Media plays an important role in exposing issues related to rape and sexual assault. On one hand, media coverage makes more and more people pay attention to this issue. On the other hand, there are serious problems in some of the media stories, spreading rape culture in communities. The video from Media Matters for America displays some problems of inappropriate reporting of rape cases, including the tendency of focusing on behaviors of the victims.
I want to talk about bias in media coverage from the victims’ perspectives in the first place. Some journalists tend to point out the problems of survivors or victims in the related stories. For instance, some reporters would depict the appearance and clothes of a victim, saying that it is the inappropriate dressing style of the victim that results in the tragedy. According to the analysis conducted by Southern Connecticut State University, people blame the victim because they want to separate themselves from the unpleasant experience. By emphasizing the difference between themselves and the victims, people can feel relieved by the autosuggestion that "Because I am not like her, because I do not do that, this would never happen to me." Indeed, such an irresponsible conclusion can be detrimental in various aspects. It makes the public hold biased attitudes towards the victims, strengthening the stigma of them. Consequently, biased reporting will put pressure on the survivors or victims in rape cases, thus exerting a negative influence on their psychological well-being.
Second, I want to talk about bias related to perpetrators. Commonly, news stories define the perpetrators as a ruthless "monster." By reinforcing the violent and atrocious characteristics of the perpetrators, the media will instill a belief in the public that only people with monster-like appearance and personalities are dangerous. The article from Feminism in India suggests that monster imagery of perpetrators “takes attention away from the fact that respectable people are not immune to predatory tendencies.” In fact, most cases related to sexual assault or rape are conducted by family members or acquaintances, who are usually not considered to be “monsters” at first.
In order to address problems in reporting rape issues, journalists should reduce the bias of both victims and perpetrators in their stories. They should avoid victim-blaming, eliminating harm to the victims or survivors in related cases. Plus, they also need to avoid demonization of perpetrators. Instead of making the perpetrators fit into the conventional “monster image”, they should depict the story in a calm and unbiased way.
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