Supervisors:
Dr Tabe Bergman (Department of Media and Communication, XJTLU); Dr Dharmananda Adhikari (Department of Media and Communication, XJTLU); Dr Debora Malito (Deparment of International Studies, XJTLU); Dr Vera Slavtcheva-Petkova (Department of Communication and Media, University of Liverpool)
Email: kimquy@liverpool.ac.uk
Research topic:
Based on feminist geopolitics and the gender stereotype media lens, this study explains how the Western media portrays Muslim women in conflicts, particularly in the case of Kurdish female fighters and IS women, according to their different positions and use of values in non-state armed movements. A comparative case study design is implemented by researching primary data of Western media articles taken from CNN, Agence France Press (AFP), and the BBC between June 2014 and 2018 via the five mainframes of power of women in its groups; struggles for equality/liberation; personal/emotional motivations; physical appearance and otherness.
The research is expected to point out that the Western media constantly attempts to shape the public perception by strategically culturally manipulating and misrepresenting women's representations. Based on this manipulative ability, the general press, mainly Western news, plays an essential role in shaping public sentiment about conflicts, including the war against IS.
While previous scholarship does not point out the profound difference in the way the democratic media describe various female forces with the same label and joining in the same battle, the study fills in the gap by comparing the Western media representations of Kurdish female fighters and IS women, the reasons for this phenomenon, and how the West has shaped conflicts through the women's portrayals.
Research areas: Feminist geopolitics; gender stereotypes in media; Muslim women; Western media; women's representation; cultural manipulation.
Academic achievements:
2023-2027: Fully funded scholarship to pursue PhD programme, XJTLU
2020-2021: Government of Ireland Scholarship, Irish Aid
- Awarded the fully funded Government of Ireland Scholarship under the Irish Development Experience Sharing Programme (IDEAS) to pursue MA at Dublin City University
2020-2021: Certificate of Excellence, Dublin City University
- Presented to students with achievement and contribution to the University
2021-present: Member of Irish Network for Middle Eastern and North African Studies
- Attended network meetings, discussions, and published an article https://inmenas.blogspot.com/2021/07/a-gender-analysis-of-western-media.html