In)Visible (a)sexuality? Media discourses and representations on asexuality in Portugal

Bibliographic Data

ID6136350
AuthorsRita Alcaire (0000-0003-3189-891X, University of Coimbra, corresponding author)
Year2021
Issue38
Pages23-42
Publication date2021-12-15
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueAntropologia Portuguesa (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0870-0990 • E-ISSN: 2182-7982
PublisherCoimbra University Press (PUBLISHER • PT)
DOI10.14195/2182-7982_38_2
OpenAlexW4200309160
LanguageEN
Citations received1
References cited12

This article presents the result of a multimodal analysis of the representation of asexuality in Portuguese mainstream media. In Portugal, the media played a pivotal role in the relationship between the newly formed Portuguese asexual community and the wider audience. Media attention on asexuality in Portugal generated a discussion on how asexual people are represented, but also on social representations of sexual diversity in general. As a result, the Portuguese asexual community and LGBTQI+ movement were impelled to reflect on their activity and on the public image they wanted to send out. Therefore, the community had to make choices: which media to participate in; who participates; whose faces the message is associated to; to what extent the allies are to be taken into consideration; which types of discourses get privileged, and which become excluded. Amongst other public effects, the Portuguese LGBTQI+ movement started to acknowledge asexuality in documents produced by them. The corpus of materials on the subject grew, and asexuality left a significant footprint. The major tendency points towards a positive portrayal of asexuality that puts asexual people centre stage, owning narratives about themselves

Art · Asexuality · Diversity (politics · Human sexuality · Literature · Mainstream · Narrative · Political science · Portuguese · Queer · Sociology · Anthropology · Gender Studies · Law · Media Studies and Communication

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Open DOIOpen Access