UC San Diego

I argue that colonialism and capitalism have utilized a specific narrative of reproduction to devalue reproducers and produce and maintain control over their bodies and lives. This builds on the work of other reproductive justice and feminist scholars and activists which seek to challenge this “dominant” discourse and destabilize the notion that there is one correct way to reproduce and birth. This podcast study uses key-word-in-context and critical discourse analyses methods to compare the ways different care providers (e.g., doctors, midwives, doulas) in the US currently situate authority and power regarding individuals (e.g., birthing people and care providers) and decision-making (e.g., knowledge, choices). I selected two podcasts, both interested in “women’s rights/health,” representative of two different approaches: holistic reproductive health (Birthful) and obstetric/gynecologic perspectives (The Ob/Gyn Podcast). Frequency count data and critical discourse analysis, drawing on 20 randomly selected episode transcripts from each podcast, revealed four main themes: worth and importance, provider roles in birthing spaces, integral actors in reproduction and birthing decision-making, and shaping legitimacy. Findings elucidate (1) key differences in the ways podcast speakers ascribe meaning and value to certain types of knowledge and individuals regarding decision-making and (2) subtle and overt ways in which care providers reify or challenge the narrative that positions the birthing person as a passive agent to whom birth happens at the hands of more capable experts. Acknowledging and challenging the presumed role of authority and power in reproduction and birthing has real-world implications for birthing people and their mental health, reproductive justice, and ethics of care.