How an image of league player Curtis Sironen with a naked woman is revenge porn
Wendy Tuohy
Herald Sun
TWITTER is alive with chatter and laughter about a rugby league player whose photo lying asleep next to a nude girl was posted today on his account by a woman alleged to be his now-ex girlfriend.
Much mirth is being made of the fact Curtis Sironen was caught in bed, allegedly by his girlfriend, with another woman.
He was photographed and then had his Twitter account hacked and bio line changed to ‘Professional cheater living the life’.
The line written on the photograph tweeted by Sironen’s account was: “Before I make excuses this is why my girlfriend who is tattooed on my arm left me #cheater @WestsTigers”.
The NRL player is Twitter’s target of choice today, as many people share the snap screen-shotted from his now deactivated Twitter account.
Most of the comments flying about Sironen are flippant, some are harsher.
But it’s not people’s opinion of Sironen’s alleged sexual activities that’s at issue here; it’s the fact that without a second thought some are circulating the image posted on Sironen’s account without his knowledge or permission or that of the woman in the picture.
As Twitter user Jessica Alice rightly pointed out, “Before you share that Curtis Sironen pic, consider that you’re about to be complicit in revenge porn”.
It’s ironic that even as some Twitter users express their dismay that they encourage their boys to treat pro sportsmen such as Sironen role models, others are happy to set an example to children that dispersing potentially very highly damaging pictures of a sexual nature of other people is fine.
Not only is extremely potentially harmful to the subjects, in Victoria there are proposed laws that may make it an offence punishable by three years jail.
MP Tim Watts, who framed the private member’s bill, calls spreading revenge porn “an act of sexual assault”. It would be an offence even to threaten to share pictures of a sexual nature.
Sironen’s premeditated humiliation is one thing, and there are some who will say he had it coming despite the morally dubious act of sharing it.
But what about the girl whose whole unclothed lower body is pictured? Sironen is spared such complete exposure as he has boxer shorts on.
The invasion of her privacy is complete, the potential damage to her is extreme. Dispersing that image is a malicious attack on her.
Did she even know if Curtis Sironen had a girlfriend and why is the ritual humiliation of him on social media in fact punishing her more severely.
You feel for any woman struggling with the pain of her lover betraying her but to react in such a way is inexcusable. To share that image around is irresponsible. So don’t.
