Fanning the Flames of Fear - Birth and the Media
How much of what we know about birth comes from the media?
Over the past month there have been a couple of high-profile reports in the Australian media around childbirth, specifically about women choosing to birth at home. As with most media articles, the content was questionably written but the pieces were not as scathing as I thought they would be. The online comments from the general public, however, were off the charts horrific. People were so quick to judge the families on the decisions they had made; pointing the finger of blame and vilifying anyone who had the audacity to disagree with their point of view. I only read a few of these comments, as I could feel them getting under my skin and making me extremely emotional. It did, however, get me thinking – how much does the media portrayal of birth influence our perceptions? Cue the next three days of me in full research mode to investigate.
We are living in an age where information about everything and anything is at our fingertips 24 hours a day. Google has changed our lives and the rising popularity of ‘new media’ such as social media platforms, blogs and podcasts means that we have an ever-growing pool of information. This, of course, does have its down sides. Absolutely anybody can publish online, meaning that the information you access may not be accurate. When this is applied to anything which falls under the umbrella of health and well-being (pregnancy and birth included), following the advice or recommendations of someone on the Internet who purports to be an expert may actually be detrimental.
So, have we replaced conversations with our care providers with media-based information? This led me to also consider to what extent the media influences our views on health professionals.
For many women, the only opportunities they have to witness childbirth before experiencing it themselves are through the media. If we consider how birth is portrayed in television series and reality shows, the dominant discourse is that of a medically managed, pathological event. Birth unfolds in a hospital, with the woman and her partner surrounded by experts in scrubs who seem very adept at using the plethora of technology which fills the room. These shows need to be exciting; there needs to be elements of danger and drama which reel the viewer in and keep them tuning in week after week. Unfortunately for media producers, physiological birth doesn’t fulfil these criteria, so we are bombarded with emergency situations, focusing on ‘fear, speed, pain and danger’ (Elson, 2009 cited by Godfrey-Issacs, 2018).
Is birth anything like how it looks on our screens?
It was hoped that the popularity of television shows such as “One Born Every Minute” would help to dispel some of the “medical mystique” that childbirth has been shrouded in (Lothian and Grauer, 2003). Rather than break this cycle, the media portrayal of birth as inherently dangerous and life-threatening has added fuel to the fire and perpetuates women’s fears and anxiety around birth.
Reality shows often portray birth from the care providers’ perspective and completely disregard women’s experiences. The women are nearly always compliant with the medical recommendations, removing any element of choice or autonomy within the birth space and reinforcing the power dynamics of ‘expert’ and ‘patient’. The stereotypical image of the clueless male birth partner is also perpetuated:
“Partners (nearly always men) are often cast as the hapless, comedic figure, who similarly should remain unquestioning and compliant” Godfrey Issacs, 2018
Birth in the media also plays on the power dynamics within the maternity system, feeding into the notion of a “turf war” between midwives and obstetricians. Doctors often sweep in to save the day, overshadowing the role of the midwife and fueling mistrust in midwifery skills. Midwives are portrayed as one of two polar opposites - either romanticised and innocuous (bicycle-riding, happy-go-lucky young women à la Call the Midwife anyone?) or as grumpy, impatient battleaxes who are not to be crossed. Doctors are heroes; midwives peddle the ‘dark arts’ of normal birth - which one would you choose?
We all know that newspapers and magazines rely on attention-grabbing headlines to draw their readers in. I had a quick Google of newspaper reports on birth – here’s the first 3 headlines I came across:
“Giving birth left this mum in a wheelchair. This is her astonishing story” – 7News Australia
“Sydney mum Andrea Marambio dies two weeks after birth of fifth child” – The Mercury, Tasmania Australia
“Is it time to ditch the term ‘normal birth’?” – Yahoo UK
With sensationalised headlines such as these, no wonder there is so much fear around childbirth. We are seeing a rising number of women requesting medical interventions and elective Caesareans, with many citing frightening media depictions of birth as their rationale. Morbid headlines perpetuate the belief that birth is dangerous, women’s bodies are faulty, and create “a vicious cycle of intervention that starts with fear” (Luce et al, 2016).
Brodrick (2014) states that around 20% of women who are expecting their first baby are fearful of childbirth. If not from their own personal experiences of birth, where is this fear coming from? Are media portrayals of labour and birth altering women’s perceptions so that medical management is to be expected, and subsequently accepted? In addition to this, Roberts and De Benedictis (2021) suggest that by only showing highly medicalised births, the media is subvertantly limiting women’s knowledge in terms of what is possible, such as physiological birth, and what other options or choices are available to them, for example home birth services. Digging deeper into the media portrayal of birth as a medical event, it has also been argued that the promotion of “the good patient” – women who follow the recommendations of the ‘experts’ without question – reflects society-wide power imbalances and gender inequalities within a patriarchal paradigm. That’s a topic for another blog!
Let’s flip the coin for a moment. Media portrayal of birth is heavily reliant on pushing the medical model, but is this always a negative? How about those women who have experienced obstetric emergencies, or chose to accept interventions during their labour? They can relate to these depictions of birth. They reflect their own experiences, which may lead to feelings of validation. If we swing the other way and push for an emphasis on normal, physiological birth, we run the risk of marginalising those women whose experiences do not correlate with the ‘norm’. It’s a delicate balance.
Whilst I was reading and digesting the research I had found, I had to ask myself “what degree of influence does the media have on our internal beliefs about birth?” We are not all lemmings; we wouldn’t base our perceptions of birth purely on what we see and what we read. The media don’t think for us. We are not slaves to our screens. We cannot assume that every woman is going to take what they ‘learn’ about birth from the media at face value.
“Women are now able to easily access a different birth discourse and bear witness to the fact that normal birth is doable.” - Mel Howells
There may be a beacon of hope at the end of all this. With the continuing popularity of social media platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and YouTube, women are sharing their own unfiltered experiences of birth. There are hundreds of thousands of videos online showing the most beautiful, undisturbed physiological births. Women are now able to easily access a different birth discourse and bear witness to the fact that normal birth is doable.
This isn’t about promoting one way of birthing as superior to another. This is about changing the dominant narrative which portrays birth as something to be feared. We can overcome our fears by educating ourselves. We must also ask why women choose media as a means to educate themselves about birth over talking to their care providers? Are we using the media as a scapegoat, blaming them for instilling fear into women rather than acknowledging the shortcomings of our own maternity system? There must be gaps in the services we are providing for women and their families – how can we fill these gaps and best meet their needs? Food for thought.
My name is Mel Howells and I am a doula who has trained with the Doula Training Academy. Every pregnancy and birth are different, and no two women will experience the same journey to motherhood. The philosophy which underpins my services acknowledges every woman’s uniqueness and my work is tailored to meet your every need. If this resonates with you and you want to learn more about what I offer, please feel free to send me an email at mel@serenebirths.com.au or reach out to me via social media on the links below. I would be honoured to walk alongside you on your birth journey. If you would like to find out more about my offerings, please click here for packages or contact us.
Sources and Further Reading:
Luce et al (2016) ‘“Is it realistic?” The portrayal of pregnancy and childbirth in the media.’ BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth 16 (40). Published online and accessible via “Is it realistic?” the portrayal of pregnancy and childbirth in the media (nih.gov)
Hundley et al (2014) ‘Fear in Childbirth: are the media responsible?’ MIDIRS Midwifery Digest 24:4 p444-447
Lothian and Grauer (2003) ‘“Reality” Birth: Marketing Fear to Childbearing Women.’ The Journal of Perinatal Education Vol. 12 (2) pvi-viii
Brodrick, A. (2014) ‘The Fear Factor - why are primigravid women fearful of childbirth?’ MIDIRS Midwifery Digest 24 (3) p327-332
Leachman, A. (2017) ‘How Media Promote Fear Around Childbirth’ in Luce, A., Hundley, V. and van Teijlingen, E. (eds) Midwifery, Childbirth and the Media London: Palgrave Macmillan Cham pp61-77
Roberts, J. and De Benedictis, S. (2021) ‘Childbirth on television: a scoping review and recommendations for further research.’ Feminist Media Studies 21 (2) p248-264
Godfrey Issacs, L. (2018) Birth (and midwives) in the Media. all4maternity blog entry available at Birth (and midwives) in the media | All4Maternity