Blaming the messenger: The media, social workers and child abuse

Abstract

This paper explores the agenda-setting role of the media in child abuse, citing local and international examples. The author argues that much media coverage of child abuse promotes a conservative, pro-family political agenda, offering a n a m w individualistidegalistic view of child abuse as opposed to a broader structural definition. This conservative agenda is particularly reflected in media hostility to social workers involved in child abuse cases. Attention is drawn to the major manifestations of this criticism, and to some of the reasons why social workers experience disproportionate media censure. Suggestions are then made regarding the potential for a more effective and pro-active social woh response.

Good Mothers, Bad Mothers

“…Mendes 2000Mendes , 2001. The disproportionate blaming of mothers of abandoned babies, and their complete silencing in the Malaysian news media, is rich ground for future research by local feminists and advocates, research which may lead to deeper local understandings and therefore more comprehensive solutions to tackle child abuse in society.…”

Am I Still a Social Worker? Reflections on Child Protection Practice

“…The difficulty with the moral-panic approach is its failure to consider broader questions such as resource allocation, gender issues, and the rights of children either in relation to the rights of parents or the responsibilities of the state (Goddard & Liddell, 1993). In Downloaded by [Nanyang Technological University] at 19:08 17 June 2016 addition, media coverage of child abuse appears to have a bias that there is underreporting of some categories of abuse, and that family preservation produces better outcomes for children (Mendes, 2001a).…”

“…The media persistently emphasizes pathological explanations for child abuse at the cost of examining the structural conditions that contribute to child abuse and neglect. The tendency to overlook structural factors has had one consequence of moving to increasingly narrow, legalistic definitions of child abuse while overlooking factors such as poverty and unemployment (Mendes, 2001a). Another consequence has been to increasingly depict social workers as inadequate as they "fail" to properly protect children.…”

“…In the short term, media attention has the capacity to capture public interest and guide policy reform (Mendes, 2001a). Child abuse is a political concern and media scrutiny cannot be avoided (Goddard & Liddell, 1995).…”

Medios, Debate Y Políticas Sociales: Percepciones Sobre Los Obstáculos Para Participar

“…Por otro lado, al explorar cómo es la relación de estos/as profesionales con los medios, la literatura evidencia que existe una tensión porque los/as trabajadores/as sociales consideran se presenta una imagen negativa de ellos/as; y, por su parte, los/as periodistas, creen que a los/ as trabajadores/as sociales les faltan de destrezas para manejarse ante los medios (Ayre, 2001;Freeman & Valentine, 2004;Gaughan & Garrett, 2012;Mendes, 2001;Zurazaga, Surette, Méndez & Otto, 2006). Otra investigación, apunta a su fracaso para influenciar la prensa y al público en el nivel de las ideas (Aldridge, 1990).…”