- Published
This week, the dark side of television has come crashing into the open.
On Monday, disgraced entertainer Russell Brand was jailed for rape and sexual assault.
asserted
Brand → publish → rape
Twenty-four hours later, author and comedian David Walliams was unmasked and accused of preying on young women.
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Walliams → unmask → women
By Friday the Metropolitan Police had launched an investigation into further allegations about him.
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Police → launch → him
Also in the last week, Married at First Sight UK has been cancelled following allegations of rape on the hit TV show.
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UK → cancel → show
These are all very different stories, but each can be seen as a major reckoning with abuse of power and culture in the industry.
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each → see → industry
So why is this all happening now?
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this → happen → ?
All these revelations began with journalistic investigations that started years ago.
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that → begin → investigations
From my own experience - including in my Panorama on Married at First Sight UK - I know investigations typically take a very long time to reach a conclusion, from initial tip-off, to evidence-gathering, corroboration, getting responses, and eventually reporting.
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investigations → include → responses
"The truth is, these stories have a long build up.
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stories → have → up
It can be incredibly difficult to get [them] in the papers," Sunday Times columnist Hadley Freeman told me.
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Freeman → get → me
In the case of Brand, there was then a police investigation too, before an outcome was reached in court.
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outcome → be → court
Together these stories represent the consequences of changes that began years ago, rather than a sudden cultural shift in the entertainment industry.
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that → represent → industry
It should also be said that Walliams denies the allegations against him.
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Walliams → say → him
The men accused of rape and sexual misconduct on MAFS UK have also denied all the allegations.
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men → accuse → allegations
What has changed is that women (because it almost always is women) have seen others speaking up - which, according to broadcaster Kirsty Wark, has given them "courage to do the same".
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which → change → same
She describes those who have come forward as "beyond brave".
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who → describe → those
'More of a sense you'll be listened to'
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you → listen → sense
When looking at what’s driving more women to speak up, much can be traced back to the revelations about Harvey Weinstein and the #MeToo movement.
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much → look → Weinstein
It changed the perception of whether victims would be believed.
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victims → change → perception
In the past, women alleging this sort of behaviour faced barriers - being seen as opportunistic, fearing retaliation, believing they might be the only one.
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they → allege → retaliation
Once one, two or three come forward, that prompts others to revisit their experiences - which they may have dismissed or subdued.
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they → come → which
"There is more of a sense that you will now be listened to," said Freeman.
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Freeman → be → sense
It's also clear that when women see action taken, it can encourage others to speak up as well - as it helps counter the widely-held assumption that reporting abuse results in nothing.
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reporting → see → nothing
When another high-profile man, MasterChef presenter Gregg Wallace, faced accusations of a very different and much lesser order, relating mostly to inappropriate sexual language and humour, the reaction was similar.
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reaction → face → language
Last summer, an independent inquiry upheld dozens of claims against him, and he was sacked.
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he → uphold → him
Wallace said "none of the serious allegations" against him had been upheld but that he was "deeply sorry for any distress caused".
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he → say → distress
One young woman I spoke to in my investigation into Wallace texted me at the time, to give her reaction to his sacking.
"
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I → speak → sacking
I really believe this will encourage young girls going into the TV industry to have the courage to speak up, if they feel something is wrong," she told me.
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she → believe → me
But unions say it is still difficult for junior freelance workers, who often find their income unstable and unpredictable, to speak up.
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income → say → ?
Vulnerable workers "continue to fear raising concerns", said head of broadcast union Bectu, Philippa Childs.
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head → continue → Bectu
She's echoed by Freeman, who said an "attitude of protecting the talent" remained.
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attitude → echo → talent
"There will always be wealthy famous predators," she said.
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she → say → ?
But, she added: "Hopefully more and more people at TV stations and movie studios are willing to hear these young people and will take them seriously”.
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people → add → them
For more senior people in TV, raising the alarm can also be difficult.
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raising → raise → alarm
Earlier this week, comedian Lucy Beaumont told Sky News: "The reason high-profile people are not saying anything is because they lose work, because you're seen that you might be a trouble causer.
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you → tell → work
It does need to be said that there needs to be some intervention."
Social media has also played a role in encouraging people to speak up.
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media → need → people
And policing investigations have had to keep pace - and adapt - with media scrutiny often prompting authorities to investigate.
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scrutiny → have → authorities
Attitudes towards women who speak up are also starting to change – although not always.
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who → speak → women
Some of what unfolded in court during the Russell Brand case felt like a throwback to how rape cases used to be conducted.
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cases → unfold → throwback
Many have commented on Brand's lawyer's defence tactics against the accusers on the stand - behaviour Freeman said would have been "standard" in the past.
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Freeman → comment → past
…and 31 more, not listed.
The Aporia
