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“Reality” Tv: Portrayals Of Labor And Birth In A Mainstream Reality Series One Born Every Minute, Nicole Soley, Lauren Sobotta, Kyrsten Harper, Rebecca Rand

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

Today, the birthing process is predominantly medicalized in the United States. Compounding this phenomenon is the media, which has a strong influence on people’s perceptions, attitudes, and behavior, and can serve to reinforce cultural norms—specifically, mainstream media disproportionately promotes medicalized birth. The media often portrays labor and birth as a dangerous affair, and as a result, may contribute to the culture of fear around labor and birth. In this feminist, qualitative media analysis, we examined women’s experiences giving birth on a popular reality television series called One Born Every Minute. We analyzed how women’s births are portrayed in four …