WMRSASC Worcester News column
Have you ever noticed how much sexual violence is on television?
Jocelyn Anderson, chief executive officer of West Mercia Rape and Sexual Abuse Support Centre (Image: WMRSASC)
Have you ever noticed how much sexual violence is on television?
The other night I settled down for an evening of TV binge watching.
I prepared properly with wine and snacks and soft clothing with the essential elasticated waist.
The first couple of episodes were full of action, exciting stuff and well-acted, but then in the third one the main female character was dragged off to be raped.
It added nothing to the story line — it was gratuitous.
I flipped channels only to find the other new series involved the attempted rape of a child — I stopped watching.
Everyone makes their own choices — my choice is not to watch anything that includes sexual violence. I swap channels a lot.
But have you ever noticed how much sexual violence is on our screens?
Do you even notice it anymore?
Do you just wait for it to move on?
How do you feel if you are watching it with children?
Is it something you enjoy? Some people will.
The media is a huge part of many people’s lives.
What we see on film and TV can influence our opinions of people, events and social issues, especially if the same messages are repeated.
We can become desensitised to all forms of violence and accept it as the norm, what is to be expected and accepted.
In 2007 research showed at least one in eight Hollywood films included a rape scene.
I suspect this has increased significantly over the last 18 years.
Sometimes the media can be used to challenge myths surrounding sexual violence, some producers focus on the experience of the victim/survivor rather than the violence.
One example is the detective series Shetland.
They consulted with Rape Crisis and considered the impacts on the character Tosh, how she reacted to what had happened and how she moved on.
Tosh, being a police officer and well-rounded character, can help challenge the negative stereotypes that are often applied to victim-survivors.
In a society where one in four women and one in 18 men are raped or sexually assaulted as an adult, the sensitive portrayal of characters can help others make sense of and ‘name’ their experiences without a graphic depiction of the violence.
If used responsibly the media can be powerful and highlight issues such as abuse.
It can make it clear that responsibility and blame belongs with those who perpetrate these crimes and not with the people that they victimise.
It can prompt people to seek support. There is hope that perpetrators may see their actions and the impacts of them reflected on screen, may recognise the harm they do and change but this takes self-awareness and a willingness to be better.
For others it will reinforce their way of being and acting, they may believe it is socially acceptable — after all, it is always on the screen.