The media is usually swift to seek out stereotypical scapegoats when reporting on crime and tragedy, but last week’s Santa Barbra shooting has left me questioning the intentions of journalists covering it.
While one would expect the media to latch onto the fact gunman Elliot Rodger was mentally ill, online frenzy surrounding the shooting has instead come to resemble a spectacular battle of the sexes showdown.
You’d think the string of dramatic YouTube clips and his chilling manifesto, ‘My Twisted World,’ would be enough to indicate Rodger’s mental instability. But despite such clear signposts, pro-feminist reporters like Laurie Penny, Amanda Marcotte and Anne Theriault have wasted no time in branding the shooting an act of ‘misogynist extremism’, refusing to entertain the idea that Rodger’s actions were motivated by anything other than his unadulterated hatred of the female gender.
- Ironically, four of Rodger’s six victims were male.
And of course, wherever there is feminist action, there is masculine reaction.
Remaining loyal to patriarchal stereotypes, male writers were swift to rebut the ‘privileged white girl agenda’ that the ‘unholy sorority of short-haired women “journalists” – and their bearded lapdogs’ have been promoting. Referring to female reporters, online blog Return of the Kings decided not to rise above the issue, stating ‘you can’t trust the mentally ill to comment on the mentally ill.’
After Washington Post film critic Ann Hornaday claimed sexist Hollywood blockbusters like Bad Neighbours could have inspired the violent rampage, even actor Seth Rogan joined the list of gender-defender celebs wanting to voice their two-bob, responding with a tweet that encapsulated perfectly the macho attitude fuelling feminist critiques.
.@AnnHornaday how dare you imply that me getting girls in movies caused a lunatic to go on a rampage.
— Seth Rogen (@Sethrogen) May 26, 2014
… Have we missed the point completely?
Elliot Rodger was mentally ill. He was diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome at the age of eight and his parents had warned authorities of his instability on a number of occasions. Could it be possible the media has overlooked the ‘psychotic’ spectacle, focusing instead on self-centered impulses of gender-pride?
The Daily Banter website compiled a list of the worst media responses surrounding the rampage, showing how ridiculously distracted reportage on the spectacle has become. Herald Sun columnist Andrew Bolt also notes the way in which the tragedy has been shamelessly recruited to further gender-orientated plights.
Just like all self respecting women, I am completely against any form of sexism. But skimming through the multitude of scathing news articles and blog posts makes me wonder whether those we trust to facilitate the public sphere will realise they have appropriated a tragic occurrence as a childish display of “boys v. girls”.
Thank goodness the reporters at Crikey have been able to objectively disregard the influence of their X and Y chromosomes and identify other complications of a tragedy the media has otherwise overlooked.
“What Elliot Rodger said about women reveals that the guy was a nutter-butter created by goodness-knows-what fusion of chemicals with numb hate, and that a person with a long history of psychiatric therapy was able to access a gun. These are not the actions of a person, despite the author’s desperation to locate him in an evil-guy continuum, which form the endpoint of patriarchy.”
– YouTube
Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube.
