Urging Media to not Disclose Names

Contact:

Anne Nicholas

National Center for Victims of Crime

202.467.8714 (o) or 202.746.0866 (c)

anicholas@ncvc.org

Kristen Houser

Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape

717.728.9740 x 144 (o) or 814.933.9960 (c)

khouser@pcar.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                         

June 6, 2012      

The National Center for Victims of Crime, Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape, National Crime Victim Law Institute and the National Sexual Violence Resource Center are requesting that those who report on the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania vs. Gerald A. Sandusky case—whether for official media organizations or in personal blogs, tweets and other formats—refrain from disclosing the names of the victims out of respect for their privacy.

We applaud those news organizations that have already pledged to not to publish victims’ names, and we encourage others to do the same.

Victims everywhere should know that their privacy will be respected when they come forward to reveal intimate details of sexual abuse. They participate in the criminal justice process in an effort to do the right thing and testify about their experiences; they should not have to worry about being publicly targeted when doing so.

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