1. Domestic violence is one of the most underreported crimes in the United States for the fact that victims are not sure the true extent of domestic violence or the mere fact that they need the abuser, financially or socially. First of all, the media needs to gain the trust of the victim and their family members—trust is essential to reporting the story. The media needs to ensure that they do not victim blame—meaning that they do not make excuses for the abuser, i.e. she was making him mad, it was self-defense, this was their first offence, etc. Linda Osmundson, the Executive Director of CASA offers some key advice to journalists:
• Focus on the abuser and not so much about the victim for staying with their abuser
• Do not re-victimize the victim by blaming them
• Alcohol and drug use is involved but do not allow alcohol to become an excuse
• Abuse is a world view, not a disease
2. In regards to the Ray Rice story, the media depicted the incidence in a few ways—depending on the news station and their main prerogative. On Catch 22, they took the mature route and realized that although there were hits back and forth, Ray should’ve realized his size and resisted; the female host says that Janay Palmer did not post an
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Personally, I don’t think the media coverage of the Ray Rice incident benefitted victim of domestic violence. For one, in his press conference alongside his wife, he claimed that they are better lovers after the knockout in the elevator; he also said that he has her best interest at heart. That is one of the many signs of a habitual offender of domestic violence. Some media try and defend him with her actions prior to the knockout but nothing excuses his actions. The excuses that are being made for him are terrible—it wasn’t a mistake, or a momentary lapse of integrity, it’s a basic flaw in his character. All the media exposure still does not find a solution to crime as he and his, now, wife are still together. The only penalty he faced was