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Tarana Burke and Alyssa Milano took the #MeToo movement to a level neither of them could have ever fathomed or imagined. Tarana Burke founded the movement and Milano's tweet allowed for it to take off. Millions of victims of sexual misconduct have since shared their stories, and as a result it has completely changed the world. Burke and Milano empowered victims, allowing them to gain freedom and peace of mind for the crimes they endured in the past, all while shocking the world. Nobody could have imagined the amount of victims that would come out as a result.
So a staggering 1.7 million tweets was the result, only in just a little over a month from the first time Milano used the hashtag to tell her story and inspire others to do just the same. The question for journalists has never been its impact, rather it's how to report on such a vast, deep and fragile topic. So the question stands, how do you report this topic?
Start With Recognizing Backlash
Those accused with call the story fake news. Troll accounts will demean stories, call victims liars or even possibly threaten to attack them. Keeping this in mind, journalists must keep the victims' safety and best interests in mind. The goal is to recognize that the sum is greater than the parts. Yes, you will undoubtedly encounter those who will shrug off these kinds of stories, but journalists change the world by shedding light on these stories and empowering the victims behind them. With that being said, journalists must not report these form of stories lousily, as that would be a breach in ethics.
Next, Recognize The Names Being Spread Here
Bill Cosby, Brett Kavanaugh, and Leslie Moonves are just a few of the top powerful names from the past year that have felt the impact of the Me Too movement from their actions. Prominence is a key player in investigative journalism like this. Matt Lauer of NBC and Ryan Lizza of The New Yorker were immediately fired once their sexual misconduct stories broke. Keeping this in mind, a reporter's duty is to disseminate knowledge but to know that in these such instances they are life and career- threatening, and they should be treated by journalists as so.
photo: EPA-EFE
Watch The Impact
Journalist don't get the credit they deserve reporting these types of stories. They must carefully craft stories, mostly toward notable and powerful figures, and know they will receive backlash. Facing that backlash comes with a reward though, as the more sexual assault and misconduct cases come out the less powerful these types of people become. The process starts with a brave individual and ends with a courageous reporter.
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