How a False Statistic on Sexual Harassment Spreads

Submitted by Mastodon on Fri, 2018-11-16 14:31

Article here. Excerpt:

'It was the sort of headline that jumps off the page: “56 percent of Baylor students have experienced sexual harassment by a faculty member, per report.”

In an era of inflamed interest spurred by Me Too and the lightning-quick spread of information (valid and not) through social media, a Fort Worth Star-Telegram article published Wednesday based on misinterpreted data drew national attention as other journalists and many others spread the word about it on Twitter. The article pulled from a Big 12 Conference report that used misinterpreted data from a 2017 Baylor University campus climate survey.

The problem is, the statistic is flat out inaccurate, and the incident shows how quickly misinformation can spread when it aligns with popular narratives.'

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99-100% of these so-called statistics are utter bollocks.
I remember when, sot so very long ago (4 years) when I was at University. In the 4 years I attended I was legitimately sexually harassed ONE time. And it was by one male campus trouble maker who had an alcohol problem. He only did it, that one time. I thought little of it and didn't even report it. I believe it was a one-time incident, and I happened to be in the wrong place, at the wrong time and the chap was particularly drunk, at the time (I wasn't injured, btw). Not to brag (okay, maybe a little... Lolz) I am a pretty girl. Yes, I was asked to date by quite a few of the guys on campus, but none of it amounted to "sexual harassment". But a lot of other women would claim it was. A chap merely asking if you'd like to go out with them would be considered "sexual harassment", by many. Yet, if we were to ask out a guy, that was perfectly "okay". No double standards, there, eh?
But anyways, I do remember a number of young men who were accused of sexual assault and harassment whom several people on campus (myself included)knew for a fact that these guys were not guilty of what they were accused of. But when we went to administration to give alibis for these poor chaps, the administrators wouldn't even hear us out.
One of the accused fellows was in class with me and several other students, on the morning he was said to have sexually assaulted a female student. Even our professor was able to vouch for the guy's whereabouts, that day.
Nope. Administration wouldn't hear of it.
Although, I don't know all the details, the charges against this particular guy were dropped, but he ended up leaving university, shortly after. I don't know what ever became of him. Some of the other young men, accused were not jailed but were expelled. And this was simply on the say-so of female students, alone. No due process, no nuthin'. And I hear the phenomenon at my former university has only worsened. I'm in the U.K., mind you but I understand that the situation is even worse in the U.S.
These false statistics were prevalent when I was at university and my understanding is that they are even mores so, in America.

Sorry. Just wanted to rant.

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Submitted by ErikaLancastor on Mon, 2018-11-19 18:45