Much as I love and cherish the-public’s-right-to-know, the standard news media practice of not revealing the identities of those claiming to be victims of sexual assault seems like a no-brainer. Though there might also equally strong arguments for keeping secret the identities of those accused until they are found guilty — and what a ratings bonanza that would be for Court TV ; “The John Doe Trial”.
All of that said, what is gained by the NY Post publishing the name and photograph of Kobe Bryant’s accuser? I won’t claim I haven’t seen her picture before — several bogus Friendster accounts and some slavish pro-Kobe websites destroyed her anonymity a long time ago, but is it too much to expect the tabloid in question to maintain a slightly higher standard?
Apparently the broadsheets can’t resist either, as one of News Corp.’s other properties, The Times, has been running photographs of Michael Jackson’s alleged teenage victim.