Submitted by Allegra Chapman on Friday 6th February 2026
Published on Thursday 19th March 2026
Current status: Open
Open until: Saturday 19th September 2026
Current Signatures: 168
(count is updated approximately hourly)
Relevant Departments
Tagged with
abuse ~ Accused ~ aged ~ Assaulted ~ Child ~ child abuse ~ Crime ~ Culture ~ Emergency ~ EXIST ~ Law ~ Media ~ National Emergency ~ Prevent ~ Regulations ~ Staggering ~ The Word ~ Victim ~ Women and Girls ~ Word
Introduce regulations governing media reporting of abuse of women and girls
Abuse, assault and harassment of women and girls is a serious issue, one that has been described as a "national emergency". One in 12 females in the UK are victims, and a staggering 97% of women aged 18-24 have been sexually harassed. Yet media reporting of the issue normalises and trivialises it.
Regulations must prevent media reports from using incorrect terms that trivialise these crimes. There is no such thing as an "underage woman" - that is a child. "Underage sex" between an adult and a child does not exist - sex with a child is rape. The word "sex" should never be used to describe rape ("sex scandal", "accused of sex with").
This language normalises rape and child abuse, creating a culture where these are minimised and ignored. Laws must enforce correct terminology to clarify the severity of these crimes.
If you want to sign this petition (as opposed to merely discuss it), you need to do that on the government's e-Petitions website.
216.73.216.231 Thu, 25 Jun 2026 10:32:54 +0100
