One From the Archives: Violence, Virality and the Media

How should journalists report domestic violence — and what happens when allegations of abuse become content? In this edition of Fourth Estate: One From the Archives, Tina Quinn revisits a 2022 conversation recorded in the aftermath of the Johnny Depp and Amber Heard defamation trial, when allegations of domestic violence became the subject of an extraordinary global media and social media spectacle. Journalists Lin Evlin and Helen Pitt examine the media’s reporting of the case, the ethics of covering violence against women, victim-blaming and sensationalism, and the responsibility journalists have when reporting domestic and family violence. Four years on, amid renewed scrutiny of the Depp–Heard case and the online campaign surrounding it, the questions raised in this conversation remain as urgent as ever. Want to get in touch? We'd love to hear from you! Email us at ⁠[email protected]⁠ or follow us ⁠@fourthestateau⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices