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Media type:
E-Article
Title:
Making (female) health care work matter : The performative publics of #systemrelevant during the COVID-19 pandemic in Germany
:
The performative publics of #systemrelevant during the COVID-19 pandemic in Germany
Contributor:
Reißmann, Wolfgang;
Siemon, Miriam;
Lünenborg, Margreth;
Raetzsch, Christoph
imprint:
Det Kgl. Bibliotek/Royal Danish Library, 2023
Published in:MedieKultur: Journal of media and communication research
Description:
<jats:p>Over the last two years, digital media have contributed significantly to increasing the visibility of those who are outstandingly challenged by the pandemic. In Germany, the Twitter hashtag #systemrelevant [systemically relevant] initiated a public debate on values and working conditions. Applying the practice-theory-based concept of performative publics, we analyze the formation of this specific public with a special focus on its gendered structure. Results of our mixed-methods approach show how health care work has become the dominant issue of #systemrelevant. Civil society actors and engaged health care workers set the agenda, and journalism primarily responds to these voices. Although care work is performed predominantly by women, most of the attention online is given to men. However, on the level of tweets and linked content, the discourse in #systemrelevant counteracts stereotypical images of women in health care. Overall, the ethnographic data on the most significant collective actor show a continuous tension between symbolic recognition and their struggle for improving working conditions.</jats:p>