http://www.addictinginfo.org/2013/05/14/no-ap-sex-rape/
The rape culture in which we live once again rears its ugly head, this time helped along by the Associated Press. The AP ran a story this past Friday that reported on a young rape victim in Washington state who alleges that her high school protected the rapist who violated her on school property. The horrific twist is this, though: the headline preceding the story uses the words ‘sex’ and ‘rape’ interchangeably. Here, for your horrified viewing pleasure, is the headline from the Associated Press story:
Now, anyone with a brain realizes that ‘sex’ implies consensual intercourse and/or sexual behavior, while ‘rape’ implies that one was forced. To characterize this young girl’s horrific experience as ‘restroom sex’ is callous, insensitive, careless, and irresponsible – not to mention that it makes for grossly inaccurate reporting.The young woman in the case, whose identity is not being revealed, is seeking $400,000 in damages from the school, which continues to deny the allegations of rape, and I hope she gets every penny and then some. At the very least they can pay for her pain and humiliation, particularly in the face of their denial that this horrific event even happened on their property, and that they protected the young criminal.
gee this sounds more right wing oriented than anything else. dismissal of rape as inconsequential is a republican banner they seem to wave with impunity. could this be why they are so hopped up on the latest Pres. miscommunication?
We live in a culture of victim blaming and it needs to stop. The press treats rapists with kid gloves, especially if they are young men with promising futures. I think we all remember CNN’s horribly apologetic treatment of the Steubenville rapists, don’t we?The press needs to be held accountable and responsible when it comes to reporting on sensitive issues such as rape. Victims should never be blamed, and their experiences should not be brushed aside with apologetic treatment of their violators.This phenomenon is despicable, and this latest AP headline is no different.
we also live in a culture of shoot first than create the story, are they hiring screenplay writers now?
