Violence against Women and Censorship

Definition: Physical harm caused to women, including assault, rape, and murder

Significance: Violent depictions in the media and methods of reporting violence affect the levels of actual violence against women

There are three major issues concerning censorship and violence against women: reporting accuracy, media effect, and government censorship. The first issue concerns the accuracy of reports and estimates of violence inflicted on women. Official reports about the amount of violence that women endure vary worldwide. For example, in 2015, the United Nations reported that 31.5 percent of women in the United States experienced domestic abuse, whereas 15.4 percent of women in China did. However, because women demand official responses to the violence against them as they gain power politically and socially, official reports of violence against them increase. Low violence figures thus do not necessarily indicate low levels of violence.

The Debate over Measuring Violence

In addition to worldwide variation in reports of violence, there has been a debate about how to measure violence against women. In the United States violence against women is officially measured by the Department of Justice in its Uniform Crime Reports, which are compiled from data supplied by police departments throughout the country. A 1992 study financed by the U.S. government found that the number of completed sexual assaults in a given year is five times as high as that reported in the National Crime Survey. Because official reports underestimate actual violence, there have been numerous attempts to measure actual violence through victim surveys. However, victim survey estimates have been criticized as politically motivated exaggeration. In turn, the victim survey critics have been disparaged for mounting a politically motivated backlash. Author Susan Faludi has contended that official reports underestimate violence against women so greatly that it constitutes a form of censorship.

Two remedies have been attempted to address reporting and prosecuting problems in the United States at the state and local levels, and at the federal level. Because women victims of assaults often refuse to press charges after police have been called, many states and municipalities have begun requiring mandatory prosecution for all reports of domestic abuse. Subsequent studies, however, have found that arrest is not a deterrent for further abuse, and that as a result of these laws many women are arrested for assault because they were involved in mutual battery.

The second remedy is at the federal level. In 1995 the U.S. Congress passed the Violence Against Women Act. This legislation allows women to bring civil cases for attacks made against them because of their gender. The law also mandates educational programs against domestic violence and strengthens laws against spousal abuse. The law has been a significant step toward recognizing violence against women as a hate crime. The Hate Crimes Statistics Act of 1990 did not include sex as a category in its official definition; however, as a result of the Violence Against Women Act the Justice Department has begun compiling hate crimes motivated by the sex of the victim.

Media Effects on Violence

The media’s effect on the prevalence of violence against women is another major issue. Depictions of violence against women have steadily increased on television, in advertisements, and in pop music lyrics and videos. This increase has matched increases in reported violence against women. Women have been disproportionately depicted as victims of violence in the media, while male characters have been portrayed as perpetrators of violence. Rape scenes have been particularly over-represented on television. Frequently rape is depicted in a manner that encourages rape-supportive attitudes, with victims portrayed as either deserving or enjoying the rape. Although many studies have demonstrated simultaneous rises in violence in the media and real violence toward women, this debate centers on whether media violence causes violent behavior in its audience.

There are three notable theories about causal relationships between media violence and violent behavior: cathartic effect, modeling effect, and catalytic effect. The cathartic effect theory, also known as the safety-valve effect theory, holds that viewing violence allows vicarious release of violent impulses, thereby reducing the need to be violent. Critics of this theory point out that the hypothesis lacks empirical support and that neither media violence nor real violence has declined. The modeling effect theory emphasizes the direct imitation of violent behavior. According to this theory media violence teaches and, in the case of some rap music, actually advocates violent behavior toward women. While several shocking cases of direct imitation have been widely publicized, critics of this approach point out that the overwhelming majority of viewers never attempt to imitate television violence. The catalytic effect theory, also known as the trigger effect theory, holds that under certain circumstances violent depictions can precipitate real violence. According to this theory violent viewing alone is not sufficient to explain episodes of real violence.

Government Intervention

Public concern over increasingly violent television programs has prompted debate about the government’s responsibility to control violence in the media. In 1993, for example, the Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission of the Canadian government imposed strict regulations over violent programming. These regulations restricted the manner in which violence could be portrayed and the hours when violent programming could be broadcast. The guidelines for children’s programming were even more strict. The regulations banned all depictions that minimize the consequences of violence or that encourage violence.

There has been much concern expressed in the United States about the consequences of escalating violence on television, but no federal legislation has been passed. During the early 1990s President Bill Clinton and Attorney General Janet Reno asked the major television networks voluntarily to limit violent programming, threatening federal regulation if they do not.

Government has a responsibility to protect both the well-being and the rights of its citizens. Advocates of violence censorship contend that unchecked depictions of violence endanger women. Critics of censorship as a remedy for violence contend that restricting such depictions will not eliminate the real causes of violence. They argue that censorship dilutes the real responsibility of the men who commit these crimes. According to these critics, censoring violence in the media will not eliminate violence against women, but may, however, endanger free speech. Two nonlegislative solutions to this dilemma have been proposed. Technological solutions such as the V-chip have been suggested as an alternative to government censorship. The V-chip would enable individual viewers to block violent programming from their televisions. Others have suggested rating systems for television programs and music recordings as a means to inform consumers about violent content.

In 2017, the United Nations called for governments, as well as companies and civil organizations, to put into practice policies to prevent the online abuse of women, which the organization said, in addition to being psychologically harmful, often leads to or overlaps with physical violence against the same women. However, the UN's statement made a particular point that any such policies should comply with international human rights law regarding freedom of expression, as they could easily cross the line into censorship. However, the statement also noted that gender-based online abuse can have the effect of discouraging women from participating in online conversations, thus in a sense also curtailing freedom of speech. According to Amnesty International in 2017, nearly a quarter of women have experienced such online abuse.

Although violence against women has continued to increase in official reports, in victim surveys, and in media depictions, debate about the amount of violence and accuracy of measurement can be viewed optimistically. The debate and counter-charges of political motivation are signs that women have become powerful enough to define violence against them as a social problem.

Bibliography

"Almost a Quarter of Women Experience Online Abuse and Harassment." DW, 20 Nov. 2017, www.dw.com/en/almost-a-quarter-of-women-experience-online-abuse-and-harassment/a-41447307. Accessed 3 May. 2018.

Faludi, Susan. Backlash: The Undeclared War Against American Women. Crown Publishers, 1991.

Richardson, Laurel, and Verta Taylor, editors. Feminist Frontiers III. McGraw Hill, 1993.

"UN Experts Urge States and Companies to Address Online Gender-Based Abuse but Warn against Censorship." United Nations Human Rights, 8 Mar. 2017, www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=21317&LangID=E. Accessed 3 May. 2018.

"Violence against Women." The World's Women 2015. United Nations, 2015. UN Statistics Division, unstats.un.org/unsd/gender/chapter6/chapter6.html. Accessed 3 May 2018.