Mayang Prasetyo was the victim of a horrendous murder-suicide in Brisbane. Her partner, chef Marcus Peter Volke is alleged to have killed and dismembered her before killing himself. The facts are tragic enough, but the reporting from some national media outlets reminds us just how far we have to go when addressing domestic violence.
The Courier-Mail has come under fire for its shameless reporting, running sensational headlines and standalone’s across its digital and hard copy, including lines like “Killed and cooked trans woman was high-class ‘shemale’ sex worker”, “lady boy and the butcher”, alongside highly sexualised images of Praseyto.
Hundreds have taken to social media to criticise the insensitive use of language in the reporting, while the Australian Press Council has confirmed it has received complaints against the paper.
Exhibit A: Courier Mail front page
Exhibit B: link to make a press council complaint: http://t.co/rw6iAADmi4 pic.twitter.com/JzsJ5322PE
— Amy Gray (@_AmyGray_) October 6, 2014
Remember @couriermail, @wrongdorey, and apologists: “The standard you walk past is the standard you accept.”
— ABC News Intern (@ABCnewsIntern) October 7, 2014
Dear @couriermail, Your lurid & sensational reporting of a woman’s murder today was shameful. She was a human being, not an entertainment.
— Badham Insouciance (@vanbadham) October 7, 2014
“It’s #MentalHealthWeek so let’s vilify all the traditionally marginalised groups in one yarn” – Courier Mail editors
— Bhakthi (@bhakthi) October 6, 2014
Just a ‘minor’ varience in how Courier Mail depicts tragedy. pic.twitter.com/eh2hNcxaPP
— Sigourney Beaver (@OreoSpeedwagon_) October 7, 2014
Members of the Brisbane transgender community are also calling for an apology from the News Corp publication, with a Change.org petition carrying almost 21,000 signatures since launching Tuesday afternoon.
The derogatory terms used by the Courier-Mail dehumanise a community already struggling for acceptance, trivialising Prasetyo’s death. The petition also demanded that the paper run an article covering the prevalence of gender-related violence in Australia “with the latest statistics showing 1509 reported murders in the last six years”.
These headlines continue to remind us that we have a long way to go when reporting on stories involving transgender individuals — and domestic violence at large. With gender-related violence a national epidemic, and one woman killed every week by her partner, salacious reporting like this does little to destigmatize the issue.
Whether Praseyto was transgender or a sex worker is irrelevant to her death. She was killed by her partner and that tragic fact is all that matters.
If you, a child or another person is in immediate danger call 000. If you feel unsafe contact 1800 Respect or 1800 737 732, the 24-hour national sexual assault, domestic and family violence counselling service.