Abortion on TV and Film

The Abortion Onscreen project studies portrayals of abortion on TV and film and analyzes what these portrayals tell us about cultural understandings of abortion. Our research on these depictions include an annual report; analyses of the way abortion providers, patients, procedures, and barriers to access are portrayed on television, and how this has changed over time, including post-Dobbs. We’ve analyzed the impact and influence of documentaries like After Tiller and television shows like Grey’s Anatomy and Little Fires Everywhere, and have examined how abortion plotlines do and do not impact audience knowledge, attitudes, and behavioral intent, including related to medication abortion. 

Our research also includes an analysis of fifty years of abortion depictions by genre; a comparison of the safety of abortion portrayed on television versus reality; and findings on how race functions in narratives on barriers to abortion access. We have explored how motherhood shapes onscreen abortion plotlines, and have recently conducted in-depth interviews with Hollywood showrunners, producers, and writers to understand what motivates them to bring abortion stories from page to screen, and what barriers they encounter along the way.