Do abused children deserve investigative journalism?: A case study

The media role in child abuse through history. From the perspective of the early decades of the 21st century it would be easy to assume that media interest in child abuse, child protection and out-of-home care of children is a feature of recent decades. This is not correct. From the earliest years following white settlement newspapers in the various colonies showed considerable interest in such matters, especially the scandals. Certainly the issues were defined differently to the way they are today. Much was made of the street behaviour of wandering, abandoned children and the threats this posed to respectable citizens. The perceived immoral behaviour of parents likewise received heavy criticism. Rescuing children from such parents was a priority and parental poverty was blamed on the victims. The media already had a nose for scandal and this had an impact. The media highlighted problems in orphanages and issues faced by the many children apprenticed out by orphanages. Partly as a result Royal Commissions were a feature of the mid-19th century