The New York Times is running a story on-line about the rape charge against Lawrence Taylor. A short while ago, that story included this sentence: "The Journal News reported that the victim was a runaway from the Bronx . . . ."
I then sent a note, reprinted below, to the story's author, and thereafter, the line above was changed to the following: "The Journal News reported that the girl was a runaway from the Bronx . . . ."
Here is the link to the story: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/07/sports/football/07taylor.html
Here is the note I sent to Lynn Zinser, author of the story:
I founded the nation's leading Web site that gives voice to persons falsely accused of rape and related allegations, The False Rape Society.
In your story about Lawrence Taylor, you wrote: ". . . the victim was a runaway from the Bronx . . . ."
By labeling the accuser as a "victim" before a scrap of evidence has been admitted at trial, much less an adjudication of guilt, you have impliedly rushed to judgment and declared her allegation to be factual.
Such a description does a grave disservice to (1) Mr. Taylor, who is presumptively innocent of the charges against him, since, by necessity, he must be guilty if his accuser is, in fact, a "victim"; (2) actual rape victims, because you trivialize rape when you include among its victims women who may, or may not, be actual victims; and (3) your readers, who are entitled to accurate reporting but receive something less than that when you transform an accuser into a "victim."
It is well to note that every objective study ever conducted on false rape claims shows that they are a significant problem.
The only fair manner of reporting on these cases is to refer to accusers as exactly what they are: accusers. I implore you to exercise greater care in reporting on such stories, and to show sensitivity to the presumptively innocent and their families, by not suggesting that the trial is over even before it has begun.
Thank you.
Respectfully,
Pierce Harlan
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25 comments:
False Rape accusations should be a felony in all 50 states!
Being charged only with filing false police report is not enough and is an injustice to the falsely accused!
Support lawmakers who support change!
Subvert the dominant paradigm that owns the legal system from 40 years of organized academic feminism!
Demand justice now!
You deserve a medal for what you (try) to do here.
Someday, perhaps, you'll receive one.
When I was in college I was told by the Rape Awareness Center on campus that a woman would never, ever, ever, ever lie about rape. Ever. She is always to be believed 100% of the time. Period.
It is this type of rigid misinformation that plants the seed of opportunity for exploitation in the minds of the deviant, influences the decision making process in the legal system and negatively conditions society as a whole.
False Rape is real and must be stopped through tougher laws!
Support lawmakers who support change!
This kind of thing should be FRSF'd to encourage everyone to join in.
Chef Snark -- I know. But they changed it so fast there wasn't time.
That was is a no-brainer. Astoundingly, I once had a reporter fight me on that issue, and he refused to back down.
Unfortunately, most people just assume that a "victim" wouldn't lie about something as serious as rape. I can't personally name the study, but I believe that I saw it on a site named Falsely Accused, that when allegations of child molestation is made by a mother against a father and then the mother files for divorce within three months before or after the allegation is made, that 40% of the time the allegation is false!
This is what being pro active is all about.
This is something that MUST be done each and everytime 'the victim' instead of 'the accuser' is encountered.
It must be done everytime, by everyone.
Congratulations, Pierce.
"Chef Snark -- I know. But they changed it so fast there wasn't time."
Ah - right you are. I must have missed that bit.
Good work.
I think sometimes it is a genuine mistake on their part - that's not to say it's excusable. But that we should be firm and polite, as you were.
I guess it becomes a FRSF if they refuse to back down.
It's a constant 'genuine' mistake,if that's the case.
Let's see if we can find articles where they DON'T commit that sin -
The journalist deserves some credit for making that change. When a rape accusation has been made the tendency is to put the cart before the horse.
I'm highly skeptical of this so far, but let's see what evidence is presented.
So far we've read, "The sixteen year-old girl was brought to Taylor's motel room by a pimp."
Which makes her a sixteen year-old prostitute, right?
I have no idea what to make of this. Prostitutes have been known to falsely cry rape for money. You need to find out what motive would she have to falsely cry rape.
Maybe he didn't pay her, or maybe this is the pimp's master plan to cash in on the accused football player fad. This is all speculation at this point, but it's okay to speculate a little.
I am curious as to what she was doing with a pimp if she isn't a prostitute. Is the media concealing that little tidbit?
Rape hysteria "Empowered" the Klu-Klux-Klan.
Rape hysteria is now being employed to "Empower" the Gender/Raunch perverts.
Who would of thunk it??
Gender/Raunch deviants trip over each other to write Rape/hysteria pieces for the news to publish.
They know when males are villified...it furthers their deviant Adgendas.
More info: http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/sports/6992700.html
Apparently she is a prostitute. They're saying that her pimp beat her up and then drove her to Taylor's motel room, where she was ordered to have sex. She is underage (for the state of New York).
I hope to God this is untrue; I'd hate to see a man like him resort to paying for a whore. But Taylor does have a long criminal history, so maybe there is some truth to this one. We'll see!
Make note here fella's. When hiring hookers, and you are a famous guy...Don't tell the hooker, for she will see dollar signs, and you may get falselly accussed of rape so she can try and cash in.
I think the police already admitted that Taylor didn't know that she was underage, and that might be what the sex charges refer to: statutory rape.
I can see a male celebrity banging groupies; I can't see him paying for a street whore.
I wander if main stream media also printed faulty and inflamatory agitataion propagagnda for the Klu-Klux-Klan??
Can these media perverts be held accounteable for the perversions of justice that their missinformation is fomenting??
It seems a bit odd to me that she could text her Uncle and tell him what was going on and that she wanted no part of it, he then contacted the police. Why did she not just call 911 and they could have prevented it from happening. A 911 operated can tract calls to locations.
Well Done Pierce!!!
Had Someone like you have been around 20 years ago when the Feminist Tornado machine demonized me in college, I might have had a fair trial. Keep it up buddy!
Rosalee = Jeana, right?
I deleted Rosalee's comment because it had the tone of false rape apologist. If you'd like to prove me wrong, Rosalee, do so, but cross that line again and your words will not see the light of day here.
Thanks, Chef Snark.
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