Why does the media ‘love stay at home mums’?

Recent governments and feminists have agreed on one thing. It is empowering for women and good for the economy if mothers go to work. Yet at the same time, middle class mothers who stay at home are often portrayed by mainstream news media in a positive light. Are those women really ‘choosing’ to stay at home? Is the media helping to create an ‘anti-feminist’ myth around them? A new research project at LSE and Kings College is investigating this complicated issue and here is a taste of their initial results described by Dr Shani Orgad from the LSE’s Department of Media and Communications.