December 2, 2015
Domestic Violence In The Media
Abuse is frequently romanticized—or even glamorized—in pop culture. Naughty people doing wicked things elicits a wink and a nod, practically an endorsement rather than condemnation. Even in news stories, the victim is blamed in sensational crimes that get shared on social media. The social network’s self-righteous streak implicates victims as somehow complicit with perpetrators. Many asked why Rihanna and Janay Rice stayed with their partners, when they should have been focusing on the real question: Why and how did their partners become abusers? The key question. Why do we ask victims to justify their behavior? Is there a need for #WhyIstayed? Nicole...