Virgin Or Vamp: How the Press Covers Sex CrimesIn the last few years, the national press has lavished coverage on several major sex-related scandals: the Clarence Thomas-Anita Hill hearings, the William Kennedy Smith rape trial, and the Mike Tyson case. With each event came lurid stories pitting either a loose or virginal woman against an unwilling or monstrous man. Such extreme coverage, argues Helen Benedict, perpetuates myths that are harmful to victims of these crimes (and sometimes to the accused). In Virgin or Vamp Benedict examines the press's treatment of four notorious sex crimes from the past decade--the Rideout marital rape trial in Oregon, the Big Dan's pool table gang rape in Massachusetts, the "Preppy Murder" in New York City, and the Central Park jogger case--and shows how victims are labelled either as virgins or vamps, a practice she condemns as misleading and harmful. Benedict also looks at other factors that perpetuate the misunderstanding of rape. For instance, she shows how the New York press presented the Central Park jogger rape case as motivated by racism because of its unwillingness to consider rape an issue of gender. She also addresses our inherent language bias, the press's tendency to use sexually suggestive language to describe crime victims, and its preference for crimes against whites. In conclusion, Benedict offers a number of solutions that will help reporters cover these increasingly common crimes without further harming the victims, the defendants, or public understanding. |
Contents
INTRODUCTION | 3 |
1 Rape Myths Language and the Portrayal of Women in the Media | 13 |
A Recent History | 25 |
The 19781979 Greta and John Rideout Marital Rape Case | 43 |
The 19831984 New Bedford Big Dans Gang Rape | 89 |
The 1986 Killing of Jennifer Levin | 147 |
The 19891990 Central Park Jogger Case | 189 |
How the Press Should Cover Sex Crimes | 251 |
NOTES | 267 |
295 | |
301 | |
Other editions - View all
Common terms and phrases
accused asked assailants attack battered Bedford Big Dan's blame Brownmiller called Central Park jogger Chambers Chambers's charged City Sun columnists court courtroom coverage covered death defendants described drinking ethnic Evenson fact feminist friends gang rape girl Greta Rideout happened headline husband Impemba innocent interview issue Jennifer Levin John Rideout jury kids killed Kitty Genovese later lawyers Liddick Litman look lynching magazine mainstream press male marital rape murder never Newsday newspapers newsroom Newsweek night Nina Bernstein papers percent police Portuguese prosecution Providence Journal question quoted race racial racism rape myths rape victims rapists reporters and editors revealed saying sentence sex crime sex crime victims sexism sexual assault Standard-Times Statesman Journal story suspects tabloids talk Tawana Brawley teenagers television tion told trial vamp Village Voice violence Washington Post white women wife William Kennedy Smith witnesses woman wrote York young youths