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Gender Schemas and the Public/Private Paradoxes Surrounding the Bristol Palin Pregnancy Story Erin Schmidt

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Gender Schemas and the Public/Private Paradoxes Surrounding the Bristol Palin Pregnancy Story Erin Schmidt Florida State University Libraries Electronic Theses, Treatises and Dissertations The Graduate School 2009 Impregnating Politics: Gender Schemas and the Public/Private Paradoxes Surrounding the Bristol Palin Pregnancy Story Erin Schmidt Follow this and additional works at the FSU Digital Library. For more information, please contact [email protected] FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF COMMUNICATION AND INFORMATION IMPREGNATING POLITICS: GENDER SCHEMAS AND THE PUBLIC/PRIVATE PARADOXES SURROUNDING THE BRISTOL PALIN PREGNANCY STORY By ERIN SCHMIDT A Thesis submitted to the College of Communication and Information in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Degree awarded: Summer Semester, 2009 The members of the committee approve the thesis of Erin Schmidt defended on July 7, 2009. __________________________________ Donna Nudd Professor Directing Thesis __________________________________ Davis Houck Committee Member __________________________________ Jeanette Castillo Committee Member The Graduate School has verified and approved the above-named committee members. ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to express the deepest appreciation to Dr. Donna Marie Nudd, who has served not only as a dedicated committee chair but also as a respected mentor and friend during my time at Florida State University. Without her support and guidance this work would not be possible. I would also like to extend my gratitude to my committee members: Dr. Davis Houck, who made me a better scholar by asking the tough questions and believing in my capabilities; and Dr. Jeanette Castillo, whose expertise in the area of netizen discourse and enthusiasm for the project kept me focused and energized. I am grateful for the support of faculty, staff, and colleagues I have worked with in the Department of Communication at Florida State University. From the staff, I would like to extend special thanks to Ms. Hinson-Turner for her care and attention. I would be remiss to forget the person who started me on this journey: my undergraduate mentor, Dr. Sook-Young Lee. Thank you for sparking my curiosity and building a solid foundation for successful graduate study. Finally, I would like to thank my parents, Harry and Linda, for helping their first- generation college student aspire to greater heights. Their unfaltering love, patience, and support convince me that I am the luckiest daughter alive. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract ................................................................................................ v 1. INTRODUCTION ................................................................................. 1 1.1 Review of Literature ....................................................................... 3 1.1.1 Situating Teen Pregnancy within a Discourse of Reproductive Control .......................................................... 3 1.1.2 Historical Trends in the Discourse on Teen Pregnancy ...... 5 1.1.3 The “Epidemic” of Teen Pregnancy ................................... 5 1.1.4 The “Moral Majority” ......................................................... 6 1.1.5 Contemporary Cultural Discourse on Teen Pregnancy ...... 7 1.2 Questions for Research ................................................................... 9 1.3 Theoretical Considerations ............................................................. 9 1.3.1 Feminist Theory and the Public and Private Spheres ......... 10 1.3.2 Gender Schemas.................................................................. 11 1.4 Methodology ................................................................................... 12 2. WOMEN’S WORK: SARAH PALIN, MOTHERHOOD, AND STATESMANSHIP .............................................................................. 15 2.1 The Good Mother ............................................................................ 16 2.2 Mothering a Nation ......................................................................... 20 2.3 Mother Knows Best ........................................................................ 23 3. BRISTOL PALIN, TEEN PREGNANCY, AND THE PUBLIC/PRIVATE DICHOTOMY ..................................................... 26 3.1 Private Lives ................................................................................... 26 3.1.1 “Not Another Welfare Mom” ............................................. 30 3.1.2 Morality Cops ..................................................................... 31 3.1.3 What’s the Deal with “Baby Daddy”? ................................ 34 3.1.4 White Trash Tragedy .......................................................... 35 3.2 Situating the Pregnancy in the Public Sphere ................................. 37 4. CONCLUSION ..................................................................................... 43 REFERENCES .......................................................................................... 47 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH ...................................................................... 51 iv ABSTRACT The purpose of this study was fourfold: first, to analyze reader evaluations of Sarah Palin’s role in the pregnancy as mother and statesperson; second, to identify and examine the major rhetorical strategies used to position Bristol Palin as either a private or public subject; third, to identify the schemas, or stereotypes, employed in discussions about Bristol Palin’s teen pregnancy and how these schemas were reinforced, negotiated, and/or rejected through reader discourse; and fourth, to understand how these rhetorical themes implicate and influence the metadiscourse surrounding teen pregnancy in the United States. To investigate these questions, a feminist rhetorical analysis was performed on reader responses to the news of Bristol Palin’s pregnancy from a sample consisting of conservative, liberal, and popular internet news sites. v CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION When a statement released by the McCain campaign headquarters on September 1, 2008 announced that the seventeen-year-old daughter of Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin was pregnant, it sparked media frenzy on a national scale. The story provoked commentary from diverse segments of the population – from liberal feminists to Christian coalitions; entertainment media to political pundits. Within a matter of hours, “Bristol” became a household name. From a feminist perspective, one of the most fascinating and troubling aspects of the Bristol Palin story is the unmistakable tension it created between the public and private sphere. Since the 1960s, the topic of teen pregnancy has secured a firm, if precarious, foothold in public policy debates. For many citizens, news of Palin’s daughter’s unplanned pregnancy was an appropriate catalyst for a renewed examination of current policy debates regarding topics such as sex education curricula and the availability of contraceptives to minors. It seemed especially relevant in light of Governor Palin’s support of initiatives such as abstinence-only sex education and her influential involvement in the pro-life women’s rights group Feminists for America (Emerling, 2008). Furthermore, many cited Palin’s willingness to thrust her daughter into the public spotlight as ample justification for public commentary. While for many the topic of Bristol Palin’s pregnancy seemed a legitimate platform for public policy debate and a closer examination of Palin’s ethos as a public servant, many others argued that protecting the teenager’s privacy should trump all other concerns. Spokespeople from both McCain and Obama camps called for a “hands-off” media approach to the sordid affair. Obama “warned the media to ‘back off’ any criticism of Bristol's pregnancy and told reporters that families – especially children – should be off limits during the presidential campaign” (Emerling, 2008, p. A1). A spokesperson for McCain told the Los Angeles Times that, "It's a private family matter. Life happens in families. If people try to politicize this, the American people will be appalled by it" (Barabak, 2008, p. A1). 1 However, such calls for decorum and civility did nothing to quell the heated debate and commentary that ensued. In a Washington Post editorial, Ruth Marcus observes, “It's naive to imagine, in the anything-goes Internet era, that Palin's daughter's pregnancy would go unremarked upon…Like it or not, Bristol Palin's pregnancy is intertwined with an important public policy debate about which the two parties differ and on which Sarah Palin has been outspoken” (2008, p. A15). The rhetorical implications of the Bristol Palin story are not limited solely to questions of how it influenced public policy discourse regarding teen pregnancy. As CNN contributor Roland Martin points out, it “didn’t stop some folks from trying to score political points” (2008). Indeed, the story presented an interesting dilemma for both political parties. Could (and should) the Bristol Palin story be used as political fodder? How would the McCain campaign frame the story to maintain support among conservative Christians (one of its key constituencies)? How should the left respond? Beyond the challenges and opportunities the story presented in terms of political maneuverings and party rhetoric, the story compelled many ordinary citizens to voice their opinions about various aspects of the affair, including Sarah Palin’s decision to accept the vice presidential nomination, consequently exposing her daughter to public scrutiny both nationally and internationally. This commentary also converged with constructions
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