Missing white woman syndrome

Missing white woman syndrome is a term used by social scientists and media commentators to denote disproportionate media coverage, especially on television, of missing-person cases involving white women compared to cases involving women of colour, typically black women. The syndrome also encompasses disproportionate media attention to females who are young, white, and upper middle class. Although the term was coined in the context of missing-person cases, it is sometimes used of coverage of other violent crimes. The phenomenon has been highlighted in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, and other predominantly white countries, as well as South Africa.

American news anchor Gwen Ifill is widely considered the originator of the phrase. Charlton McIlwain defined the syndrome as "white women occupying a privileged role as violent crime victims in news media reporting", and posited that missing white woman syndrome functions as a type of racial hierarchy in the cultural imagery of the U.S. Eduardo Bonilla-Silva categorized the racial component of missing white woman syndrome:

"[a] form of racial grammar, through which white supremacy is normalized by implicit, or even invisible standards".

The phenomenon has led to a number of tough-on-crime measures, mainly on the political right, that were named for white women who disappeared and were subsequently found harmed. In addition to race and class, factors such as supposed attractiveness, body size, and youthfulness have been identified as unfair criteria in the determination of newsworthiness in coverage of missing women. News coverage of missing black women was more likely to focus on the victim's problems, such as abusive boyfriends, criminal history, or drug addiction, while coverage of white women often tended to focus on their roles as mothers, daughters, students, and contributors to their communities.