Re: Leykis & Serious debate lost in Bryant free-for-all

[SteveOrdinetz <steveord@bit-net.com>]

>Underneath it all, a serious debate is emerging about whether it's time for
>                     journalists to abandon their longstanding practice of 
> shielding the identity of
>                     alleged victims in rape cases, on grounds that the 
> crime still carries a special
>                     stigma and the media should not discourage women from 
> calling the police.


Someone please explain to me why the media shields the identity of the 
alleged victim of a sexual assault, yet allows the name, photo, and life 
history of the alleged perp to be displayed for all to see?  What ever 
happened to "presumed innocent until proven guiilty"?   If you're gonna 
protect the identity of one of the parties, why not both?

One of the bigger such circuses was maybe 10 years ago when one of the 
Kennedys was on trial in Florida.  The trial was televised, but the alleged 
victim's face was digitally blocked out of the tv image.  As I recall, he 
was acquitted.