A CRITICAL DISCOURSE ANALYSIS OF GENDERED, POWER RELATIONS, AND MEDIA REPRESENTATION IN DAILY TRUST NEWSPAPER

Abstract

This research paper employs a Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) of media representation to analyse how gendered Power relations are linguistically constructed in Nigerian newspapers, with specific reference to the Daily Trust newspaper. Ten articles from the Daily Trust newspaper were used to investigate how sociopolitical and geographical factors influence gender narratives. The paper investigates how language, ideology and Power intersect in media texts. Nigeria is facing a major gender equality crisis, marked by political exclusion, economic marginalisation and an upsurge in gender-based violence. Media discourse frequently perpetuates patriarchal norms by obscuring male culpability with passive constructs. Women are still disproportionately underrepresented in government and their empowerment is sometimes promoted as an economic need rather than a fundamental right. The paper also identifies that systemic injustices persist due to enforcement gaps and extremely low conviction rates. It also demonstrates how context-specific state-level innovations and data-driven lobbying are impacting gender-related rhetoric. Crucially, the media serve two functions: they perpetuate gender stereotypes while simultaneously presenting counter-narratives that highlight women's autonomy and political potentiality. The paper further contributes to international debates about media representation, gender justice and inclusive democratic growth in technologically developing nations by uncovering the ideological work embedded in newspaper language.

 Keywords: Power, Media, Discourse, Gender, Inequality.