Framing Female Leadership in a Television Drama

Stereotypes play a vital role in the perception of gender roles in American society. This concept is illustrated through low representation of female leadership in the U.S. Women are overrepresented in roles that are communal, which causes backlash when they display agentic traits (Arnold & Loughlin, 2019). Olivia Pope, the main character in the television series Scandal, was a leader who displayed an agentic leadership style and was revered for doing so. Agentic leadership traits are competitiveness, independence, and assertiveness (Arnold & Loughlin, 2019). This study analyzes how Olivia Pope was framed and the potential impact of those frames. Using frame analysis, Olivia Pope’s character in each episode of the television series Scandal was analyzed. The analysis revealed that Olivia Pope’s character was framed using themes such as power, reverence, fixer, conflicted, sexualized and dysfunctional family dynamics. The framing of a character as rare as Olivia Pope is significant. Though Olivia Pope’s character is based on the life of an African-American woman who owned her own crisis management firm, many viewers would have never known this type of woman existed without the development of this show. Oliva Pope is a complicated character whose role in American television is progressive and has the power to expand its viewers’ perception of leadership. Framing Female Leadership in a Television Drama vi Framing Female Leadership in a Television Drama 1 The television series Scandal is a political drama that has been captivating a wide audience since its debut in the Spring of 2012 on the ABC Network. The series consisted of seven seasons, with the series finale airing on April 18, 2018. The series finale drew in 5.4 million viewers, and the viewers were adults between the ages 18 – 49 (Otterson, 2018). The creator, Shonda Rhimes, developed a riveting series that serves as a parallel to the scandalous events that occurred in Washington D.C. Rhimes was able to compile politics, social justice, salaciousness and suspense in one series. Rhimes made history with three television shows airing during primetime on Thursdays on ABC. Grey’s Anatomy and How to Get Away with Murder were the other two shows created by Shonda Rhime’s that had women as the lead characters. The common theme amongst Rhimes’s work is women as the lead character. Interestingly, she did not portray these characters as superheroes or housewives; instead she illustrated the characters as complicated, capable and qualified. Vulnerability, emotion and strength were qualities that gave her characters edge and made them relatable. The writers of the show found ways to incorporate social issues and current events that were plaguing American society. One of the most popular episodes highlighted a beloved author and college professor who sexually assaulted many of his female students. Another episode unfolded the scandal of a European princess who died in a car accident. One of the most socially conscious episodes included the murder of an unarmed African-American teenager, who was killed by a police officer. These episodes captured the essence of famous American scandals such as the sexual assault case against Bill Cosby, the death of Princess Diana, and the death of Mike Brown. These episodes shared stories that brought about insight into scandalous situations and served justice to the unjust. The Scandal series allowed the audience to see the perspective of people who made mistakes. The writers always gave the back story to how the scandal began, Framing Female Leadership in a Television Drama 2 and why specific decisions were made. Suspense was a major component of the Scandal series. The show incorporated murder, kidnapping, presidential assassination attempts, U.S. conspiracies and many other twists and turns that kept the audience captivated weekly. The show creatively incorporated deep state conspiracies, coup attempts and secret spies in the storylines. These controversial topics made the views question the validity of the claim that the stories were fictional. Specifically, the secret government intelligence agency portrayed in the series, known as B613, became a Twitter hashtag that was used in response to real government news that was occurring in real time. TGIT, Thank God it’s Thursday, became a trending hashtag on Thursday nights on the ABC network. Scandal was the first television series that created real-time dialogue with the fans and viewers via Twitter (Hamedy, 2014). That real-time engagement allowed fans to give praises and express criticism of each episode. Many of the cast members interacted with their fans, resulting in Scandal becoming one the most tweeted, followed and liked TV drama in technology’s modern history. The overwhelming real-time responses and reactions revealed the impact Scandal had on their audience. The Twitter feed debates and discussions served as proof that many of the topics were creating emotional responses and dialogue amongst viewers. The series was an anomaly during its era. The predominately female cast, creators and directors was a rarity. Fewer than 20 percent of directors, executive producers, producers, writers, cinematographers and editors were women during this era (Women and Hollywood, 2012). That number is significantly decreased when the number of African-American women in leadership roles during this time is considered. Compared to all of the television dramas of this time, the Olivia Pope’s character was a rarity. It is not traditional for female African-American characters to be portrayed as powerful leaders in the space of politics or communication. This Framing Female Leadership in a Television Drama 3 concept contributed to the diverse audience that was drawn to this series over the years. Though many viewers may not have seen a character like Olivia Pope played on television, Shonda Rhimes based the character off of a real-life political fixer. Judy Smith, the inspiration behind the character Olivia Pope, is a lawyer, crisis manager, and later became an author. During President George H.W. Bush’s administration, Smith served as the Deputy Press Secretary to the President. After leaving the White House, Smith started her own crisis management firm, representing high profile clients such as Michael Vick, Monica Lewinsky, Wesley Snipes and Sony Pictures. She also served as the Vice President of Communication for NBC, then later became the co-executive producer for the self-inspired series, Scandal (Smith, 2012). Olivia Pope, played by Kerry Washington, owns a crisis management firm in Washington, D.C, and is well-known for being a prominent political fixer. The creator, Shonda Rhimes, announced that season seven would be the last season of the series. Rhimes received feedback from longtime fans via Twitter expressing their sadness of the show’s departure. Many fans believe that the character Olivia Pope has been the face of feminism and women empowerment. This thesis uses frame analysis to analyze Olivia Pope’s leadership. The portrayal of an African-American female leader in a television series is rare. However, it is essential to expose how such images impacts modern society. It is essential to analyze how impactful modern media is in establishing stereotypes of female leadership. The analysis of Olivia Pope’s character is intended to shed light on the intersections of identity and the power of representation. It is important to conclude whether Pope’s actions and tactics are worthy of idolization or should be criticized for reinforcing negative stereotypes.