Year 2 Blog

What is research?

As defined by google research is "The systematic investigation into and study of materials and sources in order to establish facts and reach new conclusions."

In order to do a systematic investigation into my chosen topic I have to

What kinds of research are there?

Primary research:

Interviews
Observations
Questionnaire
Focus groups
Audience panels
Participation in internet forums
Self generated film, sound recording or photographic record of events

Primary research is good because it has the down to earth initial face value relevance of talking directly to people. It is especially useful if you are doing documentaries, or pieces which are human interest pieces. For things which people are the focal point primary research is good because it is straight from the person, or group of people which you are hoping to document.

Secondary research:

Books
Journals
Reference books
Newspapers
Magazines
Film archives
Photo libraries
Internet
Ratings
Circulation figures
ABCs RAJAR BARB et.

Secondary research is valuable in that it is more validated. Journals and reference books are usually peer validated, so it is more reliable. This is useful when wanting to display things as fact. Because secondary research is a more in the public arena it is more widely acknowledged as fact, and unlike primary research is less open to scrutiny.

Purposes of research

Audience Research

Audience data
Audience profiling Demographics, psychographics
Geo-demographics
Consumer behaviour
Consumer attitudes
Audience awareness

Market Research

Product market
Competition
Competitor analysis
Advertising placement
Advertising effects

Production research

Content
Viability
Placement media
Finance/costs
Personnel
Locations
Technological resources

We research in order to validate our own opinions. If it is a widely held opinion it is accepted as fact. For example, when the vast majority of the UK believed in Christianity as the main religion the UK was considered a Christian state, we still see value and observe as a nation Christian holidays, like Easter. Research can back up an idea that is not yet a popular opinion, for example to bring Global Warming into the public arena research was needed to back up the idea of Global warming. Of course nothing can be exact but the widely accepted opinion can be backed up by research.

Initial ideas for project

Street harassment, domestic violence, rape culture

Famous people who have been abused

Personal experiences of women who have experienced street harassment

Compile personal accounts of street harassment

Discussion of reaction to abusers in the media

Mind map of research ideas

To analyse rape culture in popular society I will be looking at a variety of sources, beginning with a personal account from the adult entertainer Stoya.

Source 1

Stoya

"I can actually remember every time a person at a convention or trade show has touched me inappropriately. My first year at the Venus Fair in Berlin there was a man who shoved two of his fingers into my panty-covered vagina. It was really fast, like he was standing there one second and the next I was trying to figure out how the gusset of my underwear had ended up *in* my vulva. There was a man in Texas who rather violently squeezed my ass while we were taking a picture and then laughed at how I’d “squealed like a piglet”. Seriously. I’m kind of disappointed by how much of a stereotype he was. At AVN this year, a guy grabbed my forearm while I was walking from the elevators to Digital Playground’s booth. He let go when I punched him in the testicle area. There’s an average of three people per convention who try the more subtle approach of sliding their hand a *bit* too far down my back when I stand next to them for a photo. Every single one of them apologizes when I gently put their hand back where it belongs and ask them to remember that I am not a blow up doll.

The above paragraph is absolutely nothing, NOTHING, compared to what it’s like to be a girl or woman walking around in public in broad daylight. With dirty hair up in a ponytail or bun, no makeup, and baggy clothing on. With headphones in, sitting in a coffee shop or on the subway with your nose in a book, or talking on the phone.

Men have followed me down the street poking me in what one can only assume is an attempt to get my attention. Men have grabbed the cord to my headphones and ripped them out of my ears. Multiple times. Men have grabbed parts of my body, or my coat or purse strap. Twice, when I was transporting my Lyra (the three foot metal hoop/circus apparatus I do aerial work on) they have grabbed the hoop and refused to let go until I threatened to kick them. They’ve blocked me into corners on mostly empty subway cars, followed me for blocks and then stood outside whatever shop I duck into for absurd amounts of time. They stop their cars in the middle of the crosswalk to stare and yell things out of the window. Years ago, in Philadelphia, one man walked around my neighborhood asking people if they knew where this blue-haired white girl lived because he wanted to return her phone. Fortunately my neighbors were too smart for that trick.

They say I have a sweet ass, nice tits, a real pretty dress. They say I’m their future wife, or I’d look good with their dick in my mouth. They try (and probably succeed at times) to take pictures down my shirt. They ask if they can get my number, they ask where I live, why I’m not smiling, why my boyfriend lets me walk around by myself. Then they ask why I’m such a bitch, if my pussy is made of ice. They say that they never do this, as though I’ve somehow driven them to inappropriate behavior and deserve it. They say they’re just having fun, trying to pay me a compliment. Pretty frequently they get mean, slipping into a loud tourettes-like chant of bitch-whore-cunt-slut.

Before you try to tell me that it’s because I take my clothes off for a living, let me tell you that this started way before I was 18. Let me tell you that every single woman I know has at least one truly terrifying story of street harassment and a whole bunch of other stories that are merely insulting or annoying. Let me remind you that in a room of pornography fans, who have actually seen me with a dick in my mouth and who can buy a replica of my vagina in a can or box, I am treated with far more respect than I am walking down the street.

It seems like women have been sharing their experiences with sexual harassment all over the place in the past few weeks. That’s what prompted me to share mine. As Jen Bennett said on twitter, there is clearly something in the air. It should be in the air. Speaking up is the only way that we can help people understand that something is an issue. Sharing is how we let each other know that we are not alone. Open discussion raises awareness of things like http://www.slutwalktoronto.com/ and http://www.ihollaback.org/.

Street harassment is not a rare or isolated occurrence. It does not only happen in America. It does not only happen to young or traditionally-considered-“beautiful” women. It does not only happen on public transit or in low income areas.

We shouldn’t have to have a big angry dog named Funster to protect us. We shouldn’t have to carry Mace or a knife, hoping that we’ll be able to use it properly if necessary or investing hours of our lives in self defense courses (something a lot of women have neither the time nor disposable income to do). We shouldn’t have to travel in packs to feel safe (again, something that isn’t really feasible).

Men have been responding saying that they want to divorce their gender. That they didn’t realize, until we started sharing our stories en masse, what it is like to be a woman. That they wish there was something they could do. That they’re sorry for the way other men treat people. Men shouldn’t *have* to feel like they need to apologize on behalf of their gender, or feel ashamed of being male. Unless they’re one of the ones doing the harassing, I don’t think they should apologize.

There are things that can be done. When someone you know engages in inappropriate or harassing behavior towards a woman, let them know they did something totally not cool. Like: “Actually, that woman had a right to be upset when you chased her down the street. She was completely accurate when she called it creepy.” or “Hey, this story you’re telling me about putting your dick on a drunk stranger’s face at a party when she clearly didn’t want it there but was too sleepy(2) to fend you off, that was a totally not cool thing to do with your penis, bro.” Teach every moldable male(1) mind (brothers, friends, sons) that treating women (humans) with respect is the right thing to do. Don’t have sex with jerks. Don’t blow them, don’t give them a handjob, don’t give them your phone number. If you hear a woman asking a man to leave her alone or calling attention to the fact that he’s whacking off in the train station, add your voice to hers. Say “This is not ok. This is not cool. We see what you are doing and it is unacceptable.”

(1) I’m focusing on the men here because I’ve never experienced or heard of a case of menacing street harassment by a female. I could be misinformed. Could be. Possibly.

(2) EDIT: By “sleepy” I mean “incapacitated by being potentially drugged or just being a poor judge of her alcohol tolerance.” "
(Tumblr 2012)

This is an article about Stoya's experience in street harassment. As an adult entertainer, she is talking about her experiences both with people who know she is a porn star and people who don't know. Her awareness as a woman, and her personal experiences. “Years ago, in Philadelphia, one man walked around my neighbourhood asking people if they knew where this blue-haired white girl lived because he wanted to return her phone.” This Stoya quote is a good example of a personal relatable quote pertaining to rape culture, someone who went specifically out of his way to harass her. As a performer in the sex industry Stoya is someone who has experienced all kinds of attitudes towards sex and varying degrees of positive and negative reactions. The fact that in 2012, women are still aware that this is a issue, that men are not aware it is speaks directly to rape culture. The fact that this man thought it was appropriate to try and find out where she lived by deception is creepy and unnecessary

Source 2

"If it's a legitimate rape, the female body has ways to try to shut that whole thing down...If, however, the woman should have conceived at the time alleged in the appeal, it abates, for without a woman's consent she could not conceive...For without an excitation of lust, or the enjoyment of pleasure in the venereal act, no conception can probably take place. So that if an absolute rape were to be perpetrated, it is not likely she would become pregnant."

These comments said by Todd Akin in 2012, as reported here in the Guardian (2012) . Todd Akin is the republican candidate for senate, a man that the republicans want to represent them in the United States Congress, a man who will have a say on issues such as birth control, and access to abortions.

For the Republican party to allow this man to run for such an important position when he is so clearly misinformed on a very important issue such as this speaks to rape culture, this man is allowed to perpetuate such a misinformed view in the public arena, this man speaks to thousands of people and this suggesting that there is legitimate rape is inexcusable. This kind of view is dangerous because it suggests that a person cannot be turned on during a rape, this suggestion that even if you have not consented if you enjoyed it you asked for it is a thought process that directly creates a rape culture and allows people to think that rape is ok. It desensitises people to the idea of it and it puts rape survivors in a position where they might be less likely to report a rape.

Source 3

(Twitter 2012)

Caitlin Moran, a 'popular feminist' in Britain making a rape joke. This piece of research is my response to a flippant remark made on the popular social media site twitter, Caitlin Moran is considered a representative of modern positive female ideology, is it right for someone in her position to be making jokes like this? Who does it affect if we make rape jokes? If we consider social media as a whole and the culture it contributes to, people forget that Twitter is a public opinion, it's a social forum for ideas, if you publish something on twitter it's putting it out there for the whole world to see. Once it's out there it has the ability to affect other people, it has the ability to affect the opinions of others. A good example of how twitter affects the public forum is the example of Tom Daley, over the Olympics, a teenage boy, who was making a 'joke' that in the privacy of his personal relationships would have been just another remark, because he put it on twitter it was out there for the whole world to see, and as reported by the press association in the Guardian (2012) Tom Daley saw it and it affected him. As a result the boy was investigated by the police. In this modern day of technology it is important to consider what is suitable for public consumption and what is and what isn't acceptable. If we make rape jokes, then people who are rapists could think that we are laughing because we agree, rape is ok, so when even a popular feminist thinks it is still ok to make a rape joke that is truly rape culture because she has been taught by society that is is ok then there is no denying that we live in a culture that condones and normalises rape.

Source 4

(No homophobes 2012)

This is a web counter launched to “show the prevalence of casual homophobia” the counter has daily, weekly and all time counters to show the usage of homophobic language. This casual language used in society, on the social media site twitter alone shows a disregard for people because of their sexuality, the fact that these homophobic words are being used in such volumes on twitter every day shows that people in this society are valued because of their sexuality, which feeds into rape culture, this valuing people by their perceived sexual worth.

It is interesting that this counter only includes homophobic language, other language such as Transphobic slurs, which devalue people specifically for their gender/perceived gender are not included in the study, it would also be interesting to see how many times the word rape is used, casually, in the popular vernacular. Especially since the study looks just at twitter, which for the most part is a casual social media, it is an interesting look at language used within our culture. Again it is important to consider who does it affect using language like this, what does it's casual use in the common vernacular do? It is important to consider the two tier affect, of the day to day affect of people who identify as non-heterosexual and the affect seeing this language used negatively every day has, and conversely, the day to day affect of people who are not directly affected by it but are using it, so heterosexual people using the language, and if it makes them more homophobic, or even just less inclined to like non-heterosexual people.

Source 5

“We just can't seem to put our finger on whether or not rape and women are funny! But can we ascertain which is less funny?...Which leads us to conclude: women are less funny than rape.”

This quote is from an article on Chortle by the comedian Mike Sheer (2012). The article parodies similar debates which is less funny women or rape. Sheer is making the point that when men debate issues like this it is a good example of male privilege and the rewards men reap. The fact that it is considered acceptable for him to debate the value of women, and their place in comedy, this in itself is sexist. He is parodying the fact that he as a man he can discuss the inherent value of women in his chosen profession is saying that he as a man is allowed to discuss women's value in the world. This idea that men are allowed to discuss and value women directly encourages rape culture, because this encourages men to view women as a commodity, something that they can value, and this value tends to be quantified by their sexuality, and if they think of a woman as less valuable, violence against them prevails. Another thing to consider is the fact that whilst the article was intended as a parody lots of people took the article seriously, and the fact that for the most part people believed that this was a legitimate article shows what people expect out of popular culture. Such a vulgar and extreme article was fully believed to be real and this could be seen as contributing to rape culture making it seem day to day, encourages people to think on it as a day to day thing.

Source 6

(RAINN 2012)

“In the government's Action Plan on Violence Against Women and Girls, statistics state that in the last year (2010 / 2011)

1 million female victims of domestic abuse in England and Wales.
Around 400,000 women are sexually assaulted and 80,000 women are raped each year (British Crime Survey).
Domestically, the cost of providing public services (including health, legal and social services)and the lost economic output of women affected runs to billions of pounds. An indicative figure for the minimum and overlapping cost of violence against women and girls is £36.7 billion annually. (Home Office)”
These statistics are quite worrying, considering we are in a time of cuts, for there to be this huge cost to the state, one that could potentially be prevented by better education and fighting the cause of rape. We've seen recently some campaigning to try and stop rapists, another big change, the portrayal of women and sexual assault in the media could potentially help this and cut costs to the tax payer.

Source 7

(Rape Crisis England and Wales 2012)

Given that it is a fair assumption that a significant amount of rapes are unreported these are still quite high statistics. 14% of students having been assaulted is quite a worrying statistics, since it is generally as stated by the RAINN statistics younger people are the majority of those assaulted we can make an inference from this that students are at higher risk. You could look at social attitudes to rape and could make the connection that social media is a contributing factor to the higher amount of rapes in young people.

Source 8

“Many myths surround the crime of rape but perhaps most common are those that imply the victim was responsible for her own victimisation. Projecting the blame on the woman is accomplished by portraying her as a seductress. The conventional scenario is one of a man who is sexually aroused by an attractive flirtatious woman. But the image of the rape victim as seductive and enticing is at odds with reality. Rapes have been committed on females as young as 6 months and as old as 93 years. Most victims tend to be very young. In one study in Philadelphia of reported rapes between 1958 and 1960 20 percent of the victims were between 10 and 14 years of age: another 25 percent were between 15 and 19. According to data compiled in 1974 by Women Organised Against Rape, 41 percent of rape victims seen in hospital emergency rooms in Philadelphia were 16 or younger. The category with the highest frequency of victims was the range between 13 and 16 years of age. A comprehensive review of the literature on rape victimisation published in 1979 noted that the high-risk ages are adolescents (aged 13 to 17) and young adults (aged 18 to 24) In 1985 the national crime survey based on findings from a continuos survey of a representative sample of housing units across the United States reported that the rape rate is highest for those white women between 16 and 19 and those black women between ages 25 and 35.
Rape is a crime commonly committed by an assailant who is known to the victim. Even in cases where women do report to the police victim and offender are frequently acquainted. In a study of 146 persons admitted to the emergency room of Boston City Hospital during a one year period from 1972 and 1973 with a complaint of rape 102 of these rapes were reported to the police. Forty of these victims who reported the assault knew their assailant. Burgess and Holmstrom believe that victims who know their rapists are less apt to report the crime. Their study found that victims who reported rape by assailants known to them had more difficulty establishing their credibility than did victims raped by strangers and these cases had a higher likelihood of dropping out of the criminal justice system.” (Herman 1994)

So according to this journal article, rape is most common in younger women, teens in the case of white women, a statistic which seems to concur with the RAINN statistics and the Rape Crisis UK figures. It also suggests that a large amount of rapes are committed by someone known to the victim, if we think about the point raised in the article about the likelihood of victims reporting rapes that were committed by people known to the victim being less likely to be considered a “credible” assault then we can think about this whole idea painted in popular society of rapes happening in dark alleys by masked people unknown to the victim. This idea that rape is always a stranger is an idea perpetrated by rape culture, it detracts from rapes where the victim is coerced, or drunk or says no at first or changes their mind during. All of these are still rape and yet the victim is less likely to be believed, if they initially consented or they were drunk. It all comes back to this idea that they were “asking for it” and that most of the time the sex is actually wanted. This is rape culture. In fact spousal rape only became illegal in England in 1991, so up until 1991 in England a husband or wife could rape their partner without fear of ramification (Rape Crisis 2012). So this idea still exists, if you're in a relationship with someone or you consented to sex at some point the other person is owed sex, you owe them sex, and this idea is rape culture. If you're raped in this way you're more likely to be blamed for the rape, and less likely to successfully seek justice.

Source 9

(Daily Mail 2012)

Leading on from this, we often see situations encouraged in popular culture, this famous picture which many construe as romantic and ideal is actually non-consensual a kiss, which we have been programmed to see as romantic, is actually a pose of a woman trying to escape the clutches of a strong drunk sailor kissing her against her will. The woman said about the kiss ‘That man was very strong. I wasn’t kissing him. He was kissing me,’ (Daily Mail 2012) This photo which is seen by many people as an image that defines a generation, an signified the end of the war, is an image where the people in question are part of an assault, and it is part of a culture that accepts an image like this that signifies a rape culture.

Source 10

To go on from this we can look at the film 'The Invisible War' (2012) a movie on the systematic and prevalent amount of sexual assault in the U.S military, and the lack of prosecutions. It is interesting, especially when there are institutions such as the U.S military somewhere already considered to be a 'boys club' that there could be such a vast amount of unprosecuted rapes, it is interesting to consider 1,430,895 are currently employed by the US army (Department of Defence 2010), as a pretty substantial employer in the U.S, and then the shocking statistic the film offers that half a million women have now been raped in the U.S military, consider that they also say that of the reported 3198 reported sexual assaults (with the estimated number of actual assaults at 19000) as of 2010, only 244 resulted in convictions. When you consider these facts you have to acknowledge that for women to work in the U.S military there is a statistical chance that they will experience sexual assault and if they report it from these figures we could assume that there is very little chance of them receiving any justice. This is a good example of people of societal stature being protected by their institutions and does lend to the idea that men are unable to contain themselves, this view that men when they have no women, and are away at war are sexually uncontainable and can't control their urges. It could also be used as an argument for a single sex military. If we accept these statistics it is a good argument for a rape culture; that so many people could have been raped and so few people have been prosecuted, and the fact that it is seen as big cover up, if an institution as large as the U.S military doesn't consider rape a crime worthy of prosecution then we have to think about how our society sees rape as a whole.

Source 11

Caitlin Hayward-Tapp on 2012-11-11 at 11.04 002 from Melissa Whitehouse on Vimeo.
Password: budeg

As Caitlin says in the interview Slutwalk began with the actions of one policeman in Canada who told students in a lecture that in order to avoid being raped that "women should avoid dressing like sluts in order not to be victimised." this kind of victim blaming, the thought process that says that we should teach people not to get raped rather than teaching people not to rape is central to the idea of rape culture, that it is the victims fault that they were raped. Caitlin is talking about the idea that Slutwalk supports the victim, that no matter what situation your rape occurred in, no matter how you were dressed, what profession you were in, what you were drinking it isn't your fault. She addresses the idea of the whole asking for it attitude to rape which she perceives in todays culture. She also talks about goals for a movement such as Slutwalk and the importance to her that the people who were assaulted felt empowered and also that some people who might not have recognised they were raped to be able to acknowledge and not feel responsible for their own assaults. The importance also she feels that the awareness that Slutwalk brought to mass media. We also discuss the hypocrisy within feminism that is very exclusive and that you have to fit a cookie cutter image of women if you want the movement to include and speak out for you.

She talks about the media and how it misrepresents rape in her opinion and the social taboos when reporting rape and talking about sexual assaults. The awareness of rape within men and women and the importance of rape jokes is important part of things Caitlin sees as important.
This photo is one of the many posters seen at Slutwalk and it's very interesting in addressing the idea of empowering rape survivors and at the same time changing peoples perspectives and the idea that someone can be asking to be raped.
(Feminspire 2012)

Source 12

I asked a group of 16 & 17 year olds to complete a survey on violence in advertising. There was a variety of different responses, from both young men and women. The men and women tended to have different opinions and it is interesting to dissect the results. I've summarise the results below.

Do you think this is appropriate imagery for a beauty spread?

This was an image I found used in a beauty spread. The images were used in a beauty spread. I got a variety of responses. Of the people I asked 4 said yes 13 said no. It should also be noted that some of the people who took the survey thought that the article was to highlight the issue to domestic violence, which is interesting. I think that these responses show a good response to violence against women, basically how I interpret the advert is that if you are beautiful then you get treated violently. The advert could also convey that being beautiful causes pain.

What do you think of this advert?

The responses I got to this were interesting

"rape, bit too sexual, takes away from advert, a bit too far, gang rape, sexual but cool, it's demeaning to women , disgusting and promotes attacks on women, it seems to promote sexual attacks, she looks like she's gonna get raped by like a man, shows dominance, uncomfortable to look at, inappropriate, assumes rape is supposed to sell products, too raunchy, uncomfortable at four men overpowering a woman, I think it plays on power and tries to show men are more powerful than women, nice, old fashioned, suggests and conforms to women being vulnerable and submissive, it looks as if the woman is being raped and she doesn't care"

Lots of the responses saw the advert as a direct message of rape, the responses who thought that the advert was 'sexual but cool' and 'nice' identified themselves as male, it is also interesting that such a powerful company can use such advertising which is perceived as so incendiary to young adults. As a selling technique it is interesting what the advert personally says to me. I think that the message I perceive to be one of wearing Dolce and Gabbana is synonymous with getting what you want, and this extends to sexually getting what you want regardless of consent.

What does this advert say to you?

"rape, violence , women being treated bad by men, listen to man, male dominance, men have superior power and women are not equal, the man is in complete control, weird and creepy , awkward situation, displays power, men are more dominant than women, men are stronger than women, abuse, the advert shows the stereotypical power that is associated with traditional men and women relationships, kiss me without consent, the man is in charge and dominating the woman if the customer bought this they may assume it is acceptable to do this, man is very physically attracted to this woman. To me this doesn't look abusive, however it shows male dominance. "

I think these responses are very interesting, I think the idea that lots of answers touched on is the idea of dominance, the idea that men are more dominant than women, I think this is a dangerous idea perpetuated in a culture that promotes rape, that men as the dominant party are more entitled to get what they want. Traditional men and women relationships is an interesting choice of phrase and I think that promoting these old fashioned ideas of relationships are damaging. It negates all relationships which are not traditional male/female pairing and it devalues women when they are perceived to be the more dominant in the relationship. 'Pussy whipped' and 'under the thumb' are phrases used to describe when the female partner is perceived to be more dominant, however when it is the other way round it is appreciated that the woman is in her rightful place and that the man rightfully deserves to be the dominant one. It also negates gay relationships, and there is often an assumption in popular society that in a gay relationship on person is the "man" in the relationship, a role which is assumed to be dominant role, and the sexually agressive of the two people. It negates Trans* identities because it assumes that the gender binary is inherently valid and that that in order to be a man you have to exist a certain way, and devalues Transwomen because society perceives the "choice" to not be the more valid gender to be a wrong one. Of course these inferences are not fact but a thought process that I have seen discussed in the female, LGBT and Transwomen communities and believe to be a valid one.

What does this advert say to you?

"control, murder, that she just got raped and killed, men are better than women have no rights, makes them uncomfortable, resembles a KKK picture the man looks proud of what he has inflicted on the women. Women are merely objects, possessions to be played with and broken, the man looks like he's saying “oh you want it next”, abuse, survey image looks violent, men with no respect for women, promoting violence against women, looks like a man has raped and killed the girl, stereotypical power relationship with violence and bondage, wtf, the clothing is good however the woman is portrayed awfully, creep, degrading to women as she is almost naked and he has his tie around her neck whilst he looks like he has no remorse"

The choice of this photo I believe is an especially poor one. I think at best it is glorifying violence against women and at worst incites violence and rape against women. I think these responses back up this; rape, murder and disrespect to women are common themes and I believe that adverts like this are a dangerous part of rape culture, if 16 and 17 year olds can assume violence and rape from an advert that can be expected to be displayed in the public domain what does the advert say to younger people who can't tell the difference, and how are people exposed to this advert supposed to differentiate between the glorification of violence and fashion. Also how are people who believe rape to be a just action supposed to not read this advert as condoning their actions?

Do you think these kind of adverts promote violence against women?

Yes, 'They should be banned", "no but they make the violence and mistreatment of women seem alright", "yes she's being overpowered and it has nothing to do with clothes" were the responses from the female identified respondents these I feel are essentially all different varieties of the same answer, these women are negatively affected by the image in the advertisement.

"Not promote just display", "Not this ad in particular but I can see what you mean", "Potentially" "Possibly", "Not particularly", "Maybe", "This picture looks very sexualised and shows male dominance, maybe the woman has been tied up, it doesn't look like violence has been inflicted on her", "Yes they give off the wrong message". These answers suggest to me that the male respondents generally feel different to the women, they are less affected by the images than the women, or they perceive them differently. It is interesting that in a culture that I understand to be putting the responsibility for women to not be raped that men don't see these images as non-consensual but the women do.

Do you think rape is an issue in today's culture?

"It's an issue but it always has been, definitely it's one of the biggest issues in society, YES, yes" are the woman identified responses. I think that these responses are telling of how the women acknowledge rape in their lives, and how they see it affecting them and how they see it in society. The men's responses were slightly different, "Although it is dealt within the law, some men still think it is acceptable to hurt and rape women. Women are also sexualised in the media" This response was interesting because it was from someone who identified as Trans* and it's interesting to see someones perspective who was raised in a female gender role and identifies as male and their perspective on the matter.

Source 13

This video is a good example of how rape culture works, and how the people most affected by rape culture tend to be women. The clear difference between the female and the male respondents is clear. Women are actively thinking about how to protect themselves of rape and it is something that men rarely think of. This also is important because none of the people mention that they are thinking about preventing rape by not raping people. All of the actions taken are ones to protect against rape, not to stop rape by stopping the rapist.

Source 14

On Saturday the 24th November I went to Reclaim the Night, a women only march run by the London Feminist Network. In their own words "The Reclaim The Night march gives women a voice and a chance to reclaim the streets at night on a safe and empowering event. We aim to put the issue of our safety on the agenda for this night and every day." We marched through Central London from Embankment to Kings Cross and afterwards there were speeches. The march is designed to counter the felt effects of rape culture. For people who feel like the night is not safe for them, for people who feel that there isn't a safe place when people should be free to go out at any hour. It was an important march because the feeling of solidarity I felt. To know I was marching with women who also want and feel a need to reclaim our streets was an important thing for me when thinking about how rape culture has affected me. Afterwards I spoke to people about why the march was important to them.

"It's nice to feel safe at night, and to know that other people see us on our streets marching together""It empowers me to have strength in my convictions and to see that I'm not alone.""It sends a message to rapists and people who make us feel unsafe on our streets that we are fighting back" (Slutwalk 2012)

I think this and the speeches that we heard really spoke to me. It was important for the women involved that they were able to take back a night that feels taken from us, that we have at least one night where united we are safe on the streets. We also heard in the speeches about the importance of fighting cuts, especially to sectors such as education, a primarily female workforce and it was interesting to see how there are many strands of oppression felt within the the feminist movement. I took from the march an awareness that there are many other women out there who feel the same as me and are eager to reclaim our streets. I hope that one day there will be safe streets free of rape and violence.

Speeches at the rally after reclaim the night. The rally was fun and informative and had a deaf translator.

"According to the British Crime Survey (2001) there are an estimated 47,000 rapes every year, around 40,000 attempted rapes and over 300,000 sexual assaults. Yet our conviction rate is the lowest it has ever been, one of the lowest in Europe, at only 5.3%. This means that more rapists were convicted in the 1970s when Reclaim The Night marches first started than they are now. Did you know that the maximum sentence possible for rape is life imprisonment? Probably not, because rarely are rapists even reported or convicted, let alone with a realistic sentence. This situation has to change." (Reclaim the Night 2012)

"Whose streets? Our streets" (Reclaim the night 2012)

These two parts of reclaim the night are important polar opposites of the two effects I felt of the march. The need to raise awareness of statistics for rape victims, and the power felt when a large group of women get together to feel powerful and together.

Source 15
I want to look a the idea of the "nice guy" and "friendzone". If we look at a study by Herold and Milhausen (2008) that investigated

"university women's perceptions of "nice guys" specifically whether women perceived nice guys to be more or less sexually successful than guys who were considered not nice...More than half women agreed that nice guys have fewer sexual partners"

So let's have a look at this idea of the nice guy and it's relation to the friend-zone This study is really interesting because it's not especially empirical. It isn't measuring whether "nice guys" actually are more sexually successful, it's measuring perceptions of women, so we are looking at a construct and investigating said construct through the eyes of female university students, how are we to measure whether a guy is nice or not? Aren't we looking at a socially constructed idea of a nice guy that we see so often in film and television? Here we come to the idea of the friend-zone, take for example the first "friend-zone' seen in televisions "Friends" between Ross and Rachel, Ross is a nice guy, one who has always loved Rachel, but the feelings aren't reciprocated placing him in an imaginary realm called the friend-zone this is an idea that I perceive to be created by the patriarchy, an idea that a woman has to consider all of her male friends romantically. This idea suggesting that men are inherently deserving of being considered as a sexual partner is a doubled edged one that works both ways. It creates a climate where men who have female friends are expected to have either slept with them, considered them and discounted them or be in their friend-zone all of these things suggesting that women and men cannot be friends, unless there is a sexual element.

"I mean the sort of Guy who has declared himself to be Nice, and thus deserving of positive (usually sexual) attention from the female of his choice, upon whom he has often projected an elaborate fantasy of perfection and willingness that rarely has anything to do with the subject's actual feelings or desires. When a Nice Guy is romantically rejected by a woman he wants, he lashes out at her, wondering why that dumb cunt won't go out with him. After all, he has been Nice!" (Ryan 2012)

This quote from Jezebel sums up my feelings towards this nice guy stereotype, and the friend-zone, this whole mentally constructed scenario in peoples minds that if you are nice to someone you are deserving of sex, and owe them something in return for their niceness which in turn negates their niceness. I think that this mentality in which we are owed sex is central to the rape culture.

Source 16
For ethical reasons I cannot identify the source, but I spoke to a police officer who has experience investigating rape and I posed three questions

Do you think that there is a negative attitude in society towards the victims of sexual assault?
Who in your experience is mostly likely to report rape and who tends to commit rapes?
Do you think rape is a big problem and if so why do you think this problem exists?

We talked through what their experiences were, here's what they had to say:

"In general terms from my experience the majority of sexual offences tend to come from the lower social demographic, vulnerable, single parents families, council estates, and who have other socio economic issues that are affecting the family.

Rape allegations can come from all across society, my gut feeling is that people who are more vulnerable, for example those with addictions, learning difficulties, although saying that it doesn't meant that if youre a business person you can't be raped.

The majority of rapes are by people who know each other, so we tend to see rape in a lot of domestic violence situations, committed by partners, ex-boy friends.

In my opinion only a small minority of assaults are where the victim doesn't know the offender. 90% of rapes the assailant knows the victim.
The biggest problem we have when investigating is when people come forward it is difficult and painful thing to go through, unfortunately in a large number of cases all of the true facts tend not to be reported because there's a shame surrounding it. The difficulties prosecuting rape is that if there is any way that the defence can undermine the victim then they will do that, any factual inaccuracy in their original statemen then that will be used because of this rapes are the most difficult crime to prosecute, very very often there is a failure to report an important fact to the police which ultimately means there isn't much chance of the assailant ever going to jail.

Police forces have special investigation forces. Nowadays all sorts of things in place. 80% if not more ultimately come to nothing in my experience because of the victim themselves doesn't want to take it to the police, and then there's the problem that some are made up. There is this problem of false reporting of rapes because their boyfriend caught them cheating. Now there is a better attitude to rape, but the statistics are still quite bad, because it's difficult to prosecute.

It is my gut feeling that the mass rapes are not reported because it tends to happen to people in relationships"

Source 17
So how does rape culture relate to media,

Guerilla Girls 2002

This billboard is a piece of art by the feminist group guerilla girls, to highlight the inequality in hollywood, and generally it is seen across the board, women tend to fill less of the top jobs and get less funding and generally you'll see less women winning awards. If we think of the overall picture this creates for the media we as a public see it's a males point of view, think about the Bechdel test

Bechdel 2012

there are a lot of famous films, television programmes, and other things in our media that we are seeing every day that don't accurately represent women. If the majority of people creating, writing and producing our media are men what does this mean about how well written story lines that are not within their comfort zones are written? Glee creator Ryan Murphy has been criticised for his lack of two dimensional female, lesbian and poc characters. How many films are there where rape has been used as a character building plot development for female character? How many characters are exhibiting dangerous and abusive characteristics because people are writing about something they don't know about? 50 shades of grey is a good example of an abusive relationship been touted in a public forum, written by someone who has no knowledge BDSM and as a result has written a book which is essentially a manual for how to turn rape into a controlling and abusive relationship. If we don't have a bigger variety of media coming from a bigger variety of people then how are we supposed to have an accurate portrayal of healthy sexual relationships, and considering our exposure to the media how are our young supposed to develop healthy attitudes to sexual relationships?

Ethics

Thinking about the ethics of doing a project on rape culture has to be a very careful process. When I am doing my seminar I plan to have a trigger warning on the beginning of the seminar, so that if anyone is uncomfortable/finds it triggering to hear/talk about rape then they have the opportunity to remove themselves from the situation. This is important because I think for many people rape can be a deeply traumatic thing even to hear about and discuss and part of what I'm looking at in my discussion of rape culture is general desensitisation to rape that we as a culture have. As an act of violence sexual assault is a very damaging thing, and that we as a culture use is as a plot device, an advertising tool, a joke is very disturbing. I also have to consider that in the course of my research it is very possible that I have spoken to people who unbeknownst to me have been raped. This means that I have to be very careful when thinking about what questions I am asking and whether they are appropriate to ask. I think that whilst it is important to have an open dialogue about rape culture and the effects it has on people it is more important to not trigger and cause any unwanted distress for people who have been the victim of sexual assault. The people who I've interviewed I've tried to ensure a safe interview environment for them. When I interviewed the police officer it was important for their job safety that I can ensure I don't identify them in my research, and this was relevant to the ethical part of my research because what they were telling me wasn't directly putting anyone in danger apart from them, so that I have been able to keep them protected was an important part of the ethical journey. When I handed out the survey I also kept this anonymous because it was important that people shared their true feelings without having to worry about being identified. When I was at Slutwalk I only approached people if I knew they were comfortable talking about it and I asked permission before.

Year 2 Blog

Tuesday, 11 December 2012

Production Research Prezi Bibliography

Wednesday, 28 November 2012

Mood Board: Live Project

Friday, 5 October 2012

Production Research Bibliography

Wednesday, 3 October 2012

Professional and Work based learning

Production Research