Some violence is better than others

[Extract] A woman, named Tracy Connolly, was killed in St Kilda in July. The next day, The Age proclaimed, "St Kilda prostitute murdered." And in the Sydney Morning Herald the headline for Tracy's murder read: "Appeal for witnesses over murdered St Kilda prostitute". Many commentators have pointed out the contrast between how Tracy's death was handled by the media, compared to the coverage of the rape and murder of ABC journalist, Jill Meagher. While Tracy was nameless in news reports for some time and her job described using the value laden and anonymous term "prostitute", headlines about Jill's disappearance and brutal murder told a different story. For example, the ABC reported, "Homicide squad investigating missing ABC worker's disappearance." One Herald Sun headline was, "Handbag found in hunt for missing ABC radio employee Jill Meagher." Identifying Jill as an ABC employee had given her an identity that was missing with use of the generic "prostitute".