Media image of women in the Ministry of Defense and the Serbian Armed Forces

The way media and journalism present and deal with certain topics can firmly reflect the dominant opinion on questions important in society. This paper examines the way media describes women in the Serbian Armed Forces. The authors postulate that the positive publicity in the media can contribute to achieving greater equality, as well as encouraging woman to choose military professions, while simultaneously improving the public image of the Serbian Armed Forces. This research covers items published in print and electronic Serbian media spanning from 2016. to 2018. Our research demonstrates that women in the Serbian Armed Forces are consistently present at the same percentage of the total amount of public reporting on military news and topics. Such result is a reflection of the societal acceptance of female enrolment in the Military Academy more than a decade ago, coupled with the implementation of two national Action Plans under the UN Security Councilˊs Resolution 1325 - Women, Peace and Security in the Republic of Serbia. It is the opinion of the authors that the image of women in traditionally male - dominant professions, such as the military, is viewed as positive. The majority of articles on women in the Army are noted to be issued during either highly publicized events, such as the promotion ceremony for the youngest officers of the Serbian Armed Forces in front of the National Assembly in Belgrade or during advertisements for enrolment in Military Schools and voluntary conscription. Overall, the image and role of women in the Army is viewed as more positive compared to articles of women in general and in other professions in Serbia. The results of this research have also indicated that some stereotyping exists, relating to the representation of women in media. Further improvements can be directed towards diversifying topics on women with the active support of the military establishment itself.