Domestic Violence and the Mass Media Reflection
Before this workshop my outlook on domestic violence was completely different. I, as many young Americans, saw domestic violence through the media outlets. As I had no firsthand experience, I had the stereotypical ideas associated with the matter, a weak girl, dominating large man; the girl was dumb for staying. Growing up I listened to music describing abusive relationships, unbeknownst of the reality of the horrors of the cycle of abuse. I’ve read numerous articles in magazines and different books expressing someone else’s tale of violence. Many of my favorite television shows have had their storylines depict some sort of dating violence. I’ve watched a number of films and adopted Hollywoood’s view on the subject as my own.
I. Music
I remember as a senior in high school, driving around in my car with the windows down blaring “Face Down” by the Red Jump Suit Apparatus. I would sing along “You cover up with makeup in the mirror, tell yourself that it’s never gonna happen again. You cry alone and then he swears he loves you… Do you feel like a man, when you push her around? Do you feel better now, as she falls to the ground?”
We don’t reason listening to a song or additional forms of entertainment as a knowledgeable experience. Yet, the lyrics from the 2006 hit song “Face Down” express a layer about domestic abuse that will deliver numerous listeners with new information, and resonate with the experiences of others. So frequently we brush pop culture to the wayside of any true conversation about culture or politics. Nonetheless it’s pop culture that has the aptitude to change not only our individual fondness for music or fashion, but also our understanding of what’s “usual” or accepted. Of course, what we study from the mass media may not be correct.
In a 1988 study, Ira Glasser searched for popular beliefs on crime, police and legal actions. The outcomes presented something fascinating; what people...