‘The Herald Sun’ Published An Appalling Front Page About Courtney Herron’s Murder
Another woman has been murdered, and the Herald Sun thinks it's a joke.
Over the weekend, a 25-year-old woman named Courtney Herron was violently killed, her body left in a Melbourne park. A man has been charged with her murder.
Today, amidst an outpouring of grief, the Herald Sun published a front-page headline referring to Herron’s death as a “party twist” (the “joke” is that she was reportedly at a party with her alleged killer shortly before her death). No one is laughing.
What I’m saying here is that @heraldsun victim-blaming coverage of the murder of Courtney Herron today is offensive, ableist and frankly, a friggin disgrace. This is disgusting, shameful and deserving of fire. How dare you? pic.twitter.com/SjXvw0WuqJ
— Celeste Liddle (@Utopiana) May 27, 2019
The Herald Sun headline is appalling: it treats the murder of an innocent woman as, quite literally, a punchline. Its callousness is shocking, especially considering the number of people who would have had to view and okay this for it to make the front page of a print publication. A series of people saw this pun and thought it was an appropriate response to the brutal murder of a 25-year-old.
While this headline is one of the more shockingly insensitive responses to violence against women, it’s not alone. Herron is, according to the Counting Dead Women project, the 20th woman to be killed in Australia this year. It’s only May. Her death is the latest in a string of violent attacks on women in public spaces in Melbourne — it follows, amongst others, the murder of 22-year-old Eurydice Dixon, killed a year ago on her way home from a comedy performance, the murder of 21-year-old Aiia Maasarwe, killed earlier this year on her way home from an event, and the murder of 32-year-old Natalina Angok, allegedly killed by her boyfriend just one month ago.
In every one of these cases — which are amongst the handful of instances of violence against women that actually receive media attention — there have been appalling headlines and callous responses. In every case, media, police or the public have sought to subtly or unsubtly blame these dead women for their own deaths.
'Party Twist'? As @tarang_chawla says 'Going to a party and then getting killed by a man you meet there is NOT a ‘party twist’.'
That this headline made it to print is simply disgraceful. https://t.co/l8pQWU1tt6— Georgina Dent (@georgiedent) May 27, 2019
I have written almost this exact same story before, back when Eurydice Dixon was killed. At the time, police responded to her murder by warning people to “be aware of their own personal security and just be mindful of their surroundings”. When the public responded with outrage, pointing out that the police were basically saying that Dixon was at fault for her own murder, the Daily Telegraph and Sunrise piled on to defend not Dixon, but the cops.
This week, after Courtney Herron’s murder, the cops responded differently, emphasising that “the key point is [that] this is about men’s behaviour, it’s not about women’s behaviour”. This was a dramatic shift from their response to Dixon’s murder, and a welcome one, but let’s not kid ourselves: it was also a small act, the bare minimum we should expect. And yet yesterday, just two days after Herron’s body was found, newspaper headlines had already shifted to focus on how the police were being praised for their response. Media congratulated police for recognising, at last, that victims are not responsible for their own murders, while the focus on Herron herself faded.
While these descriptors may not be completely irrelevant to the facts of Herron’s death — conditions like homelessness and addiction can and do put people at higher risk of violence, with fewer resources to draw on for safety — more often than not media simply lists words like these without actually outlining those links. These descriptors end up presented as a reflection on the victim, rather than what they are: significant, structural flaws in a social safety net that has failed to catch a young woman who is now dead.
Likewise, the man charged with her murder has been described as homeless and a person with mental health issues. These things do not excuse or explain the fact that a woman has been violently murdered.
Saddened to see how Courtney Herron’s murder framed as issue of homelessness, mental health or addiction.
Those are all BIG issues needing much work. But Courtney Herron died because a man made a choice to kill. Why are we afraid of saying that?
— tarang chawla (@tarang_chawla) May 27, 2019
Courtney Herron’s living status & drug & mental health issues should not even be in the headlines. I was attacked by my supervisor while I was sober, inside an apartment with other colleagues. To this day I believe he was capable of killing me. Stop blaming us for men’s violence.
— Sampi Martoo (@sampi_martoo) May 27, 2019
When women are murdered in this country, media, police and the public struggle to focus on the facts. We struggle to focus on the fact that this is a crisis: that each new murder is just one of the 50 to 70 deaths due to violence against women that occur in this country each year. We struggle to focus on the fact that the victims of these murders are real humans who deserved better, who deserve our attention and grief and a serious effort to make change. We struggle to focus on the fact that when a woman is murdered, the person who murdered her is unequivocally to blame.
Instead, we’re very good at losing focus and looking away, getting distracted listing victims’ faults or killers’ excuses, praising police, collating new lists of safety measures, or brainstorming puns to place on newspaper front pages in lieu of actual compassion. The Herald Sun’s response to Courtney Herron’s death was disgusting, but so were so many other responses. She and every other woman killed this year deserved better.
If you or someone you know is impacted by sexual assault, domestic or family violence call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732 or visit 1800RESPECT.org.au. If you need support, call Lifeline on 13 11 14. In an emergency, call 000.
Men can access anonymous confidential telephone counselling to help to stop using violent and controlling behaviour through the Men’s Referral Service on 1300 766 491.