in various cultural positioning. In earlier studies, some scholars have outlined five key frames that can be used to identify framing approaches in media. Those include conflict, economic, morality, human interest and responsibility frame. (De Vreese, 2005; Semetko & Valkenburg, 2000) 32 3. Methodology To investigate the common news framing used by news outlets in reporting on female candidates during the 2022 General Election in Malaysia, I employed a mixed-methods approach, combining quantitative and qualitative content analysis. Specifically, my main RQs are: RQ1: How did the media frame female politicians during the election cycle, focusing on two prominent news outlets RQ2: What are the differences in news framing for female politicians from different parties in two prominent news outlets? My hypotheses are: H1: Female politicians tend to be represented as an appendage of male family members who are also in politics, such as husbands and fathers, while female politicians who are not related to any male politicians tend to be associated with their personal information such as marital status, age, or occupation. H2: Media ownership influences the stereotypical coverage of female politicians, whereas independent media is less stereotypical. In contrast, a non-independent media outlet tends to be more stereotypical in its news reporting. H3: The nature of ownership affected the coverage of the political parties affiliated with the news outlet's stakeholders. Several factors drew my interest in studying the media coverage of female politicians during the 15th general election. First, it was due to the political turmoil in the country after the previous election, leading up to this election, and it would be interesting to see how the media cover the election where uncertainty remains large in Malaysian society. Second, gender equality is a hallmark of a democracy, indicating 33 equal opportunity for everyone. Therefore, the research questions for this study are centered around the conduct of the media if any of them are still perpetuating a male-centric outlook on critical topics like politics through gender stereotypes and references. Adding another layer to this question is the partisanship element, which was not extensively covered in previous research on the coverage of female politicians in Malaysia. Moving on to the hypotheses, which focuses on the specificities of gender stereotypes that Malaysian media have committed. At the same time, the other two hypotheses centered around the question of whether media ownership can still influence media coverage and how it affects media coverage of female politicians from different political parties. In order to find out more about how media ownership can impact news coverage, it is necessary to compare it with other news outlets that are financially independent from any political influence or entity. Therefore, Malaysiakini and The Star were chosen based on their popularity and ownership. 3.1 Media Selection for Analysis Two prominent Malaysian news outlets were selected based on their highest weekly reach within the Malaysian population. According to the 2024 Reuters News Report (Nain et al., 2024) Malaysiakini ranked first with 43 per cent weekly usage, while The Star Online ranked fifth with 21 per cent weekly usage. Malaysia 2024 Weekly use (Per cent) At least 3 days per week (per cent) Malaysiakini 43 23 Astro Awani online 35 18 Berita Harian online 26 15 34 Harian Metro online 24 16 The Star Online 21 12 Sinar Harian online 20 13 Siakap Keli 20 13 Bernama.com 17 7 Free Malaysia Today 17 8 Utusan Malaysia online 17 9 Yahoo! News 13 7 BBC News online 11 5 CNN.com 9 4 Malay Mail online 8 4 The Malaysian Insight 8 3 Sin Chew online 8 6 Table 2: Digital media weekly online reach in Malaysia. (Source: 2024 Reuters Digital News Report, 2024) Benson (2019) argued that even though there is not a lot of research being done on the direct impact of ownership on journalism organizations, there are still possibilities for organizations or individuals with power to exert their influence on different strategies to a certain degree of discretion. Within Malaysian context, previous coverage of 13th general election showed a skewed reporting that are leaning towards the UMNO coalition, then government due to ownership structure, more than news outlets that are independently owned regardless of the news outlets’ language and alternative news outlets that are primarily digital news outlets gained more traction of different views that that of mainstream media (Sani, 35 2014). Tapsell (2013) argued that the emergence and the popularity of digital news outlets of different views gained more readership, which challenged the journalism conduct in Malaysia's mainstream media, he said: This is not to say that the Internet and social media are not challenging the monopolisation of the production of media content which previously existed in Malaysia. As this article has shown, the increased diversity of viewpoints now available online has led to changes in thinking about the nature of journalism within the mainstream media outlets and by government officials. (Tapsell, 2013, pg. 55) Nonetheless, there are still possibilities for ownership to influence the outcome of news organizations, either institutionally or through any other type of action (Benson, 2019). Thus, I would like to find out the type of framing used by different news outlets with two different ownership structures to compare and see if there are any differences in their approach to framing female politicians in Malaysia. Both Malaysiakini and The Star Online are among the news outlets in Malaysia with the most extensive digital reach. The Star Online is considered mainstream media, as it is a digital extension of the mainstream newspaper format. The Star Online website was launched to the public in 1995 (Kasim & Mohd Sani, 2016). On the other hand, Malaysiakini is Malaysia's first alternative and independent media founded by two former Malaysian journalists, Stephen Gan and Premesh Chandran using their fund as well as private equity transaction with the MediaDevelopment Loan Fund (MDLF), which came through during a tumultuous time in Malaysian politics in 1999 when Anwar was terminated as the finance minister (Steele, 2009). What distinguishes Malaysiakini from other news portals and blogs is the adherence to high journalism standards and investigative reporting that challenges authoritarianism in Malaysia (Steele, 2009). Previous scholars have mentioned that news outlets with such a high reach among readers are less inclined to perpetuate gender stereotypes (Kahn & Goldenberg, 1991). This statement inspired me to investigate how popular Malaysian media and their ownership backgrounds report on female candidates during elections. 36 Both Malaysiakini and The Star Online share demographic similarities, as their readership is mainly attracted to an urban, English-speaking, and non-Malay audience. Malaysiakini was established amid political instability in 1999 as an online news platform and quickly became part of the alternative media that are non-partisan during the rise of websites offering a different take on the news not displayed in mainstream media during the ‘reformasi’ movement (Weiss, 2013). Steele (2009) argued that Malaysiakini’s approach to objective journalism has placed the news outlet on the path that continues to challenge the authoritarianism that the current government under BN has imposed. As one of the oldest independent digital news outlets, Malaysiakini is a leading example of a success story for other alternative media that strive for independent journalism and open government (Cheong, 2022). As for The Star Online, it is a digital extension of its physical newspaper, which began going online in 1995 and was the first among Malaysian mainstream newspapers to establish an online platform. With its direct ownership by a political entity, MCA, Keong (2017) pointed out that The Star Online is among the mainstream media that are not exactly objective in their news coverage and have shown dedication towards biased coverage that favoured the BN coalition, as MCA is also part of the coalition. Previous studies (J. Abbott & Givens, 2015; W. L. T. Liang, 2014) on the reporting done by The Star Online have indicated biased reporting that certainly favoured the previous government by not offering diversity of voices from different sides. Instead, The Star Online typically publishes news that aligns with the policies issued by the previous BN government, and it mostly quotes government officials, which has ultimately made it the go-to platform for government officials to voice their opinions and ideas (Ruolan, 2019). 3.2 Framing and Content Analysis I employed framing and content analysis to identify the news framing applied by news outlets to female politicians and to discern the distinctive differences in news framing used by the two outlets. Content analysis is also utilized as part of the effort to uncover the nuances that each news outlet has imposed in its coverage. Examining the news frames of each media outlet will help identify what each media 37 organization tried to emphasize and communicate to its audience. Entman (1993) highlighted that framing means promoting or placing importance on a particular aspect of the issue by emphasizing certain information. While Kuypers & D’Angelo (2010) provided an understanding of why there is an abundance of previous communication research that has focused on the application of framing analysis to find out the salience of information journalists have interpreted their meanings on the issues they covered, especially within the intersection of politics and mass communication. Previous studies on framing research also focus on how politicians, advocates, and stakeholders utilize journalists and media to spread information. As a matter of fact, it is similar to a cycle of information where sources frame information in a certain way to journalists, and journalists may add to or use the source’s frame to present news to the public. The choice of framing analysis for this study is relevant given Lawrence et al., (2010) argument that framing differs based on political context, which suggests that the independence of media in applying news frames is inconsistent; instead, it varies according to different political contexts. I chose content analysis because this approach enables the quantification of the content that any medium intends to convey. Apart from its ability to systematically compute data from messages published by the media, another benefit of content analysis also hinges on its versatility in being combined with other methods (Neuendorf, 2017). Another reason why content analysis is suitable for this study is that the methodology enables researchers to determine how particular texts exist, what their meaning is, and for whom, as well as how the texts are connected to what came before and after. Working with a large amount of data also requires a systematic approach that allows researchers to identify concepts or words used in the data sample that was gathered (Carley, 1993). Additionally, content analyses have also facilitated researchers in finding accurate answers based on the situations they pertain to. In other words, the way content analysis is set up should make sense not just based on good scientific practices like being efficient and fair, but also by considering the specific context in which the texts are being studied (Krippendorff, 2019) 38 Overall, by integrating both methods, the systematic techniques that enable researchers to quantify textual data by identifying specific matrices, such as words, themes, and concepts (Neuendorf, 2017), can facilitate laying the groundwork for framing analysis. By demonstrating the frequency and occurrence of specific elements, content analysis can signal potentially significant frames within a text (Entman, 1993). Framing analysis then capitalizes on these quantitative findings by examining the interpretative dimension, examining how these constructed elements are used to generate meaning, frame opinions, and construct audiences (Goffman, 1974). For instance, a content analysis can reveal recurring mentions of specific words when a political issue is at hand. In contrast, a framing analysis would then examine how these words frame a master narrative, such as apportioning blame or emphasizing specific consequences (Kuypers, 1997). This study also seeks to investigate the type of framing used by news outlets during the election campaign timeline. Therefore, specific questions are incorporated into the coding sheet to determine the type of framing used. The framings identified through this study are gendered policy issues, non-gendered policy issues, electability, conflict, leadership quality, and others. 3.3 Data Collection and Analysis Krippendorff (2019) has outlined several steps in conducting content analysis that I have adopted as I collected the data, analysed, and discussed the results. The process begins with ‘unitizing’, followed by ‘sampling’, where data samples are gathered and unitized based on metrics that the researcher has determined to achieve the study's objective. For this study, data were collected from respective news portals one month before the election (November 19, 2022) and a month after the election, which took place from October 19, 2022, to December 19, 2022. 39 The two months were chosen to capture the reporting done by both news outlets as the timeline coincided with the 14-day campaigning period before the election and the 14-day post-election period to capture the involvement of female politicians during the cabinet building and announcement after the election concluded and after the period of hung parliament that occurred for the first time in Malaysian history. The pre-election period was chosen as part of the analysis to examine how media organizations report on female politicians’ campaigns and which details are highlighted during this time, particularly during the 14-day campaign period. This period is also beneficial in observing the approach taken by mthe edia in constructing the image of any political actors as well as their chosen frames. Apart from that, looking into the coverage of female politicians after the election could offer the opportunity to observe any pattern of gendered framing that are applied to cabinet ministers, which can be manifested in the depiction of female politicians with feminine characteristics which ultimately assigned them to typically female assigned ministerial portfolios such as health, welfare, and education (Yeong, 2018). Yeong (2018) also pointed out that participating in a masculine and patriarchal environment, such as Malaysian politics, also limits the opportunity for female politicians to achieve success. The challenges for female politicians to thrive in the country are hindered not just by patriarchy but also by ageism, which younger female politicians tend to face regardless of their race and background. There are also issues with setting unrealistic expectations for female politicians, who are expected to take responsibility not only for their constituency but also for addressing general gender-related issues. Malaysia’s ever-changing political environment, which began over the last 17 years, when the dominant party regime shattered after the longest-reigning government failed to secure a majority of the power, has led to the opposition party’s victory in 2018 (Moten, 2009; Nadzri, 2018). Malaysia set a new precedent in its democratic history as the country witnessed a change of guard in the administration from a political group that had ruled the country for 61 years since its establishment in 1957. This significant milestone 40 was considered a ‘victory’ for the nation’s democracy and was a part of the country’s political transformation on all fronts. 3.3.1 Coding scheme and process Each news report was coded using the coding booklet prepared based on the literature review for data analysis. With digital news, a significant amount of data is unstructured, which can be accessed using the intended keywords that help researchers answer their research questions. I found that both Malaysiakini and The Star Online have a fairly accessible article search engine as part of their websites (Riffe et al., 2024). To analyze the data, a coding booklet was developed based on the literature that was reviewed as part of this research. Some of the materials reviewed are a subset of previous studies, which then helps determine the relevant coding variables that emerge during the literature review. After that, all the identified variables were incorporated in the coding sheet, and a pilot test was conducted to test out the coding sheet before it could be used as part of the coding process (Brown et al., 2003). I collected a total of 285 articles (N = 285) from both news outlets across the specified time frame. Data were gathered from the respective news portals’ online databases. To search for news reports by Malaysiakini and The Star Online, several keywords were used to filter the news reports, including ‘GE15’, ‘gender representation’, and ‘women minister’. Each news report was reviewed to identify reports mentioning female politicians or candidates. Stryker et al., (2006) pointed out that one of the first rules in human coding protocol is to determine whether the extracted content is relevant to the study, which can be easily done by having a set of keywords to filter its suitability for data analysis. For this study, the coding booklet comprised 17 variables that emerged from the literature, including the type of framing used in news reports. The coding sheet can be divided into three sections which comprise 1) Part One: provide basic identification for each news story, 2) Part Two: Content, which allows researchers to code the content of the news stories, which includes the framing of the news, and 3) Part 41 Three: focuses on the accompanying visuals, either photo or video that specified the presence of female politicians in it. The variables developed to determine the top framing used in news stories by both outlets can be determined using the measurements below: Types of Framing Question(s) that determine the framing Gendered policy issues - Does the news report highlight female politicians or candidates with issues that are related to child care, poverty, equality, education, healthcare, women’s rights, environment, and drug abuse? - Does the news article contain other feminized issues, such as gender equality and female empowerment? Non-gendered policy issues - Does the news article report on any policies promised by female politicians that are traditionally associated with male politicians? - Does the news report mention any issues brought up by female politicians about indigenous rights, economy, security, legislation, food security, or defense? Electability Does the article highlight or reference the female politicians with other opponents or within their party? Conflict Does the article mostly mention the female politician's involvement in conflicts among political parties or make any allegation of involvement in conflict? 42 Leadership quality - Did the female politician quoted as a candidate or as part of the leadership provide statements on behalf of the party during the election? - What is the position of the female politician quoted in the story? (Does the position of the politician in the party reflected their competency in politics?) - What are the gist of their statement? Other Other refers to issues highlighted that are unrelated to the election Table 3: Types of framing and descriptions for coding sheet Female politicians tend to be associated with issues that are more feminized, and society is more inclined to group them with issues that they think would be more compatible with them, that somehow match their traditional gender role and stereotypes of being more compassionate and motherly. The questions were designed to identify any issues associated with female politicians in Malaysia, particularly those that are perceived as more feminine. Previous studies that looked at the gender stereotypes of female politicians and the issues that they brought up during their campaign revealed that the natural trait of women, which encompasses being more sensitive than their male counterparts, tends to be associated with topics like education, health care, and poverty. Apart from the types of framing, another essential variable was also included in the second part of the coding booklet, which was intended to uncover the data about the practice of associating female politicians or candidates with their male relatives who are also in politics, which is a common practice utilized by Malaysian media which was influenced by cultural nuances of the environment in the country that still prioritized traditional gender roles (Abdul Manan, 2019) 43 The data collected was analyzed using IBM’s Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 30.0, a statistical software, to produce clear visualisations of the variables in a simple percentage format, facilitating inferences. This process, which Krippendorff (2019) refers to as recording or coding, helps researchers dealing with content analysis connect texts and the analyst(s). The justification for coding is to allow researchers to establish a set of analyzable data from which inference or a form of interpretation can be drawn. 3.4 Limitations Like any other research, this study has several limitations that could be addressed in future research. As McMillan (2000) and Weare & Lin (2000) have correctly pointed out, the dynamic quality of online content presents challenges that are not typical of static print media. In this case, the 12-hour time difference between Malaysia and the collection site caused some duplication of stories as well as date variation because the website was continually updating election content. I removed the duplicated articles and opted to use Malaysian time stamps for all dates. Malaysiakini and The Star Online share similarities in terms of having a large digital readership, which indicates the perception of news credibility or trustworthiness of news reports (Kiousis, 2001). Nonetheless, the differences between Malaysiakini and The Star Online primarily consist of the language used in the news reports. Apart from English language news reports, Malaysiakini also reports its news in other languages, such as Bahasa Malaysia, Mandarin, and Tamil, for inclusivity. Within the Malaysian media context, this is a common approach for native digital news outlets that do not have any physical newspaper, like Free Malaysia Today (reports news in English and Bahasa Malaysia). While The Star Online publishes news reports exclusively in English, a typical approach for traditional mainstream media that has expanded to digital platforms, such as other news outlets like the New Straits Times and The Sun Daily. With the similarities and differences that Malaysiakini and The Star Online shared with other news outlets, there are possibility that the two could represent how different news outlets approach political 44 coverage particularly during election, but with the slight differences in news service, media agenda and ownership structure, both news outlets may not be able to offer the same detailed approach of coverage of female politician as other news outlets in the country. 3.4.1 Assessing cultural differences inthe interpretation of the gendered nature of the results To combat these natural obstacles, the current research adopted a specific data collection method. This included considering the time difference between Canada and Malaysia, which can affect the time stamp. Therefore, to ensure that all data were captured, researchers had to take into consideration possible news reports that might spill into the following day. Furthermore, the study concentrated exclusively on newly published articles in the given news sections, as one would find in the news content of a daily newspaper. While being mindful of the sheer volume of election coverage online, this particular concentration provided a viable and consistent body of data to examine, with the capacity to thoroughly explore how these internet portals covered the events as they happened. 45 4. Findings 4.1 Coverage on female politicians by the news outlets My findings emerged from the variables identified in the methodology from a four-week keyword search sample before and after the 2022 General Election. Keywords used as part of the sampling extraction are ‘GE15’, ‘gender representation’, and ‘women minister’ to filter news stories that reported on female politicians to build my database. A total of 147 articles were gathered from Malaysiakini, and 138 articles were found in The Star Online. 4.2 Number of female politicians mentioned in news reports. Number of Female Politicians Mentioned in Malaysiakini One Two Three Four Five More than five Total N 100 24 13 3 6 1 147 % 68.0% 16.3% 8.8% 2.0% 4.1% 0.7% 100.0% Table 4 : Number of female politicians mentioned in Malaysiakini Number of Female Politicians Mentioned in The Star Online One Two Three Four Five More than five Total N 122 7 4 1 1 3 138 % 88.4% 5.1% 2.9% 0.7% 0.7% 2.2% 100.0% Table 5: Number of female politicians mentioned in The Star Online Malaysiakini ran 100 stories that focus on only one female politician, 24 stories with two female politicians mentioned, and 13 stories that mention three female politicians. In Malaysiakini, the stories on one female politician generally took the form of reporting on the electability of female politicians in contesting for their constituency. Malaysiakini would feature campaign-related news, reports from different parts of Malaysia, and a daily recap during the two weeks of the election campaign, which 46 tended to be longer than other regular news reports. An example of a regular electability story is the story about a female politician being fielded in her hometown with the story’s headline “Rina to contest Sepang, crowd cheers for ‘local candidate” (Vinothaa, 2022a). Three stories with four female politicians were mentioned, six stories with five female politicians, and one story was published that mentioned and highlighted more than five female politicians. Most of the time, stories with the mention of more than three female politicians were part of the news outlet’s daily recap, especially during the 14-day election campaign. An example was the news report with the headline of “Day 4 | Perak DAP modifies billboard after getting complaints” (Malaysiakini Team, 2022) that featured five female politicians, such as Siti Rahayu Baharin, Nurul Izzah Anwar, Hannah Yeoh, Rodziah Ismail, and Zuraida Kamaruddin in the daily recap. While the story that mentioned more than five female politicians were seen to be reported after the election in the form of “Post GE” with the headline of “POST-GE15 DAY 1 | 'An MP’s right to support anyone as PM candidate'”(Malaysiakini Team, 2022e) that provided summary of the voting day with 11 female politicians mentioned in it. This article includes the statement of defeat from Zuraida Kamaruddin, who lost her constituency after being the Member of Parliament of Ampang during the last three general elections. The article also provided a short summary about 32 female MPs being elected to the parliament, who carried the bulk of the female politicians mentioned. The Star Online has published 122 stories that mentioned one female politician, 22 more than Malaysiakini. These articles were generally profiles about electability, in which a female politician’s background and previous experience were highlighted. For example, the article, “GE15: Mas Ermieyati named Perikatan's candidate for Masjid Tanah” (The Star Online, 2022) described incumbent Masjid Tanah MP being fielded to contest for the same constituency in the general election. The Star Online published seven stories that mentioned two female politicians, four stories that highlighted three female 47 politicians, and one story that mentioned four and five female politicians. Finally, three stories mentioned more than five female politicians, more than Malaysiakini. Overall, the articles published by The Star Online that focus on more than five female politicians tend to highlight the concept of women politicians contesting in the general election. Two articles serve as good examples. First, “GE15: 187 women vying for state, parliamentary seats” (The Star Online, 2022b) published before the voting day and “GE15: 31 women win parliamentary seats, 15 win state seats”(The Star Online, 2022c) that chronicled a summary of female politicians’ success after the election. These findings indicated that The Star Online tended to focus on one female politician per story, regardless of their political affiliation, to encourage more attention on emerging female politicians who are new to politics. On the other hand, Malaysiakini has more news reports that feature multiple politicians in a single story, due to the type of reporting it conducts, such as combining different stories from all over Malaysia, especially during the campaigning period. The news outlet also features more news stories that mention more than three female politicians in reports dedicated to female politicians, especially young politicians, as seen in news reports such as “First-time women candidates are not just here to fill quotas” (Vinothaa, 2022b). There is a pattern of similarities between the two outlets, in that both shed light on new and unfamiliar candidates, regardless of their political affiliation; however, this is achieved in different ways and approaches. 48 4.3 Common framing of female politicians during GE15 Figure 1: Percentage of common news framing applied by Malaysiakini and The Star Online Figure 1 indicates that the most common framing applied to female politicians during the election cycle that both news outlets employed is electability. The focal point of framing, especially during the election campaigning period, was the electability of the candidates. This can be seen from stories that carried headlines about different candidates being fielded by different parties, especially during the pre-election period. For Malaysiakini, stories with headlines like “Zuraida to defend Ampang seat” (Malaysiakini Team, 2022b), “Wong Tack to take on Young Syefura in Bentong as indie candidate” (Malaysiakini Team, 2022a) and “Zaidi, Nurul Izzah with different missions to win Permatang Pauh”(Bernama, 2022) are some of the stories that highlighted the electability of female candidates, in addition to the field of competitive candidates. In most news reports, when it comes to electability, Malaysiakini did not necessarily mention any background or personal information about female candidates but focused on their qualifications to be elected and fielded in any targeted constituency. However, in some cases, Malaysiakini revealed certain background information about the candidates, such as previous occupations and hometowns. This is 49 evident from the story introducing the first woman candidate from PAS, with the headline “Perlis PAS names first ever woman candidate to contest in Mata Ayer” (Bernama, 2022a), which mentions the area she hails from and her occupation as a lawyer. The Star Online can be observed to report on the electability of female candidates differently, identifying the level of experience of the female politicians. For example, this story with the headline of “Sepang may see battle among women chiefs”(Aziz, 2022) and “GE15: Masjid Tanah set to be among the most hotly contested seats in Melaka”(Murali, 2022) highlighted the battle between the more veteran female politicians. The story focused on the previous experience of the politicians in politics and government. Nonetheless, The Star Online can also be seen to reveal more personal information and background of certain female politicians who participated in the election for the first time. This can be seen in the stories with the headline of “GE15: Social media influencer Cleopatra to contest Batu seat”(Rahim, 2022) and “GE15: Who is Cleopatra?”(The Star Online, 2022c), which focuses on the independent candidate who is also a social media influencer. Both stories revealed Fatihah’s marital background, number of children, and her business. Framing of Female Politicians in Malaysiakini Framing N Percentage Electability 63 42.9% Conflict and Controversy 34 23.1% Gendered Policy Issues 33 22.4% Leadership quality 8 5.4% Non-Gendered Policy Issues 7 4.8% Others 2 1.4% Table 6: Framing of female politicians in Malaysiakini Framing of Female Politician in The Star Online Framing N Percentage Electability 51 37.0% Gendered Policy Issues 27 19.6% 50 Non-Gendered Policy Issues 17 12.3% Others 16 11.6% Conflict and Controversy 15 10.9% Leadership Quality 12 8.7% Table 7: Framing of female politicians in The Star Online Table 5 and 6 showed that electability was the top frame applied by both news outlets. However, the framings that follow after electability are different for both news outlets. Malaysiakini covered more stories with the framing of conflict and controversy, while The Star Online focused more on stories with the framing of gendered policy issues. This can be demonstrated through the report of the internal party conflict that arises among political parties such as Parti Bangsa Malaysia (PBM), helmed by Larry Sng ,and at some point during the campaigning period, Zuraida Kamaruddin claimed the throne as PBM’s president. This can be seen through the publication of stories like “ROS confirms Larry Sng is PBM president, not Zuraida”(Malaysiakini Team, 2022c), “Unperturbed by power struggle, Zuraida aims to take PBM solo in GE15”(Nagotra, 2022), “Umno, MCA tussle over Ampang”(Mohd, 2022b) and “PBM kiss and make up, Sng to sign off on candidates”(Malaysiakini Team, 2022d). Other than PBM, UMNO was also in the limelight as the grand old party shuffled some incumbent Member of Parliament (MP) dropped as the next showrunner for GE15, causing dissatisfaction among National Front (BN) members, among whom are female candidates through stories with headlines of “Wanita Umno info chief: Did BN leaders forget 30pct women candidates vow?”(Alhadjri, 2022), “‘Ask Noraini’, Halimah says over BN's low number of women candidates”(Kow, 2022), and “Day 3 | Umno sacks 4 for running in GE against party’s candidates”(Malaysiakini Team, 2022e). Malaysiakini’s coverage on gendered policy issues came in third, compared to The Star Online, which this frame was non-gendered policy issues. Stories like “First-time women candidates are not just here to fill quotas” (Vinothaa, 2022b), “Muda’s debutante in Tg Karang hopes BN’s split may tip the balance”(Mohd, 2022c), and “BN-PN dawdled on mothers' citizenship rights, now in manifestos”(Kamarulzaman, 2022) 51 are among the news report by Malaysiakini that touched upon the manifesto and promises of female candidate that are gendered by raising issues like equal citizenship by allowing Malaysian mothers to confer their citizenship, education for everyone, and healthcare access to special needs individuals. While, The Star Online’s gendered policy issues framing approach was covered by highlighting manifesto and promises that are explicitly catered towards the women and children, such as free English classes for children and women from this story wit the headline “GE15: Haniza will bank on service record in fight for Hulu Selangor”(The Star Online, 2022c) and female economic empowerment in the story titled “GE15: Lawyer hopes to push for improvements in sexual offence laws if he wins.”(The Star Online, 2022e). Most of the time, gendered policy issues stemmed from the manifesto or promises that female politicians brought up during the election campaigning period, where some female politicians brought up typical gendered policy issues such as the welfare of women, senior citizens, and children in the area, gender equality, education, health, and environment. This can be directly correlated to the sole female politicians mentioned in most of The Star Online’s articles. Many of those articles highlighted the manifesto of female candidates, which tended to be gender-inclined and lived up to the stereotypes of female candidates' coverage in the media. Leadership quality framing was highlighted more in The Star Online due to the outlet speaking to various female leaders from different parties, who spoke on behalf of their respective parties, which tended to be from a similar coalition, namely the BN. This can be observed through the reports with headlines such as “GE15: Barisan's Tee Choon Ser ready to serve in Teruntum”(Indramalar, 2022), “GE15: PBM candidate wants to empower Kapar youths”(Rajendra, 2022), and “Azalina vows to address, amend outdated laws to be relevant with current times”(The Star Online, 2022g). 52 4.4 Sentiment of the article Figure 2: The sentiment of news reports by Malaysiakini Figure 3: The sentiment of news reports by The Star Online Media coverage plays a pivotal role in shaping public perception, particularly during election cycles. The sentiment of news reports can be divided into three categories: neutral, positive, and negative, which are primarily determined by the tone and language used to describe a specific situation or person in the story, 53 particularly relating to female politicians in the story. Neutral sentiment typically consists of stories that does not explicitly indicate the tone of the newspaper through the language or word usage, and it is a description of the situation or the person reported. While positive sentiment referred to an explicitly jovial description of the female politicians in the story, as indicated by the type of words used to describe them, such as “rising star”, negative sentiment referred to words or descriptions used about female politicians that carry a negative charge, such as “controversial”. Malaysiakini’s sentiment of their coverage is primarily neutral, with 76 stories (52 per cent), followed by 46 (31.51 per cent) positive sentiment stories and 24 (16.44 per cent) stories with negative sentiment. Stories that indicate Malaysiakini's neutrality in its reporting can be seen in this specific story: “Muda's minister hunt might earn greenhorn party some scalps” (Kamarulzaman, 2022a), which highlighted the newly established youth party’s ambition to defeat major seats previously held by older ministers. “[...]While the 'Muda lawan menteri' (Muda fights ministers) gambit might seem a daunting task, some of their goals seem attainable”(Kamarulzaman, 2022a, para. 2). This coincided with the electability framing being the top framing used in Malaysiakini’s coverage. As for positive coverage, Malaysiakini’s positive sentiment often used on stories that include positive description of the candidate such as in this story with the headline “Wong Tack likely to make way for Syefura in Bentong” (Yi, 2022) and “Loke sets record straight: Syefura more popular than Wong Tack in Bentong” (Tong & Low Choon Chyuan, 2022) which described Young Syefura as the rising star in the party and more popular in the constituent. Stories with negative sentiment in Malaysiakini tend to be related to conflicts within political parties, such as Bersatu and UMNO, which mostly center around Zuraida Kamaruddin, who has defected from PKR to Bersatu. Within Bersatu, she is seen to clash with the party’s president, Larry Sng. This can be seen in stories like “Ampang-bound, PKR's Rodziah sure of 'traitor' Zuraida's fall” (Mohd, 2022) and “Unperturbed by power struggle, Zuraida aims to take PBM solo in GE15” (Nagotra, 2022). As for negative coverage on UMNO, it can be seen from stories like “Muted BN campaign in Tg Karang as local 54 branches differ over candidate” (Mohd, 2022c), which revealed the internal party’s conflict over the dismissal of a particular senior politician. The Star Online also featured more neutral sentiment of coverage, with 65 (47.10 per cent) stories with neutral sentiment, 62 (44.93 per cent) stories with positive sentiment, and 11 (7.97 per cent) stories with negative sentiment. The difference between The Star Online’s stories with neutral sentiment and those with positive sentiment is marginal, and most of the time, the positive sentiment of coverage within the outlets tends to incorporate positive language to describe female candidates who are in the running. Stories with headlines like “GE15: Zuraida happy to compete with five women candidates for Ampang” (Ahmad, 2022) offered a different take to the conversation around Zuraida who tend to be involved in conflicts and “GE15: Light-hearted moment as Dr Wan Azizah has to U-turn to retrieve MyKad from officers” (Aziz, 2022) which depicted a casual moment from Dr Wan Azizah. Positive sentiment was also found to be used in The Star Online’s coverage on its political candidates from its political affiliation and coalition such as MCA, from stories about its candidates in stories like: “GE15: Barisan's Wong pledges to turn Seremban into educational hub if she takes the seat” (Zack, 2022), “GE15: Barisan's Tee Choon Ser ready to serve in Teruntum” (Indramalar, 2022), and “GE15: Former teacher puts education at the top of her list” (Zack, 2022a). Most of the candidates from the National Front or Barisan Nasional’s coalition were seen to be depicted in a positive light using language like: “Being a former educator herself, it is not surprising that Felicia Wong (pic, 3rd from right) has put education at the top of her list for her 15th General Election (GE15) campaign.” (Zack, 2022a, para. 1) 55 4.4 Appendages to family members and reference to gender stereotypes Figure 4: Mention of male relatives in a news article in Malaysiakini Figure 5: Mention of male relatives in a news article in The Star Online The tendency to associate female candidates with their male relatives is significantly more pronounced in Malaysiakini than in The Star Online. In terms of the number of stories that mentioned male relatives, Malaysiakini covered 16 stories (10.88 per cent) with references to male relatives, which reinforces 56 gender stereotypes that the media have long perpetuated. At the same time, only five stories from The Star Online’s coverage contained references to female politicians to their male family members. Notably, this pattern is evident within Malaysiakini, particularly in the coverage of Wan Azizah Wan Ismail and Nurul Izzah, both related to Anwar Ibrahim, the president of the People’s Justice Party (PKR). However, it is important to clarify that references to their familial ties with Anwar Ibrahim are primarily made in articles centered on him. When the focus shifts to Wan Azizah or Nurul Izzah individually, Malaysiakini generally avoids mentioning their connections to Anwar Ibrahim or each other, suggesting a more nuanced approach in these instances. 4.5 Mention of male relatives in news articles The mention of references such as familial ties, personal background or details, age, appearance, and marital status can be associated with gendered reference, which allows readers to understand the feminine characteristics of the candidate. This reference can be identified through the words described about female politicians, which can be presented in the table below. 57 Reference News Outlet Headline Word extraction Personal background/ details Malaysiakini Perlis PAS names first ever woman candidate to contest in Mata Ayer “Thank God, this time around there is a woman candidate in Perlis, and she has received the blessings of her family to contest,” Malaysiakini Syerleena, Guan Eng's sister named MP candidates by Penang DAP [...] while Hui Ying, the sister of former chief minister Lim Guan Eng will be running in Tanjung. Malaysiakini PN will not sideline Indians after GE15 victory - Azmin Anwar has since announced his candidacy for the Tambun Parliament seat in Perak, while his daughter, Nurul Izzah, is speculated to defend her Permatang Pauh 58 Parliament seat in Penang. Malaysiakini Anwar engaging a ‘proxy war’ for Gombak, Azmin claims During the Oct 28 candidate announcement, PKR revealed that Anwar’s daughter, Nurul Izzah, will be defending her Permatang Pauh seat in Penang[...] Malaysiakini Khairy to contest in Sungai Buloh, source confirms Besides him, two independent candidates are also vying for the seat - lawyer Siti Kasim as well as lesser-known businessperson Nur Fathiah Syazwana. Malaysiakini First-time women candidates are not just here to fill quotas [...]said the single mother of a 16-year-old girl. Malaysiakini First-time women candidates are not just here to fill quotas The youngest of four siblings raised by a single mother, Fadzilah said her work as a civil and Syariah lawyer has exposed her to the many gaps in the system, particularly in cases involving domestic abuse. Malaysiakini POST-GE15 DAY 5 | Anwar answers burning question: Public holiday on Monday Anwar’s daughter Nurul Izzah just arrived as well. The Star Online Young guns bring fresh air to GE15 Tan Kim Nee, 38, contesting for MCA in Tanjong, is a self-professed “foodie.” She is also a gamer, a high-level player of Mobile Legends, a multiplayer online battle arena game popular with the young Chinese community. The Star Online GE15: Liow saddened to hear of Young Syefura's miscarriage, wishes her well Young Syefura, who just turned 33, had posted on Instagram on Thursday (Nov 10) morning that she had suffered a 59 miscarriage. She said she had wanted to announce her pregnancy after the election but it was confirmed that she suffered a miscarriage six weeks into her pregnancy. The Star Online GE15: Don’t pit daughter against father, says Nurulhidayah over Bagan Datuk seat Datuk Nurulhidayah Ahmad Zahid has warned against attempts to pit her against her father for the Bagan Datuk parliamentary seat. The Star Online GE15: Liew faces torrid time in Tawau, say analysts [...] the question remains over whether or not former four-term MP Datuk Abdul Ghapur Salleh’s daughter Noraini Ghapur would live up to her father’s legacy. The Star Online GE15: Tenom's youngest candidate learning the political ropes the hard way Chaw came into the picture after her father’s bid to be nominated failed due to some technical issues. Age Malaysiakini KJ hopes GEG, healthcare blueprint will get approved Zaliha, a 58-year-old family health doctor, is also the first woman to helm the Health Ministry. The Star Online GE15: Battle of two grandmas in Hulu Selangor LOCALS in Hulu Selangor may see the 15th General Election (GE15) contest for the parliamentary seat as a battle of two grandmothers. [...]With a grandchild of her own to protect, she said she is particularly concerned about members of the young generation who vape. Appearance The Star Online GE15: Ketereh Umno warns grassroots may pull Sources said Marzuani, who was also at last 60 support for Barisan if Annuar not contesting night's meeting, was looking rather gloomy. The Star Online GE15: Nomination of disabled candidate proves maturity, openness of Malaysian politics Dressed in a blue baju kurung, she waved at media representatives as she passed through the disabled-friendly access to enter the hall and submit her nomination form. The Star Online GE15: 'God of Prosperity' finally hits the Seputeh campaign trail Armed with a loud hailer, the petite woman was spotted clad in dark pants and white top, calling out to the people to vote for the "cermin mata (spectacles)" symbol on their ballot. Marital status Malaysiakini Pianggu PAS Women's wing branch leader is PN candidate for Tioman She is Tioman PAS Youth leader Muhammad Daud’s wife. The couple has three children. Malaysiakini Where is BN's 30pct women promise, asks dropped incumbent The 61-year-old Mastura, who hails from Rembau, Negeri Sembilan, won the Kuala Kangsar parliamentary seat on June 18, 2016, following the death of her husband - incumbent MP Wan Mohammad Khair-il Anuar in a helicopter crash in Sebuyau, Sarawak on May 5 the same year. Malaysiakini 'Compared to Rafizi, I'm way poorer' - Saarani says Most of PKR’s 72 candidates for GE15 have declared their assets, with PKR president Anwar Ibrahim and his wife Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail being the latest. Malaysiakini PKR candidates declare assets, but Anwar's still missing [...]asset declarations of party president Anwar Ibrahim and his wife Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, which are currently marked “to be updated”. 61 Malaysiakini Anwar and Wan Azizah to declare assets this evening Pakatan Harapan chairperson Anwar Ibrahim and his wife Wan Azizah Wan Ismail will declare their assets as part of the PKR election candidates' assets declaration, this evening. Malaysiakini Anwar declares net assets of RM11 million This came after Malaysiakini reported that most of the candidates have done so, but declarations by Anwar, his wife Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail and secretary-general Saifuddin Nasution Ismail were "to be updated". Malaysiakini Day 6 | Mat Kilau poster calls for 'Malay unity' in Sg Buloh Permatang Pauh has been represented by Anwar Ibrahim, his wife and his daughter for 40 years but things are still the same, says BN candidate Mohd Zaidi Mohd Said. Malaysiakini Asset declaration after cabinet appointment is BN's way - KJ A check on the special website showed that PKR president Anwar Ibrahim declared assets of more than RM11 million, while his wife, PKR advisory chairperson Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail has assets worth RM1.4 million. Malaysiakini PN's Maran candidate says wife's suspension by Umno an 'insult' The Perikatan Nasional candidate for Maran, Ismail Abdul Muttalib, has urged the Umno leadership to exercise caution its decision-making following the suspension of his wife, Fatimah Kassim, as Wanita Umno Maran chief and a party member. Malaysiakini Reject traitor Kamarudin, Anwar urges Bandar Tun Razak voters Kamarudin is defending the seat in this GE15 against former PKR Table 8: Reference to gender stereotypes by news outlets Overall, Malaysiakini can be seen to provide more details in its reporting about the marital conditions and the association between female politicians with male politicians, compared to The Star Online. Eight stories were identified as repeatedly mentioning familial relationships with male politicians, while all ten stories that contained references to marital status among female politicians. Some of the examples of stories that perpetuated strong gendered references, especially regarding familial relationships, included: “Syerleena, Guan Eng's sister named MP candidates by Penang DAP” (Ming & Sinnappan, 2022). It explicitly revealed the relationship of the candidate with another male politician from the headline as well as in the body of the content. For marital status references, six out of 10 articles that highlighted the marital status of the female politicians in Malaysiakini’s news stories repeated the marital status between Anwar Ibrahim and Wan Azizah Wan Ismail. Malaysiakini, however, did not have any explicit descriptions of the appearance of any political candidates during the 2022 election coverage. Even though The Star Online did not necessarily mention male relatives in the coverage of female politicians as much as Malaysiakini, it diverted its focus on familial ties on father-daughter relations, which can be seen from excerpt like ‘[...] the question remains over whether or not former four-term MP Datuk Abdul Ghapur Salleh’s daughter Noraini Ghapur would live up to her father’s legacy” (Ibrahim, 2022, para. 19). On top of that, the news outlet also repeats gender stereotypes by including personal background, appearance, and full-time or previous occupation. Some news articles used specific language that explicitly referred to the age of the female candidates, such as “GE15: Battle of two grandmas in Hulu Selangor” (Michael, 2022), which focused on the age and the number of grandchildren of the female candidates of Hulu Selangor. Another gender stereotypes that only The Star Online explicitly repeated in 62 president Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, who is Anwar's wife, and BN's Chew Yin Keen. its reporting was the descriptions of appearance of female politicians which can be seen from excerpt like “Armed with a loud hailer, the petite woman was spotted clad in dark pants and white top, calling out to the people to vote for the "cermin mata [spectacles]" symbol on their ballot” (M, 2022, para. 6) and “Dressed in a blue baju kurung, she waved at media representatives as she passed through the disabled-friendly access to enter the hall and submit her nomination form.” (The Star Online, 2022b, para. 6) 4.6 News framing applied to female politicians from different parties Framing of female politicians by political affiliation in Malaysiakini Political Party Affiliation Total UMNO PKR DAP Amanah MUDA PAS Bersatu Pejuang PBB Independent PSM PBM Warisan N % N % N % N % N % N % N % N % N % N % N % N % N % N % Framing Gendered Policy Issues 2 9% 19 40% 3 18% 1 33% 2 33% 1 17% 1 8% 2 50% 0 0% 2 33% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 33 22% Electability 4 18% 23 48% 7 41% 1 33% 0 0% 2 33% 9 75% 1 25% 2 100% 3 50% 4 100% 5 36% 2 67% 63 43% Conflict and Controversy 12 55% 4 8% 3 18% 1 33% 0 0% 1 17% 2 17% 1 25% 0 0% 1 17% 0 0% 8 57% 1 33% 34 23% Leadership quality 0 0% 0 0% 2 12% 0 0% 4 67% 1 17% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 1 7% 0 0% 8 5% Non-Gendered Policy Issues 4 18% 1 2% 1 6% 0 0% 0 0% 1 17% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 7 5% Others 0 0% 1 2% 1 6% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 2 1% Total 22 100% 48 100% 17 100% 3 100% 6 100% 6 100% 12 100% 4 100% 2 100% 6 100% 4 100% 14 100% 3 100% 147 100% Table 9: Crosstabulation of framing on female politicians and political party affiliations in Malaysiakini Table 10: Crosstabulation of framing on female politicians and political party affiliations in The Star Online Table 8 and 9 demonstrate the crosstabulation of the framing of female politicians based on their political affiliations. Out of 31 political parties that contested in the 2022 General Election, including independent candidates, only 13 received coverage in Malaysiakini, while The Star Online covered slightly more, with coverage on 15 parties. Nonetheless, the top five political affiliations that received the most coverage 63 Framing of Female Politician by Political Party Affiliation in The Star Online Political Party Affiliation Total UMNO MCA MIC PKR DAP Amanah MUDA PAS Bersatu Pejuang PBB Independent PBM Warisan Aspirasi N % N % N % N % N % N % N % N % N % N % N % N % N % N % N % N % Framing Gendered Policy Issues 0 0% 4 36% 0 0% 10 31% 4 21% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 1 20% 1 20% 2 25% 3 20% 1 13% 1 100% 0 0% 27 20% Electability 8 29% 1 9% 1 100% 13 41% 6 32% 1 100% 0 0% 1 100% 3 60% 1 20% 2 25% 11 73% 3 38% 0 0% 0 0% 51 37% Conflict and Controversy 8 29% 1 9% 0 0% 2 6% 2 11% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 2 25% 0 0% 0 0% 15 11% Leadership Quality 2 7% 2 18% 0 0% 3 9% 0 0% 0 0% 2 100% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 1 13% 0 0% 1 13% 0 0% 1 100% 12 9% Non-Gendered Policy Issues 9 32% 2 18% 0 0% 1 3% 1 5% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 1 20% 1 20% 0 0% 1 7% 1 13% 0 0% 0 0% 17 12% Others 1 4% 1 9% 0 0% 3 9% 6 32% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 2 40% 3 38% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 16 12% Total 28 100% 11 100% 1 100% 32 100% 19 100% 1 100% 2 100% 1 100% 5 100% 5 100% 8 100% 15 100% 8 100% 1 100% 1 100% 138 100% from Malaysiakini during the 2022 General Election are People’s Justice Party (PKR), United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), Democratic Action Party (DAP), Malaysian Nation Party or Parti Bangsa Malaysia (PBM), and Bersatu. For PKR, DAP, and Bersatu, electability was found to be the framing used most often to cover stories related to the political parties. Electability framing was used on PKR stories such as “Can meet but better to meet the people now - Anwar on GTA”(Bernama, 2022a), “PKR candidates declare assets, but Anwar's still missing” (Malaysiakini Team, 2022f), “Anwar declares net assets of RM11 million” (Malaysiakini Team, 2022h), “PKR grassroots want Ginie Lim to contest Alor Gajah” (Raveena Nagotra, 2022f), “Anwar: Indians among country’s poorest, but leaders ‘filthy rich’” (Netto, 2022) which mainly focuses on Wan Azizah and other candidates that did not mention any gendered policy in their coverage. Under independent candidates, stories with headline “I will back Harapan if there is a hung Parliament, Siti Kasim says” (Nadia & Sufian, 2022), “Why pressure me on 'safe seat' Batu? - Siti Kasim fires at Harapan” (Nadia, 2022), “Widened political lens': Batu to see multiple-cornered fight for the seat” (Nadia, 2022b) and “Students' safety takes centre stage as five GE15 candidates converge in Batu” (Vinothaa, 2022c) are among the stories that was covered by Malaysiakini which focuses on independent candidate named Siti Kassim. While UMNO and PBM were mostly covered using the conflict and controversy framing. Stories like “PBM to use own logo in GE15” (Bernama, 2022b), “Ampang-bound, PKR's Rodziah sure of 'traitor' Zuraida's fall” (Mohd, 2022a), “Where is BN's 30pct women promise, asks dropped incumbent” (Malaysiakini Team, 2022e), and “Wanita Umno info chief: Did BN leaders forget 30pct women candidates vow?” (Alhadjri, 2022). As for The Star Online, the top five political affiliations that the news outlet covered are PKR, UMNO, DAP, Independent candidates, and MCA. The news outlet used electability framing in its coverage of PKR, DAP, and independent candidates’ stories compared to the political parties affiliated with the ownership of the publication. Such stories can be seen from the publication before and after election such 64 as “GE15: Nomination of disabled candidate proves maturity, openness of Malaysian politics” (The Star Online, 2022b) that highlighted the electability of the disabled candidate, “GE15: Maintenance of public facilities, traffic issues key concerns in Bandar Tun Razak” (Lim, 2022), story that mentioned the issues that Wan Azizah intend to solve if she wins the constituency, “Education Minister urged to also focus on early childhood education” (The Star Online, 2022i) and “We want what is best for the people, says Zaliha” (Carvalho, 2022) which focuses on the ability of the newly elected education minister, Fadhlina Sidek who were tasked to helm the education ministry and Dr Zaliha Mustafa, the first female health ministry. After PKR, independent candidates received the most stories using the electability framing, such as “GE15: Record 108 independent candidates contesting parliamentary seats” (The Star Online, 2022c), “GE15: Independent candidate sole woman in six-cornered fight for Sungai Buloh” (Chan, 2022), “GE15: 187 women vying for state, parliamentary seats” (The Star Online, 2022d) and “GE15: Khairy says wants to be PM someday, but not right now” (Chan, 2022b). Most of the stories published underscored the electability of independent female candidates. For the coverage of female candidates from UMNO, most of the coverage was framed with non-gendered framing, followed by equal numbers of stories (8) using the framing of electability and gender framing. While for MCA, most news outlets' coverage of the candidates from this party primarily used gendered policy issue framing. Evidently, both Malaysiakini and The Star Online published articles about PKR under the framing of gendered policy issues. This can be seen from stories by Malaysiakini such as “PKR candidate: Won't back down, fair chance for disabled M'sians” (Mohd & Alhadjri, 2022), “Zaidi, Nurul Izzah with different missions to win Permatang Pauh”(Bernama, 2022d), and “Can meet but better to meet the people now - Anwar on GTA”(Bernama, 2022a) which highlighted the issues that the candidates mentioned would like to address which are more inclined towards feminine issues such as access to healthcare for women and children as well as environment. 65 5. Discussion My findings indicated that during Malaysia’s 2022 General Election, Malaysiakini and The Star Online showed persistence of gender stereotypes, even though both outlets dedicated significant time and space to covering the political agendas of female candidates. These main results replicate previous coverage of English language media in Malaysia, specifically in the repetition of gender stereotypes and the use of positive frames, a phenomenon also observed in Malaysiakini’s reporting during the 2018 election. Both news outlets shared similar framing approaches: 'Electability' and ‘Gendered policy issues’, particularly on stories on PKR, as it appeared as the most covered political party for both outlets. This echoes the double bind identified in Western studies, where women in politics often face contradictory expectations (Teele et al., 2018). This research contributes to the existing literature by demonstrating the presence of gender stereotypes in both news outlets examined, while notably identifying a greater use of neutral frames in one. This suggests a more objective outlook, which fosters a more level playing field in the portrayal of female politicians within the larger political discourse. Both outlets contributed and showed traces of gendered framing, manifesting in different areas. Malaysiakini featured a dedicated fourteen-day recap that showcased campaigning strategies by all candidates from across Malaysia, including female candidates on most days, alongside other male candidates, and included profiling pieces dedicated to female candidates. As for The Star Online, the outlet published a number of single articles focusing on female candidates that highlighted candidates’ policy approaches, not necessarily their affiliated political party, MCA, and its coalition the National Front (Barisan Nasional) but news outlet also covers stories about policy by female politicians from different political parties. However, the outlet still mentioned candidates’ educational background, marital status, appearance, and used gendered language. This can be seen in one news report titled “GE15: Battle of two grandmas in Hulu Selangor" (Michael, 2022). In terms of partisanship, both Malaysiakini and The Star Online covered stories mostly on the PKR candidates. Unlike Malaysiakini, The Star Online did 66 cover politicians from the Barisan Nasional’s coalition. This result is likely due to its ownership structure, that are directly related to MIC, who is part of the coalition, even though the news outlet strives to be more objective in its coverage. Ultimately, this indicated that, regardless of ownership, both news outlets were persistently gendered, with independent media, such as Malaysiakini, being more progressive compared to mainstream media, such as The Star Online, which contradicted a central hypothesis of this study. Despite the persistence of news outlets in producing coverage that contains gender stereotypes, the findings largely demonstrate a significant commitment among Malaysian media to striving for equal coverage of female candidates. The marginal differences between the two news outlets indicated the progress of mainstream media like The Star Online from the assumption of reporting political news in a certain way that put their connection to any political affiliation on a pedestal. My initial assumption is that The Star would cover more stories about female candidates from MCA compared to candidates from other parties. Although they had slightly more news on MCA compared to Malaysiakini, it was still a handful. In a way, the findings also show a degree of progress in that both outlets devoted space and time to reporting on female candidates, which is crucial in leveling the playing field and could contribute to sparking more conversation about women's participation in politics in the long run. However, it replicated previous scholars’ work on Malaysian media's perpetuation of gendered framing in previous elections. On the other hand, when it comes to media practices, there are clear indicators that Malaysian press have a lot to improve on in their reporting on female candidates, especially in terms of language, highlighting familial ties with male politicians, marriage status, background, and personal status. Furthermore, this research could also inform strategies to mitigate gender bias in media coverage, thereby providing more equitable representation in Malaysia. Another aspect of this study highlights the media outlets’ focus on gendered or feminine-inclined policy issues, which can serve as a signal to female politicians in the 67 country to be more proactive in participating in non-gendered policy issues, such as security, economy, and immigration, in the future. 5.1 The lingering persistence of gender stereotypes Despite its reputation for being independent and objective in its coverage, Malaysiakini relied on patriarchal descriptors in its coverage. Examples include describing the familial relationships of female politicians with other male politicians, such as Wan Azizah and Nurul Izzah, who are the wife and daughter, respectively, of the current Prime Minister, Anwar Ibrahim. The descriptors about familial and marital ties in newspaper coverage were also found in studies done by Abdul Manan (2019), Kaur & Shaari (2012), and Rajaratnam et al., (2020). This study concludes that gender remains a significant frame through which the media sets the narrative and defines political news. Gender stereotypes are still a common practice to a certain degree among the Malaysian press, regardless of its ownership. This reinforces, to some degree, what previous research highlighted, which was the persistence of patriarchal media coverage within the society that can hinder the progression of the general female population, not just exclusively on female politicians (Abdul Manan, 2019). The fact that the difference in coverage of female politicians between the two news outlets is marginal indicates that both news outlets have allocated platforms and space for female politicians to showcase their ability to lead a constituency by discussing about topics that matter to the voters. Nonetheless, there is still evidence that echoed the same results as studies on previous elections, which is to connect female politicians to male relatives such as father, husband or brother. As Abdul Manan (2019) found, the media have the tendency to portray female politicians in a way that erode their credibility, which also means that they are still dependent on their gender and not independent in conducting their own political career. 68 5.2 Emergence of common news framings Electability and gendered policy issues that emerged as the common framings diminished any distinguishable differences expected among media outlets based on their ownership. In this study, most of the electability framings were applied when the news coverage was reported in a neutral tone, indicating that both Malaysiakini and The Star Online adhere to some objective standards in their news coverage of elections. This was evident in Malaysiakini, as demonstrated in an article published on October 26, which reported: Earlier today, DAP secretary-general Anthony Loke announced that Young Syefura will contest against former MCA president Liow Tiong Lai, who defeated Wong in 2013 but lost to him in 2018. Speaking at a press conference after announcing the candidacy, Loke said he believed Young Syefura is a winnable candidate in Bentong. “The decision is made not just based on observations, but there is also a survey, and we believe she is a winnable candidate there."If elected, she will become DAP’s first Malay female MP and I put my trust in her, having served the area for five years. She also has a good track record among voters in the Ketari constituency. “That is one of the factors that can help the party to win the seat,” said Loke. (Malaysiakini Team, 2022, para. 6) When it comes to gendered issue policies, previous studies showed that female candidates received more coverage when they talked about topics that tended to be associated with ‘feminine’ issues other than economy, finance, and immigration. The results of gendered policy issues being part of the common framing type employed by the respective journalism organizations are not a surprising element, as it aligns with previous research on media coverage of female candidates. Scholars have also noted that female politicians tend to focus on feminized policy issues due to the perceived competence of women in handling various issues, which sometimes pigeonholes them into specific categories of issues, fearing they may not be able to deliver on their promises. (Andrich & Domahidi, 2024; Azmi et al., 2024; Ozer, 2023). 5.3 The different manifestations of gender stereotypes Despite sharing the same framing approaches, Malaysiakini and The Star Online employed different methods to perpetuate gender stereotypes in their coverage. The results of this study pointed out that even when a media outlet is considered progressive due to its nature of objectivity and neutrality, Malaysiakini still repeated the same pattern of gender stereotypes by explicitly stating the marriage status or the 69 relationship between female and male politicians, most of the time applied to female politicians. This can erode the credibility and competence of female politicians. The Star Online, on the other hand, tended to highlight background, appearance, and personal details of female politicians to ‘feminize’ them to the audience and indicate that they have feminine and maternal instincts to tackle some of the work within the constituency. This result aligns with previous studies that found female candidates during elections tended to be portrayed in a certain light using feminized descriptors (Abdul Manan, 2019; Rajaratnam et al., 2018; Van Der Pas & Aaldering, 2020). Apart from gender stereotypes, female politicians in Malaysia also faced implicit discrimination related to age (see Ng, (2010)), which can be seen through the language used by The Star Online as part of their headlines and in its body of content to describe the battle of two female politicians who are senior in age. These feminized descriptors are not a common practice between the two news outlets, however, they still indicate that describing what women wear and their details is unnecessary in achieving gender equality, especially in reputable media institutions like Malaysiakini and The Star Online. 5.4 Framings according to political parties Both Malaysiakini and The Star Online shared a similar pattern of the most coverage on the first top three political parties, which were PKR, UMNO, and DAP, in the same order. The two outlets also covered PKR in a similar manner in terms of the framing application, where most of their coverage employed the electability frame, followed by gendered policy issues. The similarities in framing application indicated that the female politicians from PKR presented themselves in way that showed their electability, but when they started talking about their manifesto which mainly centered on gendered-related issues, the news outlets used gendered policy issues to frame their stories which aligned with the study conducted by Kaur & Shaari (2012) which pointed out that female candidates tended to be covered through their manifesto of social issues. 70 Interestingly, the two bottom political parties that the two outlets covered are different. Malaysiakini covered mostly PBM and Bersatu, with the same framing of electability and conflict as the two parties faced internal conflicts during the election involving female politicians. The Star Online provided more coverage of independent candidates within an electability frame, as well as the MCA with a gendered policy issues frame. The Star Online can be seen to focus on specific independent female candidates, particularly Cleopatra, a social media influencer who has gained traction among Malaysian social media users despite various controversies in the past. Kaur & Shaari (2012) also highlighted that certain Malaysian media tended to highlight candidates with controversy, which undermines the ability of women in politics. Finally, it is expected that The Star Online will cover MCA, but not to the extent that this study found, which contradicts the hypothesis that media ownership influences coverage. This is an important finding that indicates Malaysian media is shifting towards more progressive coverage, rather than pro-political party coverage, and providing more objective coverage, which contrasts with the previous study on Malaysian media. (J. P. Abbott, 2011) 71 6. Conclusion The findings of this study demonstrate a significant commitment among Malaysian media to striving for equal coverage of female candidates, especially in this nuanced environment, compared to other studies on media coverage of female politicians in the Global North. The findings also extend previous scholars’ work on Malaysian media perpetuating gendered framing in earlier elections by comparing two digital mainstream media outlets, which have not been done for this specific election cycle (GE15). The novel findings from this study show the framings that were shaped by cultural aspects and the nuances of the country and media practices. In retrospect, the findings also show a degree of gender progress in that both outlets by devoted space and time to reporting on female candidates, which is crucial in leveling the playing field and could contribute to sparking more conversation about women's participation in politics in the long run, especially with the progress, development and political maturity that Malaysia had gone through in the last decade, which accelerated by the 14th general election in 2018 that can be a shock to mainstream media that have deep connection and ties with previous government that have influenced how things are done in the news outlet. These changes, despite being small, are essential in moving the needle on media reform and ensuring that Malaysian media remain objective in their political reporting and coverage. Another significant finding is that media ownership can no longer dictate the type of coverage expected from news outlets, signaling a shift in media progression among Malaysian media. The grip of political affiliation on media may be wearing off as Malaysians have more options for choosing news that they believe to be accurate, unbiased, and trustworthy. This has left many news outlets with no choice but to abide by the public demand for readership and sustainability, especially among mainstream media. This can be seen particularly through the coverage of The Star Online, that are a lot more diverse and not entirely one-sided. When it comes to media practices, there are clear indicators that Malaysian media have a lot to improve on in their reporting on female candidates, especially in terms of language, highlighting 72 familial ties with male politicians, marriage status, background, and personal status (Abdul Manan, 2019). Furthermore, this research could also inform strategies to mitigate gender bias in media coverage, thereby providing more equitable representation in Malaysia. Another aspect of this study highlights the media outlets’ focus on gendered or feminine-inclined policy issues, which can serve as a signal to female politicians in the country to be more proactive in participating in non-gendered policy issues, such as security, economy, and immigration, in the future. Future research should include other media outlets in different languages available in Malaysia to provide a more comprehensive outlook on media practices regarding female candidates during the election period. Ultimately, examining the role of media literacy in enabling individuals to engage with gendered and partisan narratives critically is essential for navigating the complexities of the modern media landscape. Media practitioners can utilize this study to identify patterns of gendered framing and stereotypes that it perpetuates and, in turn, train current or future journalists on best practices in covering female politicians that do not amplify gender disparities, especially in preparation for the upcoming 2028 election. Politicians on the other hand could potentially use the materials from this study to strategize their upcoming campaign materials to start tapping into issues that they can champion without it being exclusively catered to women or children but to look into opportunities to improve talking talking points about more masculine and serious topics like immigration, security and economy. Most previous studies employed a comparative news sites methodologically, such as Tamil or Chinese language news organizations, spanning Media Studies to Linguistics. Repetition of gender stereotypes is the overall finding. For example, within the Malay language, news organizations focused on appearances, but there were some studies where the media were found to play a more neutral role (Rajaratnam et al., 2018). They found that women politicians tended to discuss issues related to them, such as healthcare and women’s empowerment, and were deemed more credible due to their gender positioning. Another study 73 also looked at the ability of female politicians to multitask in the private and public sphere as a strength, and part of the appeal to voters, and they can also juggle the responsibilities of a member of parliament. Therefore, future studies should expand the scope of analysis to include a wider array of media outlets operating in Malaysia, particularly those publishing in different languages such as Malay, Tamil, and Mandarin. Such a comprehensive approach would provide a more thorough understanding of media practices regarding female candidates across the nation's diverse linguistic and cultural landscape. Another recommendation for future studies is to limit the focus on political affiliation to manage data better and avoid the risk of bias. This is because researchers may inadvertently focus more on prominent parties or those that align with their initial hypotheses, neglecting the perspectives of smaller or less vocal groups. Finally, recognizing that media consumption is not a passive activity, future research should also critically examine the role of media literacy among the Malaysian populace, especially during political instability, to hold the media accountable. 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The following questions in this booklet are derived from the two research questions below: RQ 1: What common news framing applied to female politicians during the election cycle that both news outlets used? RQ 1: What are the differences in news framing for female politicians from different parties? The hypotheses for this study are as follows: H1: Female politicians tend to be covered stereotypically as an appendage of their male family members who are also in politics, such as husband and father. As for female politicians who do not have familial connections in politics, the media tend to focus on their previous career and achievements. H2: Independent media is more progressive regarding their coverage of female politicians during the GE15. H3: Media ownership influences the stereotypical coverage of female politicians, whereas independent media is less stereotypical. In contrast, a non-independent media outlet is inclined to be more stereotypical in its news reportage. PART ONE ID of News Story (Story identification number) Date of Publication DD/MM/YYYY Story headline News outlet [1] Malaysiakini [2] The Star Online PART TWO (Content) Number of female politicians mentioned [1] One [2] Two [3] Three [4] Four [5] Five 88 [6] More than 5 Name of female politician Political party affiliation National Front (Barisan Nasional - BN) [1] United Malays National Organization (UMNO) [2] Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA) [3] Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC) [4] United Sabah People's Party Alliance of Hope (Pakatan Harapan - PH) [5] People’s Justice Party (PKR) [6] Democratic Action Party (DAP) [7] National Trust Party (Amanah) [8] United Progressive Kinabalu Organisation (UPKO) [9] Malaysian United Democratic Alliance (MUDA) The National Alliance (Perikatan Nasional - PN) [10] Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party (PAS) [11] Malaysian Indigenous Unity Party (Bersatu) [12] Malaysian People's Movement Party (Gerakan) Gerakan Tanah Air [13] Homeland Fighters' Party / Parti Pejuang Tanah Air [14] Parti Bumiputera Perkasa Malaysia (PUTRA) [15] Berjasa [16] National Indian Muslim Alliance Party (Iman) Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) [17] Sabah Progressive Party (Parti Maju Sabah - PMS) [18] Parti Solidariti Tanah Airku (STAR) [19] United Sabah Party (PBS) [20] United Sabah National Organisation (USNO) [21] Bersatu Sabah Gabungan Parti Sarawak [22] PBB - United Bumiputera Heritage Party (Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu - PBB) [23] Sarawak Peoples' Party (Parti Rakyat Sarawak - PRS) [24] Progressive Democractic Party (PDP) [25] Sarawak United People’s Party (SUPP) [26] Independent candidate [27] Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) 89 [28] Parti Bangsa Malaysia (PBM) [29] Parti Warisan [30] Parti Sarawak Bersatu [31] Sarawak Aspiration People’s Party (Aspirasi) Framing of Female Politicians: [1] Gendered policy issues (child care, poverty, equality, education, healthcare, women’s rights, environment, and drug abuse) [2] Electability (by referencing a candidate with other opponents or within their party) [3] Conflict and controversy(Conflict that arises among political parties or any allegation of involvement in conflict) [4] Leadership quality (For female politicians who spoke on behalf of the party) [5] Non-gendered topics (Economy, food security, Indigenous people’s rights, legislation, defense and security) [6] Other Mention of Male Relatives in Politics: [1] Yes [2] No Mention of male politician in the story [1] Yes [2] No In which part of the article was the female politician quoted? [1] Headline [2] Upper half of the report [3] Lower half of the report [4] Photocaption [5] Not related Sentiment of the article? [1] Positive [2] Negative [3] Neutral Proportion of coverage given to female politician [1] Primary focus [2] Relatively equal with a male candidate [3] Minor mention PART THREE (Photo) 90 Number of the accompanying photo [1] One [2] Two [3] Three [4] Four [5] more than 4 [6] Not related Female politician shown in attached photo? [1] Yes [2] No [3] Not related The number of accompanying videos [1] One [2] Two [3] Three [4] Not related Female politician shown in attached video? [1] Yes [2] No [3] Not related 91
Thesis/Dissertation
eng
Journalism
Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library
Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International
Graduate
Young, Mary Lynn
Ostwald, Kai
Family appendages or feminist possibilities? : A framing analysis of female candidates in the 2022 general elections (GE15) in Malaysiakini and The Star Online
Text