Laurie4b Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 http://thestir.cafemom.com/in_the_news/127539/5yearold_black_girl_disappears_and?utm_medium=sem2&utm_campaign=outbrain&utm_source=outbrain&utm_content=outbrain Adorable 5 year old girl disappears from home about a week ago, same as Lisa Irwin. Have you heard about it? Do you agree with this blog writer as to why? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tangerine Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 I absolutely think missing white children get more press. Surely there's a study out there somewhere. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ipsey Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 There's no question. Yes, white people get lots more attention and "care" if you want to put it that way, in the media. There are numbers of studies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jennifer3141 Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 I absolutely think missing white children get more press. Surely there's a study out there somewhere. There are several! And I believe it's true too. :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beaners Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 I absolutely think missing white children get more press. Surely there's a study out there somewhere. I didn't read the link (because these missing children cases rip my guts out), but I don't think it's just children. A good friend of mine disappeared almost 5 years ago. She was an incredibly devoted mother who didn't show up to get her son on the same evening she was signing divorce papers to get away from a man who had threatened her life in front of police officers. Another very high profile case was all over the news at the same time. My friend's case was never resolved. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pamela H in Texas Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 I think there may be a number of reasons involved in why we haven't heard of Jhessye Shockley; but I definitely think race is probably the foremost reason. Sad. Other reasons (going simply on link in OP): 1) another high profile case at the same time 2) age of her vs age of Lisa 3) mother's background But again, yes, I think race is still the foremost reason. It shouldn't be that way. And little Jhessye Shockley is precious. I hope she is found alive and well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kewb Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 No, I don't agree with the blog writer. There are plenty of missing kids from all races who get no media coverage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tangerine Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 No, I don't agree with the blog writer. There are plenty of missing kids from all races who get no media coverage. I'm sure there are. But I can name a slough of missing/formerly missing white folks: Laci Peterson, Jon Benet Ramsey, Adam Walsh, Stacy Peterson, Caylee Anthony, Natalie Holloway, Chandra Levy, Polly Klaas, Elizabeth Smart.... I can't name any missing black people. I doubt it's just me, or that I'm blocking out all the missing minorities I've heard about on the news. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LauraGB Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 I don't necessarily agree with the blog poster - I'm still unclear as to what her point may be. Is it simply that because the child is black she get's no press? Or is it that a middle class (white) woman with a substantial amount of mystery surrounding the disappearance of a baby under her own nose which will draw more views and judgement and higher ratings than the missing 5 year old (black) child whose mother has a criminal history and has already served time in prison for injury to a child? It comes down to what will garner the most views from the public. If I were the blogger, I wouldn't be so quick to wish the other child recieved the same coverage. Yes, of course, I would like the child to be found and the case solved, but the "news" isn't about the children, really - it's about the story, and the story has to do with everyone except the child(ren), and Lisa's mother makes for a "mystery". Her blog post would be better written about the general public and the general predisposition of trying to solve a mystery than about the missing children or their race (or their religion or their sex or their hair color or their...). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hana Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 I'm sure there are. But I can name a slough of missing/formerly missing white folks: Laci Peterson, Jon Benet Ramsey, Adam Walsh, Stacy Peterson, Caylee Anthony, Natalie Holloway, Chandra Levy, Polly Klaas, Elizabeth Smart.... I can't name any missing black people. I doubt it's just me, or that I'm blocking out all the missing minorities I've heard about on the news. This is a powerful post. :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SweetMissMagnolia Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 I absolutely think missing white children get more press. Surely there's a study out there somewhere. :iagree: breaks my heart..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cricket Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 I don't necessarily agree with the blog poster - I'm still unclear as to what her point may be. Is it simply that because the child is black she get's no press? Or is it that a middle class (white) woman with a substantial amount of mystery surrounding the disappearance of a baby under her own nose which will draw more views and judgement and higher ratings than the missing 5 year old (black) child whose mother has a criminal history and has already served time in prison for injury to a child? It comes down to what will garner the most views from the public. If I were the blogger, I wouldn't be so quick to wish the other child recieved the same coverage. Yes, of course, I would like the child to be found and the case solved, but the "news" isn't about the children, really - it's about the story, and the story has to do with everyone except the child(ren), and Lisa's mother makes for a "mystery". Her blog post would be better written about the general public and the general predisposition of trying to solve a mystery than about the missing children or their race (or their religion or their sex or their hair color or their...). I agree that there is probably more to it than one child is white and one is black. That is just the most obvious difference. We live in the Phoenix area so I had only heard about the Jhessye case, not the baby Lisa case until someone on here mentioned it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Belacqua Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 I absolutely think missing white children get more press. Surely there's a study out there somewhere. I recently heard a radio interview with a woman who heads a non-profit organization (Peas in Their Pods) dedicated to finding and raising awareness of missing children of color. While I don't believe it's a simple issue, she raised some pretty compelling points. Referring to "Missing White Woman Syndrome" strikes me as a bit flippant and over-simplified, but it is difficult to ignore the evidence. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BarbecueMom Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 Not that it negates the point being made, but wasn't the missing 11-year-old boy last week African-American? I'm sorry I don't remember his name, I'm pretty burnt out on Tragedy TV. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twoforjoy Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 (edited) I'm sure race plays a very significant role in it. Black children are less likely to get media coverage than white children. Class certainly plays a role in it. Unless the case is particularly interesting, the parents having money is going to probably mean more news coverage. Location also seems to play a role. The Florida police seem to really enjoy media coverage, and so cases that take place in Florida seem to always get in the news. I'm sure there are other places like that, and then places where the police are much more reluctant to work with the press. Gender plays a role. Missing boys--especially if they are older children or teenagers--get way less coverage than missing girls. When's the last time a missing teen boy got national attention? And I'd be willing to bet, given that teen boys are more likely to engage in risky behavior than teen girls, that teen boys go missing more often. That said, I do think race is probably one of the most if not the most significant factor in who does or doesn't get coverage. I'm not sure that we need to hear more about missing black kids, though; I think we could do with hearing less about missing white girls. There's no reason, in most cases, for these cases to make national news. It does nothing to help find the missing person, and instead just creates unnecessary and irrational panic and paranoia in parents. I also wonder if the police are more likely to consider the parents the sole suspects when the missing child is a person of color. I mean, it honestly seems crazy to me that the police wouldn't have assumed, from the start, that the parents of Baby Lisa were responsible for whatever happened, and that it made it to the public's attention at all. It seems possible that if a white parent claims their child was abducted, the police and media might take that more seriously, even if the story doesn't add up, than if a black parent claims their child was abducted and the story doesn't add up. Edited October 22, 2011 by twoforjoy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKL Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 (edited) Not that it negates the point being made, but wasn't the missing 11-year-old boy last week African-American? I'm sorry I don't remember his name, I'm pretty burnt out on Tragedy TV. Yes, you are right. I don't recall his name either, though. His body was found. I do recall a number of missing black kids in the news. Maybe it's a location thing, I don't know. The most memorable case around here in my adulthood was a little black girl. The second most memorable one was a Hispanic special needs girl, who has unfortunately not been found to date. I used to frequent the Stir, and I'm assuming the linked article is written by the African-American blogger who frequently uses race to stir the pot. To put it in perspective, she has stated that she was horrified when someone gave her child a white doll, because obviously having one white doll is going to make the child feel ugly for the rest of her life. She also stated that Casey Anthony was found not guilty only because she was white. She thinks white people have no business marrying black people. The list could go on all night. Basically she hates white America and I can't take any of her articles seriously. (ETA: I have to eat my words, it was a different Stir blogger this time; but that is a sensationalist site all the same. That's why I quit going there.) But I do agree that our country hasn't yet overcome racism completely. It's just hard to have a discussion about it when people come at it from such radical perspectives (on both sides). Edited October 22, 2011 by SKL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swellmomma Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 I do agree to a point. BUT in this particular instance I think there has been less coverage because although they don't have a body the police "know" the mother did it. She was in jail was harming a child already, got out early, got her kids back and now one is missing. There was no coverage because it was not a kidnapping. As for Lisa's story, there has been speculation that Deborah was involved, but no evidence for that, no history etc. The possibility was there that is really was a kidnapping. The story had more twists and turns etc than Jhessye. Also a missing infant will ALWAYS get more press over a missing child of an older age no matter the race. If this had been a missing 10 month old girl, in a family that appeared at first blush to be like any other middle class family then perhaps we could decern if race was a factor in the press coverage but I think there is more to it than just race in this case. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murmer Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 Yes ther research saying nonwhite missing people get less press attention. That said yahoo ran the story of this little girl on their front page the day it was reported which surprised me because th ecommon lack of attention for minority missing child cases. So it wasn't completely ignored by the national press. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKL Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 Yes ther research saying nonwhite missing people get less press attention. That said yahoo ran the story of this little girl on their front page the day it was reported which surprised me because th ecommon lack of attention for minority missing child cases. So it wasn't completely ignored by the national press. Also, the news story linked to the Stir article said that the Amber alert was cancelled on the first day. So it stands to reason that the national news didn't have an ongoing story about it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoPlaceLikeHome Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 I'm sure there are. But I can name a slough of missing/formerly missing white folks: Laci Peterson, Jon Benet Ramsey, Adam Walsh, Stacy Peterson, Caylee Anthony, Natalie Holloway, Chandra Levy, Polly Klaas, Elizabeth Smart.... I can't name any missing black people. I doubt it's just me, or that I'm blocking out all the missing minorities I've heard about on the news. :iagree: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kewb Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 I see I need to elaborate. Missing white people do get more media attention. I do not agree with the bloggers statement that it is simply the fact that the missing 5 year old girl is black and the missing baby is white. There is more to it than that and IMO, revolves mostly around what the media thinks will get them the best ratings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrsBasil Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 I see I need to elaborate. Missing white people do get more media attention. I do not agree with the bloggers statement that it is simply the fact that the missing 5 year old girl is black and the missing baby is white. There is more to it than that and IMO, revolves mostly around what the media thinks will get them the best ratings. I agree with the above. I think with these two missing children, the fact that Lisa Irwin was under a year was also a factor. Add to the fact that Lisa was (allegedly) snatched from her crib in the middle of the night while her mother and brothers slept and Jahessye was kidnapped after leaving her own home while her mother(who has spent time in jail for child abuse) was running errands and it becomes easy to see which one is more sensational, which one will play on parents fears and be more of a ratings boost. All that said, yes I do think missing white people get more press than missing black people. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Georgiana Daniels Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 Yes, there's probably more to it than race in this case, but I agree with the larger point that missing white kids get more press. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pink Fairy Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 (edited) I think race plays a part, but there are other physical attributes that come into play. Weight, attractiveness--I bet those figure into the business (and it is a business) of what's newsworthy. Sad. Edited October 22, 2011 by Mamabegood Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BatmansWife Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 I watch the Today Show almost every morning, and I try to watch the world news at night. Unless I missed it....I never heard about this. :confused: I hope they find that sweet little girl. :crying: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amey311 Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 I know more about Jahessye because I'm in Phoenix. I keep seeing mention of "Baby Lisa" but had no idea what the story was until a poster mentioned the girl being taken from her crib at night. I remember that from when it initially happened. The little bit of news I read (thank you, AZCentral) has commented more on Jahessye than Lisa. That said, I'm sure that caucasian missing persons get more air play than missing persons of color. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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