Sexual Violence and Predatory Journalism in India

Sexual Violence and Predatory Journalism in India examines unethical editorial practices in the reporting of sexual crimes against women in India, introducing the term Predatory Journalism.
 
This book conceptualises and analyses predatory practices that commodify sexual crimes against women, examining how it is facilitated and motivated by online spaces and social media channels and how it can often result in further harm to victims and their families. It argues for editorial intervention, more regulation, policy measures and legal frameworks that will help build a sensitive and ethical media landscape and rebuild public trust. Key issues examined include sexism, sensationalism, invasion of privacy, victim blaming, media trials, media manipulation of information, armchair reporting, explicit sexual imagery, the usage of unreliable sources and a lack of responsibility and accountability.
 
Providing a comprehensive analysis of the issue and offering a framework for ethical practice, Sexual Violence and Predatory Journalism in India will be essential reading for scholars and students of media and cultural studies, journalism and sociology interested in the intersection of media and crime in India and its associated ethical challenges.

?A multifaceted analysis of unethical media practices in reporting sexual violence in India, this book reveals a disturbing reality through rigorous reflection and research. Insightful for anyone committed to ethical journalism and understanding the media?s impact on societal perceptions and the exploitation of ensuing trauma.?

Syeda Afshana, Professor of Media Studies, Media Education Research Centre, University of Kashmir, India, and Visiting Fellow, Centre of International Studies, University of Cambridge, UK

?Barclay and Laskar?s data-driven analysis of  ?Predatory Journalism? addresses how sensationalist reporting has seeped into and tainted the mainstream news cycle and causes harm to victims and their communities. As the authors stand up to abusive journalistic tactics to restore public faith in news across print, radio, television, streaming platforms and social media, concerned citizens and ethical editors may be inspired to support victims of sexual crimes and the journalists who provide accurate and respectful reporting.?

Artemis Preeshl, Assistant Director, Center for Diversity and Inclusion, Buena Vista University, USA, and Fulbright Senior Specialist in Theatre, Central University of Tamil Nadu, India

?This important book examines the reporting about crimes against women in India and the ethical challenges that journalists face. It also addresses the impact of those challenges on the victims of crimes, focusing on privacy, sensationalism and victim blaming. The authors apply the important concepts of critical theory and feminism as part of the moral obligation that journalists face when covering difficult crimes and the impact on the women who are victims. It adds to the growing scholarship about the coverage of crimes against women. I highly recommend this book.?

Kimberly Voss, Professor of Journalism, University of Central Florida, USA