TV showed more abortion stories on screen
- There were at least 60 abortion storylines or mentions in 52 separate TV shows in 2022, more than any year since the count began in 2016.
- Many of these storylines also include discussions of compounding barriers to abortion access.
- The report says TV shows have also misrepresented abortion care in some ways, including “whitewashing” demographics.
More TV shows had storylines or mentions related to abortion than any previous year surveyed, as well as more depictions of barriers to abortion access, according to a report released Thursday.
There were at least 60 abortion storylines or mentions in 52 separate TV shows from January to December 2022, more than any year since 2016, when Advancing New Standards in Reproductive Health began publishing its annual “The abortion on screen”. That surpasses 47 abortion storylines in 42 shows in 2021.
ANSIRH is a program of the Bixby Center for Global Reproductive Health at the University of California, San Francisco.
Among the TV shows highlighted in the report were “Life after Lockup,” which followed a character as she crossed state lines for an abortion due to restrictions in Georgia; the Netflix reality show “Love is Blind,” which features a conversation between two contestants about their views on abortion; and medical dramas like “Grey’s Anatomy” that show characters “counting with a post-Roe landscape.”
“I did not expect that television would already respond to the crisis of access to abortion in which we find ourselves”, declared Steph Herold, researcher at ANSIRH within the team “Abortion à the screen”. “It’s quite monumental compared to depictions of the past.”
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TV shows depict barriers to abortion access
In what the report calls “a historic first,” one-third, or at least 20, of abortion storylines on TV portrayed barriers to access in 2021, up from just two depictions the previous year.
According to the report, many of these storylines also include discussions of aggravating obstacles, including characters crossing state lines for abortion care while raising money for travel expenses, negotiating time off and arranging childcare.
“Research shows us that television and film help people make sense of the world,” Herold said. “The general public knows very little about abortion…so these shows can go a long way in helping people understand the barriers to abortion access today.”
This year also saw the first television performance of an abortion fund volunteer, according to the report.
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Misrepresentations of abortion on television
The report states that TV shows distort abortion care and access in the following ways:
- Whitening: Most people seeking abortion care on screen were middle-class, wealthy white women, according to the report. It “misrepresents who is most affected by abortion restrictions,” including people of color and low-income people. Only eight storylines, or 23%, included black characters getting or revealing previous abortions. “It really whitewashes the issue and lets storytellers get away with not showing how access to abortion intersects with race, class and gender,” Herold said.
- Minimize medical abortions: Only 6% of TV characters have had medical abortions, even though medical abortions account for more than half of all abortions in the United States.
- Describe “exceptional” scenarios: TV series including Grey’s Anatomy highlight “exceptional” cases in which abortions can occur, such as ectopic pregnancies and fetal abnormalities, instead of more typical abortion circumstances, such as ‘a parent struggling to make ends meet,’ the report said.
Contact Christine Fernando at cfernando@usatoday.com or follow her on Twitter at @christinetfern.
USA Today
