SOS Mulher: female identity in the Pentecostal media

• Autor(a) principal: Machado, Maria das Dores Campos
• Data de Publicação: 1999
• Tipo de documento: Artigo
• Idioma: por
• Título da fonte: Ciencias Sociales y Religión (Online)
• Texto Completo: https://periodicos.sbu.unicamp.br/ojs/index.php/csr/article/view/8669405
• topic: Gender; Religion; Pentecostalism; Media; Gênero; Religião; Pentecostalismo; Mídia; Género; Religión; Pentecostalismo; Midia

The present article analyzes data collected during a one-year study on media usage by two of Brazil’s most important Pentecostal churches: the Assembly of God and the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God. With the purpose of ascertaining how women are ‘presented’ in these media, the research project explored these women’s roles, behavior, and relationships not only in their domestic settings but also within their religious communities and society at large. The inclusion on media agendas of such issues as abortion, family planning, sexuality, and women’s participation in politics and on the job market suggests that both groups endeavor to align themselves with other social processes and to keep pace with changes affecting women’s identity – whether in response to audience demands or because more women have joined their editorial bodies. The conclusion of this article discusses to what extent the Brazilian Pentecostal universe may be constructing a more positive, affirmative image of women and what the limits of this redefinition of female identity may be.