Fine, fine, we’ll just use Priest like everyone else
But what about paedo jokes?
You’re a nonce
You’re a snot badger
You’re a shrub rocketeer
You’re a two pin din plug
You’re the crazy world of Arthur Brown
So I had a look at where this guidance came. It was created by a group of people (some who were victims of child sexual abuse, some with a background in policing, some journalists) who believe that the public sector and journalists could communicate these types of crimes in a more effective way that raises awareness of the nature of the crime and better protects victims – especially in the aftermath of a conviction when it’s more likely to become big news.
They’ve created a list of commonly used phrases that could be problematic along with suggestions for what to write instead. They explain the reasoning behind the recommendation too.
For example, the reasoning they give for not describing the perpetrator as a beast or a monster is:
>When we give those who harm others salacious titles, we create a culture which separates ‘them’ from ‘us’. Individuals who commit sexual harm are a part of our society and they are more often known to those they harm as family members, partners, friends, colleagues, acquaintances, people in positions of power etc.
They suggest using “factual information to describe the perpetrator and the offence(s) they have committed” instead.
I mean “pedo” is a bit tabloid but it’s still factual. I do however agree, don’t call them monsters or beasts. I’m not saying this to be nice to them. I obviously still think sex offenders are hideous and need locking up. But I really think we need to remember they are human as we are. To be honest, I find it hard to explain why, I just feel it’s important to know that they can be anyone we know, they aren’t just some nebulous “monster”, they were someone’s neighbour, maybe a friend, son/daughter, etc…
Nice to see redditors not reading the article and then enacting behaviour antithetical to abuse victims requests in said article. Stay classy.
11 comments
So nonce is ok. Got it.
Nonce it is.
Wouldn’t want to hurt their feelings would we?
Can’t read because can’t turn off all the cookies
[deleted]
Fine, fine, we’ll just use Priest like everyone else
But what about paedo jokes?
You’re a nonce
You’re a snot badger
You’re a shrub rocketeer
You’re a two pin din plug
You’re the crazy world of Arthur Brown
So I had a look at where this guidance came. It was created by a group of people (some who were victims of child sexual abuse, some with a background in policing, some journalists) who believe that the public sector and journalists could communicate these types of crimes in a more effective way that raises awareness of the nature of the crime and better protects victims – especially in the aftermath of a conviction when it’s more likely to become big news.
They’ve created a list of commonly used phrases that could be problematic along with suggestions for what to write instead. They explain the reasoning behind the recommendation too.
For example, the reasoning they give for not describing the perpetrator as a beast or a monster is:
>When we give those who harm others salacious titles, we create a culture which separates ‘them’ from ‘us’. Individuals who commit sexual harm are a part of our society and they are more often known to those they harm as family members, partners, friends, colleagues, acquaintances, people in positions of power etc.
They suggest using “factual information to describe the perpetrator and the offence(s) they have committed” instead.
You can read the guidance yourself here if you’d like to: https://alterednotdefined.org.uk/guide-for-journalists/the-impact-of-language-and-labels/
I mean “pedo” is a bit tabloid but it’s still factual. I do however agree, don’t call them monsters or beasts. I’m not saying this to be nice to them. I obviously still think sex offenders are hideous and need locking up. But I really think we need to remember they are human as we are. To be honest, I find it hard to explain why, I just feel it’s important to know that they can be anyone we know, they aren’t just some nebulous “monster”, they were someone’s neighbour, maybe a friend, son/daughter, etc…
Nice to see redditors not reading the article and then enacting behaviour antithetical to abuse victims requests in said article. Stay classy.