Double Deviancy Theory

much outside the local press. This supports the overriding conceptions of appropriate and ideal victims. The young girls were archetypal ‘ideal victims’, as they were bright, young girls from devoted, middle-class domestic backgrounds, each holding model school records. Whereas, ‘David’ and ‘Patrick’ were both ‘working class young boys who had grown up on a rough West Midlands council estate’, the boys had been troublesome within school and ‘David’, had been caught stealing. While ‘Holly’ and ‘Jessica’ grasped the hearts of a nation, being noted in such widespread news reports, ‘Patrick’ and ‘David’’ did not appeal the same media or public interest. (Greer, 2007)
Generally, females acquire a more disciplinary response compared to their male counterparts if they are believed to have sullied the socially acceptable classifications of the roles and demeanour of women. (Ugwudike, 2015) This is portrayed through the media’s reflection of the ‘double deviancy theory’, of course it is not without doubt that male offenders of sexual violence are …show more content…
Reporting can decontextualize abuse, embolden racism, encourage stereotypes of women, blame victims and justify aggressors. Post 1800’s, scholars have recognised how sexual violence and exploitation surrounding women and children ‘makes good copy’. (Mendes, 2015) Liberal feminists believe that the way in which society defines gender roles and gender differences throughout news reporting creates attitudes and stereotypes that disadvantage women. Men are given higher-status social roles that place them in positions of power, supportive of Marxism as a theory. It is socially acceptable for men to be ‘competitive’ and ‘aggressive’, women on the other hand are expected to be ‘nurturing’ and ‘passive’. The double deviance theory as discussed earlier reinforces the position of the liberal feminists. (Ugwudike,