Episode Twelve: Misogyny, memes and the media

We discuss the carnival of misogyny unleashed by the recent Depp v Heard court case. Despite an English court having already determined that it was "substantially true" that Depp had subjected Heard to domestic violence, Depp then decided to pursue Heard through the US court system and what followed was very much a trial by media - in particular, social media. Content with the hashtag #justiceforjohnny had billions of views, while the equivalent hashtag for Heard only attracted views in the millions. TikTokers, tweeters, bloggers and YouTube content creators produced thousands of pieces of content that presented Depp in sympathetic terms, while vilifying Heard.  We dig into the reasons behind the overwhelming support he received versus the intense hatred directed at her, as well as looking at similar instances of the treatment of women by the media, such as Monica Lewinsky and Britney Spears, and we share our views on what this says about our society and culture. ***** Useful links: https://people.com/movies/juror-in-johnny-depp-defamation-trial-says-jury-didnt-believe-amber-heards-crocodile-tears/ https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10878019/Johnny-Depp-won-trial-TikTok-fans-rejoice-social-media.html https://www.nbcnews.com/pop-culture/pop-culture-news/amber-heard-johnny-depp-trial-memes-chilling-effect-victims-domestic-a-rcna28572 https://amp.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2022/jun/01/amber-heard-johnny-depp-trial-metoo-backlash?fbclid=IwAR2IrXkQ2J6hXlef8oBMu8n4Xtay5hk9kHQb4EvEKhgZENp163QgJV-I8sA https://www.thequint.com/voices/opinion/johnny-depp-amber-heard-saga-feminism-metoo#read-more https://apnews.com/article/fact-check-amber-heard-talented-mr-ripley-487576135842 https://www.pajiba.com/celebrities_are_better_than_you/johnny-depps-case-against-amber-heard-was-textbook-darvo.php https://slate.com/culture/2022/06/johnny-depp-amber-heard-trial-verdict-evidence-truth.html https://www.theguardian.com/books/2022/may/03/fix-the-system-not-the-women-by-laura-bates-review-a-compelling-insight-into-gender-injustice