Reporting Romania's 2009 European elections: press coverage and viability of the male and female candidates

Abstract

This article aims to analyze and compare the press coverage of the two most visible male and female candidates for a Member of the European Parliament office during the campaign for the European elections held in Romania, June 2009. The present study examines a month of coverage in the four most influential broadsheets and tabloids in Romania: Cancan, EvenimentulZilei, Gândul and Libertatea. Using a design of content analysis, the results of this paper emphasize that Elena Băsescu received less coverage than did George Becali. There were also found qualitative differences in coverage, attributed to Elena Băsescu’s gender, who was depicted as not being viable to represent the Romanians interests in Brussels.