A grubby mess
JOURNALISM, like many things in life, is cyclical.
Some weeks you are struggling to find a topic that may be of interest and other times there is so much to choose from that your eyes start spinning around like dancing dervishes.
We have our own problem with MPs who appear to have absolutely no idea whether they are citizens of countries other than Australia.
Not only don’t they have any idea whether they have dual loyalties but they also seem to want the public to accept and forgive, as though being ignorant of their own constitution is somehow acceptable for people receiving only a couple of hundred thousand dollars a year to know these things.
Around the world everyone else seems to be caught up in some sort of controversy that yet again plays to the thought that those who have been elected or have power in other areas quite simply behave differently to the rest of us and expect to do so without consequences.
In England, Prime Minister Theresa May is under pressure to contain the fallout from claims of sexual misconduct at Westminster after her defence secretary Michael Fallon admitted inappropriate behaviour towards a female journalist more than a decade ago. Fallon was the first cabinet minister named after the Harvey Weinstein scandal prompted junior staff at Westminster to discuss concerns about the behaviour of prominent politicians —— resulting in a list that now includes the names of 37 Conservative MPs.
No doubt as the social media campaign swings into action the list will swell to huge proportions as more and more MPs, from both sides, are named and shamed. The journalist in the Fallon case, Julia Hartley-Brewer, rejected the idea that Fallon should be pursued, saying: “I have not been a victim and I don’t wish to take part in what I believe has now become a Westminster witch-hunt.”
She also offered that at the time she told him that “if you put your hand on my knee again I’ll punch you in the face” and that was the end of the matter. Well said, but of course it won’t stop the momentum already gained to expose the behaviour of those antediluvian males, and neither should it.
In the Tories’ world, there might actually have been some rejoicing, as for once in the past few decades such inappropriate behaviour didn’t involve an Old Etonian chum, suggestive leather wear or even a hint of corporal punishment.
See, even Conservatives can evolve over time.
None of this, of course, would ever have come to the fore were it not for the Weinstein revelations from the previous week.
Again, a case of the straw that broke the camel’s back and again, for all the momentum gained, you can thank the power of social media.
The Weinstein story of serial sexual harassment was exposed by a New York Times story on October 5. By November 1 there was a positive avalanche of claims from big stars of not just inappropriate but criminal activities including rape.
Actress Rose McGowan claims she turned down a $1 million offer from Weinstein in exchange for her silence, so obviously many others knew of his behaviour and yet did nothing about it.
Hollywood has acted swiftly and decisively to denounce and drop Weinstein, but again it raises the question: How many of them knew very well about his behaviour for more than three decades yet chose to stay silent, thereby offering tacit approval?
Kevin Spacey has also been outed for predatory behaviour, this time involving men over a period of three or more decades, and again it stretches the bounds of credibility that his actions were a mystery to others involved in the industry.
No doubt there will be other predators named in coming weeks.
Strangely, this is good news because at last victims can give voice to their ordeals. They can at last be listened to.
What is required for similar issues to be fully accepted and appreciated for what they are is for these sorts of horror stories to filter down to ordinary people and ordinary workplace environments.
Perhaps the City of Greater Geelong could even do its part and fully inform the ratepayers exactly what has gone on in the council workplace, what have been the consequences and how much money it has
cost us all.