Perhaps an analysis of victimology in the media will provide an adequate answer. Melvillve and Marsh (2009) suggest that “wherever a victim exists a crime has been perpetrated”. This suggestion is useful insofar as it acknowledges that crime sells in the media. To use the example of Kiesha Abraham, the victim is almost certainly Kiesha . In so characterising her, the media is able to invoke the unconditional sympathy of readers.
It still leaves open the question as to who is the criminal. This can be said to be the question that keeps readers hooked day after day. Especially as the investigation unfolds in the media, hour by hour (in the case of online media).
So who is the criminal in Kiesha Abraham's case? Is it DOCS for failing to act on problems at home? Is it some stranger? Or is someone closer to home, her mother, step-father or her biological father? Whatever the answer, it is almost certainly a mystery that fascinates us in the most basic human way. Our curiosity has been undeniably piqued.
Melville and Marsh have presented the idea of the deserving victim as opposed to the undeserving victim as portrayed in the media. Kiesha Abraham thus can be considered a deserving victim, not only for her youth (and therefore innocence and physical vulnerability) but furthermore for the suggestions in the media that she has been the victim of family abuse: “ victims of child abuse are most obviously and strongly presented by the media as deserving victims” (Marsh and Melville, 2009, pg 105). Such implications made by the media, seek to strike out at some emotive chord within each of us, whereby we are caused to consider our own moral codes.
The undeserving victim might thus be said to be Kiesha's mother. Her mother has arguably has been portrayed as the "bad mother", particularly in light of the death of one of her other children aged 6 weeks . This is perhaps an example of Meyers' suggestion that media portrayal of women as the undesirable victim will usually involve the woman being responsible for her own victimisation (1997, p61). Although Meyers refers to violence against women, the characterisation of the woman as the propagator of her own victimisation is applicable at a higher level. So based on such an analysis of the media and the theory surrounding it, Kiesha Abraham's mother is the propagator of her own loss because of her own bad mothering. This is a disappointing construction and requires audiences to disect their own notions of women, victims, and children.
Despite the obvious obsession the media has with selling the public somewhat sadistic stories of our own humanity and our gendered notions of victims, it cannot be denied that there are benefits of this type of crime reporting. Because of the media's ability to reach mass audiences, it is possible that someone will come forward with information about a crime, where they might not otherwise have.
REFERENCES
Marsh, I & Melville, G (2009) Crime Justice and the media, routledge, Oxon
Meyers, M (1997) News Coverage of Violence Against Women; Engendering Blame, Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE
Excellent blog post Merinda, very thought provoking and great use of the concepts and characterisation of 'victims' to draw out why we are so fascinated with the case. I guess children are always the ultimate deserving victim in the sense that it is rare to hear any talk of them being seen as 'at fault' for their victimisation (unlike, for example, some of the discourses around female victims of rape or other similar crimes). The longer she is missing, the more interesting it will be to see how the media deals with the topic, especially in terms of where they apportion 'blame'.
ReplyDeleteGreat job :)
Alyce