Indexing the Australian Women’s Weekly

The Women’s Studies Unit at Flinders University is undertaking a thematic and textual analysis of the Australian Women’s Weekly over the period 1946-71. Preparatory to this task they have undertaken the creation of a detailed data base index of the Weekly for six years through this period. Because the Weekly covers the domestic sphere of life alongside the public, indexing it has created special demands on a thesaurus. This article discusses the peculiarities of indexing a women’s magazine and the issues raised in choosing a thesaurus to act as an authority for descriptors. Persons interested in purchasing a copy of the index when it becomes available should contact the Women’s Studies Unit at Flinders University.