Who's the victim? Women, control, and consciousness

Press coverage of rape cases contribute to our understanding or misunderstanding of factors related to rape. Many myths surrounding rape have been dispelled with considerable effort on the part of women's organizations. The media has often been criticized for sensationalizing certain cases which ultimately distorts the facts of that particular rape case and what is worse, rape cases more generally. The media is also responsible to a large extent for creating myths or at least contributing to existing myths. One myth about rape, with numerous ramifications, is the belief that women lie to protect their reputations. This myth has been given support as a result of a highly publicized recantation case. This paper looks at how the presentation of the Dotson-Webb rape case in the newspapers creates support of the myth of the woman liar when in fact there is little evidence to substantiate the myth.