Published inNewsTracker·Nov 26, 2018The silence of menWhy do Indian men stay ‘off the record’ when talking to the media about sexual violence? — Over the past few months, India has been gripped by the #MeToo movement, with a wave of women outing powerful men. After years of systemic oppression, these women’s voices are finding strength in numbers. …Rape8 min readRape8 min read
Published inNewsTracker·Aug 20, 2018Working with NewsTracker showed me how easy it is to become numb to India’s rape problemIf you tweet out every news story on rape, you’ll be mistaken for a spambot — I suddenly realised how dry my eyes felt. I looked away from the newsfeed I had been staring at on the screen. A newsfeed crafted to give me the latest stories on rape, sexual violence, molestation, assault. I wasn’t prepared. When I was first tasked with compiling a daily newsletter[i]…Rape6 min readRape6 min read
Published inNewsTracker·Aug 2, 2018I Think: No one is safe until we change our mentalityPranav Harsh, Army Officer, Bihar — Iget my regular news from TV, newspapers and social media platforms, including WhatsApp, Facebook and news blogs. The situation that the victim has to face worries me. It doesn’t end with the heinous crime or even punishment for the culprit as society continues to remind her of what happened all…Rape2 min readRape2 min read
Published inNewsTracker·Jul 27, 2018Photographing survivors, Kerala priests, and the ‘exorcism’ caseThe July 27 round-up of Note This: highlights from NewsTracker and more — Anushka Kelkar would love to do a photo-series with rape survivors. “Putting a face to survivors would make the brutality in such cases more real,” says the photographer behind the browngirlgazin project. …Rape3 min readRape3 min read
Published inNewsTracker·Jul 26, 2018The ‘lost’ people, Darjeeling rapes, and Punjab death sentenceThe July 25 roundup of Note This: highlights from NewsTracker and more — There is a lot that remains invisible about India’s transgender community, including the fact that journalists pay transgenders scant attention. …Rape2 min readRape2 min read
Published inNewsTracker·Jul 26, 2018Kathua, Kerala misogyny, Bihar shelterThe July 25 roundup of Note This: the best of NewsTracker and more — That the news media sensationalises sexual violence is a criticism that broadcast journalist Padmaja Joshi can live with. Why? Because, as she tells Aakanksha Singh, but for the media attention, many rape victims would not get justice. …Rape3 min readRape3 min read
Published inNewsTracker·Jul 11, 2018I Think: Nirbhaya wasn’t the first; she won’t be the lastManish Sidhu, skateboarder, Punjab — I am not connected with the news. I’m not social at all and I see no reason to follow the news. Media is owned; it’s just a profiteering enterprise being run as a business. Shouldn’t news media be a non-profit entity, ideally‽ I think the problem of rape is as…India2 min readIndia2 min read
Published inNewsTracker·Jul 5, 2018I Think: There is a clear link between rape being reported and rapist being punishedSantlal Yadav, retired jawan, Sabour, Bihar — I usually read Dainik Jagran and Prabhat Khabar or tune into All India Radio. Who has the time to watch television? All rapes are wrong and must be reported. …Rape2 min readRape2 min read
Published inNewsTracker·Jun 25, 2018I Think: Media can shift the balance by allocating shame to perpetratorsTanita Abraham, education strategist, Sonepat — Reading how rape is reported has led me to believe that it is lopsided. There is undue attention on the survivor, her clothing, whereabouts, time of day etc — which makes it seem like the media is almost making an apology for why the rape happened. I think the media…Rape Culture2 min readRape Culture2 min read
