missing white woman syndrome
- noun
- /ˈmɪsɪŋ waɪt ˈwʊmən ˈsɪndroʊm/
- Literature
:
síndrome de la mujer blanca desaparecida
- Many activists have criticized missing white woman syndrome for perpetuating racial and gender biases in media reporting.
Examples
-
The documentary explored the effects of missing white woman syndrome on public perceptions of crime.
-
She argued that missing white woman syndrome leads to unequal treatment of missing persons cases.
-
The media often highlights missing white woman syndrome in their coverage.
-
Have you noticed the missing white woman syndrome in recent news?
-
Many activists have highlighted missing white woman syndrome as a critical issue affecting media coverage of crime.
-
Critics argue that missing white woman syndrome demonstrates society's biases towards certain demographics in missing person cases.
-
The study revealed how missing white woman syndrome influences public interest and resource allocation in missing persons investigations.
How Biased
- Literature
- Literature
- Literature
1
5.5
- Literature
446
2.7
Surface Forms
Morphology
missing + white + woman + syndrome
A B1 learner who knows 'missing', 'white', 'woman' and 'syndrome' can infer this refers to a recurring phenomenon concerning missing white women because 'syndrome' signals a pattern. However, the specific sociological meaning — that news media give disproportionate attention to such cases while neglecting others — is a metaphorical/technical extension (media bias) not directly predictable from the literal words, so the expression is only partially transparent.
Etymology
Missing white woman syndrome comes from a pattern in TV news: when a missing white woman appears, cameras, headlines and public interest often grow a lot while other missing people get little attention. People started calling this unequal attention a 'syndrome' because it happened again and again. So today the phrase means 'the tendency of news media to give more attention to missing white women than to other missing people'.