We’re Using All the Wrong Words to Describe Jeffrey Epstein’s Victims
Why do media outlets continue to use language that frames some of Epstein’s actions as consensual sex?
We still don’t have the language to talk about sexual violence — and nothing exemplifies this reality better than the case against Jeffrey Epstein.
Dozens of Epstein’s victims showed up at a federal courtroom in Manhattan on Tuesday to attend a hearing about dismissing the indictment against the late sex offender, who faced two sex trafficking-related charges at the time of his suicide. Much of the coverage was disturbingly — though predictably — indelicate, given the subject.
“He… engaged in sex acts with the girls during naked massage sessions,” the New York Times reported. CNBC described Epstein’s pedophilia as “sexual obsessions.” The Associated Press said the teenage girls had “[fallen] into Epstein’s web” when talking about the process by which the financier groomed dozens of teenage girls to become abuse victims. In each instance, these news outlets failed to emphasize the depth of Epstein’s abuse, glossing over the fact that Epstein’s teenage victims were forced into circumstances they did not consent to.
