In the wake of allegations Hawthorn forward Jonathon Patton shared lewd images with a number of women, Australian “cyber cop” Susan McLean said sexting was likely rife within the AFL but largely unreported or covered up. The former police officer said she believed training for players about their online behaviour had lapsed in recent years.She said it was possible some players were unaware they could be criminally prosecuted for sending lewd sex messages or images to unsuspecting women. “They (clubs) don’t do enough education. They used to but they don’t anymore .. this is why we see a litany of these sort of issues,” Ms McLean said. Training provided by clubs was often ad hoc, unstructured, non-compulsory and involved occasional guest speakers or sessions, she said.
“It’s not about digital reputation, it’s not about respect and what is considered respectful and it’s not about the law … the AFL is not strong enough on this,” Ms McLean said. Ms McLean said she used to provide cyber safety training to clubs until a few years’ ago, when it “petered out”. “The win-at-all-costs sports side of it took over from everything else and it became a battle to get proactive programs into clubs . . . I think it was put into the too-hard basket,” she said. Ms McLean urged women to speak up and dob-in anyone who sent them uninvited pornographic material and for “examples to be made of people’s poor choices”, so others could see the consequences of breaking the law and were deterred from doing the same. At the secondary schools she provided training to, many teenage girls said receiving uninvited, pornographic messages or pictures from young men was common. “Sadly … they are almost accepting of this sort of behaviour, like it’s ‘a given’ . . . it sometimes takes just one person to speak up and many others are empowered to come forward,” she said. Ms McLean said she did not believe the AFL was “over-represented” when it came to sexting and poor treatment of women, but representative of a growing and concerning culture of cyberporn in society.Australian sex discrimination commissioner Kate Jenkins said it was particularly important for high-profile athletes to show respect towards women, “given their influence as role models to young people in our community”. “The education of young people, and particularly young men, about sexual harassment and respectful relationships is a crucial part of primary prevention of violence against women,” she said. The AFL was working towards gender equality with its support of the women’s competition and a recent commitment to Our Watch’s Equality and Respect in Sport program, Ms Jenkins added. Our Watch is a leading Australian organisation – headed by Carlton Football Club board member Patty Kinnersly – campaigning to stop violence against women and children. Some AFL clubs, including Carlton, had recently introduced gender equality programs, Ms Jenkins said. It comes as Hawthorn president Jeff Kennett said his club was taking the Patton allegations “very seriously” and conducting an investigation and interviews. “It is gone to our integrity committee, which is made up of people with a great deal of skills, and the AFL is also looking at it,” Mr Kennett said. Patton has been stood down as Hawthorn investigates the claims.Hawthorn CEO Justin Reeves confirmed on Tuesday that the club was working with the AFL’s integrity unit to investigate complaints against Patton. “As soon as the club was made aware of the matter we addressed it directly with Jonathon and made it clear that behaviour of this nature would not be tolerated by Hawthorn Football Club,” Reeves wrote in a letter to members. In the email sent to members last night, Mr Reeves stressed the Patton allegations did not reflect the values of the club. “We are a club that is proud of our family values and we strive to exemplify them across every element of our club. Hawthorn actively promotes and advocates for both respect and equality for all and we demand this standard from all involved with the club,” Mr Reeves said. A Hawthorn spokeswoman said all AFL staff and players were required to undergo extensive training and annual re-education “across the AFL’s key integrity areas”, which included modules on discrimination, respect and responsibility. “Hawthorn also provides its players with annual training on responsible and respectful use of social media. The club is always looking to continuously improve the training opportunities it provides to its players and regularly reviews and updates its training curriculum,” she said. An AFL spokesperson said it was committed to education.“All players are required to participate in education programs across key policy areas including cultural awareness, respect and responsibility, mental health, and social media,” an AFL spokesperson said. “Club briefings and education sessions are also undertaken annually and the AFL remains committed to continually improving training around respectful and inclusive behaviours.” The Victorian Government said it wanted to see equality and respect demonstrated in sport. “We support a range of respectful relationships initiatives and programs, including for those watching and participating in sport,” a spokeswoman said. “Through Respect Victoria, the Labor Government has run a series of behaviour change campaigns to address gender inequality and other forms of discrimination by seeking to shift existing social norms and attitudes.”
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