Geschlechtersensibler Sprachgebrauch im Wahlkampf? Eine diachrone Analyse von TV-Duellen in Deutschland

Abstract In the last years, gender-sensitive language use has become an important issue of public debate in Germany and many other countries. The generic use of masculine forms in particular has been widely criticised. How, for example, public figures and politicians, both in government and of the opposition, refer to groups comprised of diverse genders is therefore scrutinised by the general public and routinely commented on in the media. In this paper, we analyse the language use of candidates for German chancellor and federal state prime minister, respectively, in televised pre-election debates – i. e. the most important single campaign event – from 1997 to 2020. Focussing on references to voters (Wählerinnen [FEM] or Wähler [MASC]) and to citizens (Bürgerinnen [FEM] or Bürger [MASC]), we quantitatively investigate the following research questions: Has the use of gender-sensitive expressions increased over the years? Are female candidates more likely to use gender-sensitive language than male candidates? Is there a preference for gender-sensitive language (as opposed to using the generic masculine) among candidates on the left of the political spectrum compared to conservative candidates?