This study was conducted with the motive to analyze and demonstrate the differences and similarities of three Swedish newspapers’ coverage about two different murders. The main focus of the study was to compare and contrast the newspapers’ descriptions of one male and one female murderer. Through the study we also aimed to answer the question “Is it possible to apply the Chivalry Hypothesis in the newspapers descriptions of the murderers?” The Chivalry Hypothesis proclaims that women get treated in a more lenient way than men in the judicial system of America. A study from 2006 discovered that a specific newspaper in USA did in fact not treat criminal women in a more lenient way than criminal men. Our most important theoretical standpoints was that of discourse; as discourse analysis in the way Norman Fairclough preferred it was the method that was used. As we compared differences between the sexes gender studies was also a major theoretical part of the study. The result of our empirical analysis showed that a man and a woman which had committed similar murders during the same time period was partially treated and described different from each other in the articles. The result also showed partial support for the thesis about the Chivalry Hypothesis being translatable to Swedish news-press.

Statistiskt sett är våldsbrott ett manligt fenomen. Detta leder – logiskt nog – till att medias bevakning av brott ofta beskriver manliga förövare. Ett resultat av detta är bristande studier kring kvinnliga gärningspersoner: Hur representeras kvinnliga brottslingar? Finns där en skillnad i rapporteringens representation när en man begår liknande brott? Om så – varför? Genom en kvalitativ textanalys har vi studerat kvällstidningen Aftonbladets rapportering av två fall: 1. Styckmordet i Askersund, 2014. 2. Styckmordet i Boden, 2013. I Askersund-fallet är både förövare och offer kvinnor, medan i Boden-fallet är förövaren man och offret kvinna. Detta ger oss en möjlighet att se om representationen i fallen skiljer sig åt. För att finna dessa skillnader genomför vi en kritisk diskursanalys (CDA) med hjälp av semiotiska begrepp. Efter utförd CDA, tillämpar vi Jack Lules teori om traditionella myter inom journalistiken, för att se om skillnaderna kan kopplas till någon av Lules arketyper, eller förklaras genom genusteori knuten till medial representation. Sett till fallen, hittade vi flertalet skillnader i hur förövarna representerades. Jonna Henningsson, förövaren i Askersund-fallet, representeras som en farlig, oförutsägbar mördare, medan Kristoffer Johansson, förövaren i Boden-fallet, inte alls får samma utrymme eller betoning av någon av hans personliga attribut. Istället fokuserar rapporteringen i Boden-fallet på hans offer – Vatchareeya Bangsuan. Eftersom de båda fallen är snarlika i alla aspekter förutom förövarens kön, drar vi slutsatsen att denna skillnad springer ur konventionen att kvinnor inte mördar, och om de gör det så skapar det en fascination. Om män mördar, däremot, är det inom ramen för manligt beteende och därmed inte av samma nyhetsvärde, vilket leder till ett fokus på det kvinnliga offret. / Statistically, crimes of violence are predominantly a male phenomenon, leading to the media coverage of crimes such as manslaughter and homicide – and the media studies based on the reports – often portrays a male perpetrator. A logical result of this is a lack of studies regarding female crime offenders: How does the media represent female culprits? Does the representation differ from reports of a man committing a similar crime? If so – Why? Through a Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA), we have studied the newspaper Aftonbladets coverage of two murder cases: 1. The killing and dismemberment of Lovisa Lindh in Askersund, 2014. 2. The killing and dismemberment of Vatchareeya Bangsuan in Boden, 2013. The Askersund case has a female perpetrator and victim, while the Boden case has a male perpetrator and a female victim. This gives us an opportunity to study if – and how – the representation in each case differs from one another. To locate eventual differences, we are performing a CDA using semiotic concepts. Then, we seek to apply Jack Lules theories of traditional myths in journalism, along with medial gender studies – to see if these differences may be connected to any of Lules stated archetypes, or to be explained by gender conventions of our culture. Looking at the cases, we found plenty of differences on how the two perpetrators were represented. Jonna Henningsson, the perpetrator in the Askersund case, is represented as a dangerously unpredictable murderer. Kristoffer Johansson, the perpetrator in the Boden case, does not at all get the same amount of coverage or emphasis on any of his personal traits. Instead, the Boden case reports are heavily revolving around his female victim – Vatchareeya Bangsuan. Since the cases are much alike in every other aspect but the perpetrators gender, we draw the conclusion that this difference hails from the established convention that women does not kill, and if they do – it creates a fascination. If men do – it’s somewhat along the lines of male behavior and therefore not nearly as newsworthy, leaving the journalists to focus on the female victim.