The Role Of Media Platforms In Creating Awareness On Sexual Abuse

Sexual abuse is termed as an unwanted sexual activity that is perpetrated without the consent of one party. In most case scenarios, the committers of this act use force or threats to molest their victims. It is established that sexual abuse is mostly committed by known individuals such as family members, friends or neighbors to the victim and in other cases, work-mates and strangers (Weatherred, 2015). In our society today, sexual abuse is highlighted in the media almost daily be it in movies, shows, news, and social media. The concept of social abuse has been very prevalent and it has rapidly increased over the years to be a national issue. In our society today, victims of sexual abuse include men, women, and children who are molested in work-places, homesteads, schools, and even by the roadside (Weatherred, 2015). Acts of sexual abuse are constantly highlighted on the media which has taken the initiative of creating public awareness regarding this social problem.

Sexual abuse is a rampant issue in society and the news media has been greatly used to create awareness on these cases. Be it news on newspapers, magazines, radio stations and their website components, one can be sure to come across a case of sexual abuse. It is established that women are sexually assaulted at a high level even more than men. Statistics show that one in five women is sexually assaulted and one in seventy-one men is a victim in their lifetime (Mejia, Cheyne, & Dorfman, 2012). Young girls are very much prone to sexual abuse with the perpetrators of this act taking advantage of them because they cannot defend themselves and they are easy to intimidate. Instances of sexual abuse reported on these platforms tend to instill fear to initial victims of the same due to flashbacks and anxiety to feelings of sadness. On the other hand, it acts as a warning shot to people with similar intentions, especially when the associated consequences are highlighted. When people read and listen to the sorrowful and traumatizing experiences of the victims, they tend to develop a sense of fear. This is because sexual abuse can happen to anyone and from even the least expected person. Cases have been highlighted where children are sexually abused by their male parents, uncles, cousins, and most trusted friends and threatened with death in case they speak out. Despite that the news platforms highlight the consequences and the punishment associated with perpetrating such crimes, they don’t provide a suitable mechanism to prevent this from happening to anyone (Mejia, Cheyne & Dorfman, 2012).

The lack of information on how to defend oneself in-case of an attempt of sexual abuse leaves behind a gap that most people find difficult to fill. Most people and especially parents are left with the initiative of advising their children to be careful and report to them immediately in case of such occurrences. However, this is a temporal solution as children and especially girls find it hard to report because of threats issued by the perpetrators of this acts most of whom they encounter daily. As a result, most people and especially children end up victims of continued sexual abuse because of incentives given to them or due to fear of what would happen to them in case they revealed. The news media has overtime reported cases of people sexually abused severally by their parents, relatives, and pastors. The fear of reporting creates a good environment for the committers of this crime to persist with their evil acts and go about their lives freely (Kitzinger, & Skidmore, 1995).

The prevalence of sexual abuse in society has created an urge for making movies in an attempt to create social awareness. The availability of internet access has guaranteed people of all walks of life access to online movie sites and movies regarding sexual abuse capture the attention of youths greatly. Many of these movies touch on how sexual assault is perpetrated to young people, especially girls, thereby, making people aware that such cases exist in the real world. Movies address sexual abuse from various perspectives, thereby giving the viewer diverse mechanisms of defending themselves in case of similar situations. ‘The Hunting Ground’ movie takes on rape on college campuses and it entails the trauma faced by victims and their families (Döring & Walter, 2019). Interestingly, the movie highlights how the administrations work to cover these cases, causing physical, emotional, and mental harm to the survivors of these acts due to lack of justice for them. A movie like ‘I am evidence’ details on sexual assault as victims attempt to seek justice in courts. The movie depicts how the criminal justice system of the US has failed given the backlog of unexamined cases involving rape (Döring & Walter, 2019).

Movies create a lot of impact on the audience, especially children. Research has established that viewing a lot of movies on sexual abuse that is mostly illustrated as men overpowering women is dangerous. It may normalize violence towards women by making it acceptable in society due to a false notion that women enjoy sexual abuse. On the other hand, women who view a lot of movies on sexual abuse may have poor relationships and low self-esteem. Exposure of children to movies on sexual abuse may greatly impact them psychologically given their sexual patterns are not yet formed (Döring & Walter, 2019). Excessive watching of sexual abuse movies creates false myths in peoples mind especially men than women want to be forced to have sex and rape is not practical, but it is women who lie. Also, studies establish that these movies cause sexual arousal on men and create a poor implication that men need to have dominion over women (Döring & Walter, 2019). Therefore, people should limit their time spent watching movies on sexual assault because it is psychologically harmful.

A lot of shows and especially on television channels have been made and are continually being broadcasted to bring sexual abuse into public attention. Directors of films and various escapades compose them intending to portray the whole truth and therefore some scenes might be provocative. However, critics say that it is unethical to show horrifying sexual abuse scenes given that the tv audience is not limited in any way. Television shows are a powerful medium to explore the concept of sexual abuse since the scenes remain the mind long after the program is finished (Salter, 2017). Today, most shows tend to protect the victims from camera glare, and it is traumatizing not only to the victims, but also to family members. Most people tend to be sympathetic after watching shows on sexual abuse. Also, most people feel irritated by the perpetrators of this crime and suggest justice to the victims. However, the initial victims of sexual abuse feel vulnerable and memory flashbacks tend to make them feel frightened especially young girls (Salter, 2017). Men who have faced sexual abuse tend to feel ashamed and a sense of guilt fills them when this issue is highlighted.

The social media has been greatly used to create awareness on the issue of sexual abuse. The ease of access to the internet has enabled people to share widely and a clip-on sexual assault can be made viral on Facebook and Twitter within a few hours. Social media play a significant role in the life of many people and especially teenagers given the ability to share in the virtual world. The social media enables people of all walks of life and from every part of the globe to weigh in on the assault. When a case of sexual assault is highlighted on social media platforms, victim-blaming and shaming appear as the most prevalent reaction. It is established that victim support only emerges after the victim and the family speak out, facts of the abuse are given and the case captures a lot of attention (Zaleski, et.al, 2016). The embraced myths about social abuse play a significant role in how people react to these cases on social media. Most people hold the wrong perception that a woman’s behavior and their clothes contribute to their sexual abuse. Also, some people hold that women lie about their victimization and thereby tend to side with offenders immediately these issues are brought up on social media. The myths tend to remove blame from the perpetrators of this crime contribute to lack of justice and denial of injury to the victims. The growing trend of disclosure of cases of sexual abuse online has contributed worldwide sharing of these details which turn to victim blaming and shaming. As a result, there are cases of teens taking their lives after being sexually abused and using social media afterward because of negate blaming turned towards them (Zaleski, et.al, 2016).

In conclusion, media platforms such as shows, social media, movies, and news are constantly used to inform the public about sexual abuse. Victims of sexual assault feel this as a traumatic event and fear makes them avoid anything that reminds them of the assault (Weatherred, 2015). Some sexually abused people tend to refrain from any relationship due to a feeling that they lost control over their life. In other cases, victims of sexual assault feel depressed and guilt feelings develop due to self-blame. Given the negative impact of sexual abuse, the media should keep into consideration the welfare of the victims and their families. Also, given that anyone can fall a victim to sexual abuse, the media should enlighten people on strategies to defend themselves in such cases.