by arthur Weinreb, associate Editor,
October 1, 2004
The issue of violence against women hit the news over a week ago with the news that Cherry Bomb, a St. Catharines Ontario clothing store was selling a T-shirt that appeared to promote violence against women. The shirt displayed a picture of a hammer next to a pool of blood and was accompanied by the words, "she was asking for it".
Naturally the apparel caused an uproar with the Premier of Ontario weighing in saying that he wasn't amused and he didn't think "it's keeping with the standards shared by the people of this province" (if McGuinty, who flippantly lies and breaks major promises on a whim is going to dictate "standards" we're all in a lot of trouble, but I digress). Michael Bryant, the Ontario attorney General said that he would investigate whether what appeared on the T-shirt constituted a hate crime.
The mainstream media all reported the sale of the T-shirts as well as statements from the store's owners that the shirts were meant to mock those who commit domestic violence and was never meant to condone violence. The media also followed up on Cherry Bomb's announcement that they had sold out and would not be ordering any more of the offending T-shirts.
What much of the media did not report was the fact that there was another T-shirt also being sold by Cherry Bomb. This one showed a pair of scissors next to a pool of blood, and the words, "he had it coming".
There is no doubt that violence against women is a greater societal problem, whether real or perceived, than is violence against males or violence in general. It was the T-shirt with the hammer that caused all the outrage and in effect, made the sale of the apparel newsworthy. But, as some sources such as CTV News did, the other T-shirt should have received at least a mention.
Those sources that left out the fact that there was another T-shirt that the store was selling also paid no attention to the fact that the shirt, although arguably in poor taste, was not solely made and sold to poke fun at violence against women. The U.S. manufacturer of the shirts, Jixed Clothing manufactures T-shirts that "poke fun" at other serious subject matters besides domestic violence. Surely the fact that the manufacturer produces T-shirts that mock other serious subjects such as suicide was relevant to the story as well.
By leaving out the facts about the violence against males T-shirt by reporting only on the one shirt, the media were able to single in on violence against women and further their own agenda. The production and sale of the shirts was not solely about violence against women.