Lesley Henderson

Lesley was Senior Research Fellow with the Glasgow Media Group for around 10 years before coming to Brunel. She has been grant holder/ researcher on a number of externally funded projects (AHRC, ESRC, Health Development Agency, NHS Executive, Nuffield, Wellcome Trust, Dept of Health, City & Hackney PCT) and was awarded a Brunel Research Fellowship to develop her work on media and younger audiences. She has presented evidence to the Scottish Executive, Unicef UK and various policy committees. She acts as Consultant to organisations such as the Department of Health and has worked with charities e.g. as panel member on the Wellcome Trust Society Research Awards Board. She is expert reviewer for the European Research Council.

Lesley has a PhD in Sociology (Dept of Sociology & Anthropology, University of Glasgow) and PG cert. in Learning and Teaching in Higher Education (Brunel University). She is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, a member of the Associate Parliamentary Media Literacy Group and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Medicine.

She is Programme Convener for the MSc in Media & Communications and also lectures to PG and UG students on media audiences and qualitative research methods. Since  2001 she has been visiting lecturer on the Masters in Public Health, Dept of Public Health and Policy, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. She is external examiner for the undergraduate Sociology programme at Goldsmiths College, University of London.

Research Interests

Lesley’s research spans the production, transmission and reception of media messages concerning health, science; social problems and political ‘disconnection’. Substantive topics include new genetics, breast cancer, infant feeding, MMR, mental distress, social care, inequalities. She has a longstanding interest in public engagement; ‘public’ issues in television soap & drama and has specific expertise in research with younger audiences.

PhD Supervision

Current/Past PhD supervision topics include: Religion and reporting of HIV/AIDs in Nigeria; New media and body image; Framing and perception of the 2008 American Presidential Election; Science Communication; Transnational Media and Migrants; Soap opera audiences

Publications

Journal Papers

(2011) Henderson, L., Cot death in EastEnders, BMJ: British Medical Journal

(2011) Henderson, L., Mediating madness: Mental distress and cultural representation., European Journal of Communication 26 392- 396

(2011) Henderson, L., McMillan, B., Green, JM. and Renfrew, MJ., Men and infant feeding: Perceptions of embarrassment, sexuality and social conduct in white low income British men, Birth: Issues in Perinatal Care 38 (1) : 61- 70

(2008) Henderson, L., How mad are we?, BMJ 3372641

(2008) Henderson, L., Millett, C. and Thorogood, N., Perceptions of childhood immunization in a minority community: qualitative study, Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine 101 (5) : 244- 251

(2008) Wayne, M., Henderson, L., Murray, C. and Petley, J., Television news and the symbolic criminalisation of young people, Journalism Studies 9 (1) : 75- 90

(2007) Henderson, L. and Kitzinger, J., Orchestrating a science 'event': The case of the Human Genome Project, International Journal of New Genetics and Society 26 (1) : 65- 83

(2007) Henderson, L. and Franklin, B., Sad not bad: Images of social care professionals in popular UK television drama, Journal of Social Work 7 (2) : 133- 153

(2003) Williams, C., Kitzinger, J. and Henderson, L., Envisaging the embryo in stem cell research: Rhetorical strategies and media reporting of the ethical debates, Sociology of Health and Illness 25 (7) : 793- 814

(2000) Henderson, L., Kitzinger, J. and Green, J., Representing infant feeding: content analysis of British media portrayals of bottle feeding and breast feeding, BMJ: British Medical Journal 321 (7270) : 1196-

(1999) Henderson, L. and Kitzinger, J., The human drama of genetics: 'hard' and 'soft' media representations of inherited breast cancer, SOCIOLOGY OF HEALTH & ILLNESS 21 (5) : 560- 578

Book Chapters

(2010) HENDERSON, L., Medical TV Dramas: Health Care as Soap Opera. In: Panitch, L. and Leys, C. eds. Morbid Symptoms: Health Under Capitalism. London : Merlin Press 198- 215

(2008) Henderson, L., Media: Reframing the debates. In: Tummey, R. and Turner, T. eds. Critical issues in mental health. Palgrave Macmillan -

(2008) Henderson, L., Popular Media and Epidemic Disease. In: Byrne, JP. ed. Encyclopedia of Pestilence, Pandemics and Plagues. Santa Barbara, CA : Greenwood Publishing Group 556- 559

(2007) Kitzinger, J., Williams, C. and Henderson, L., Science, media and society: The framing of bioethical debates around embryonic stem cell research between 2000 and 2005. In: Glasner, PE., Atkinson, P. and Greenslade, H. eds. New genetics, new social formations. Oxon, UK : Routledge 204- 252

(2005) Carter, S. and Henderson, L., Approaches to qualitative data collection in social science. In: Bowling, A. and Ebrahim, S. eds. Handbook of health research methods: Investigation, measurement and analysis. Maidenhead, UK : Open University Press 215- 229

(2000) Henderson, L., Gen wird popular: Inhalte und Rezeption der beitrage zum Thema Brustkrebforschung, in der britischen Medien. In: Jazbinsek, D. ed. Gesundheitskommunikation. Weisbaden : VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften 229- 245

(2000) Saywell, C., Henderson, L. and Beattie, L., Sexualised illness: The newsworthy body in media representations of breast cancer. In: Potts, LK. ed. Ideologies of breast cancer: Feminist perspectives. Basingstoke : Palgrave Macmillan 37- 62

(1999) Philo, G. and Henderson, L., Audience responses to suicide in a television drama. In: Philo, G. ed. Message received. Essex : Pearson -

(1999) Henderson, L., Producing serious soaps. In: Philo, G. ed. Message received. Essex : Pearson -

(1999) Philo, G. and Henderson, L., Why go to casualty? Health fears and fictional television. In: Philo, G. ed. Message received. Essex : Pearson -

(1996) Philo, G., Secker, J., Platt, S., Henderson, L., McLaughlin, G. and Burnside, J., Media images of mental distress. In: Heller, T., Reynolds, J., Gomm, R., Muston, R. and Pattison, S. eds. Mental health matters: A reader. Palgrave Macmillan -

(1996) Henderson, L., Selling suffering: Mental illness and media values. In: Philo, G. ed. Media and mental distress. Longman -

Books

(Forthcoming) Henderson, L. and Carter, S., Qualitative Research Design. Sage Publications

(2010) Wayne, M., Petley, J., Murray, C. and Henderson, L., Television news, politics and young people: Generation disconnected?. Palgrave Macmillan

(2007) Henderson, L., Social issues in television fiction. Edinburgh University Press