PRETTY MEAN SISTERS: A CRITICAL DISCOURSE ANALYSIS OF BLACK WOMEN IN WORLD WRESTLING ENTERTAINMENT
Open Access
Author:
Boyer, Jordan
Graduate Program:
Communications (MA)
Degree:
Master of Arts
Document Type:
Master Thesis
Date of Defense:
November 04, 2021
Committee Members:
Jeffrey Beck, Program Head/Chair Stephanie Leigh Morrow, Thesis Advisor/Co-Advisor Jennifer F Hamer, Committee Member Mary Zaborskis, Committee Member
Keywords:
wwe women black wrestlemania representation
Abstract:
World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) is the world-leader in professional wrestling and sports entertainment, with millions of weekly viewers and a large social media presence. The company has promoted their women’s division in recent years more than ever, yet the number of black women signed to the company remains lower than their white counterparts. Black women in the WWE have been used sparingly in the past thirty years and are often portrayed unfairly and incorrectly, furthering negative stereotypes for black people in the media. Black viewers are a large aspect of the WWE viewership and more fair representation on WWE programming could greatly increase positive media portrayals for them as well as other ethnicities. The hypothesis for this research believes that black women in WWE will be portrayed more negatively during the first two decades of the company’s prominence compared to the last decade. This research discusses five of the most prominent black women in WWE over the past thirty years and uses a mixed method analysis to uncover underlying discourse behind their depictions. Critical discourse analysis is used through the theoretical framework of feminism, black feminism and critical race theory as well as a survey of black women WWE fans to understand their perception of the WWE product.
