As expected, the Internet lit up after the judge announced the guilty verdict in the Steubenville rape trial. As expected, some reactions were just awful. Unexpectedly, one of them came from CNN. 
 
 Candy Crowley probably didn't mean to steal the spotlight on Sunday afternoon, when she reported on the breaking news from the Steubenville courtroom where Trent Mays and Ma'lik Richmond had just been found guilty. After the verdict came in, the CNN anchor turned to correspondent Poppy Harlow, who expressed some strange mixture of emotions. "Incredibly difficult, even for an outsider like me, to watch what happened as these two young men that had such promising futures, star football players, very good students, literally watched as they believed their lives fell apart," said Harlow. Crowley turned to legal expert Paul Callan, who sounded almost apologetic when explaining how the rape conviction will mean that the Steubenville rapists will now be registered sex offenders and how that "will haunt them for the rest of their lives." None of these things said were untrue. But the tone was certainly a little off. 
 
 The segment, in general, didn't do CNN any favors. While they're not necessarily rooting for the rapists, even the slightest bit of sympathy didn't go over well, especially once it was lumped together with all of the outrageously offensive reactions of true Steubenville rapist sympathizers. Sarcastic example tweet: "The Steubenville story is all too familiar. Be responsible for your actions ladies before your drunken decisions ruin innocent lives." Sincere example tweet: "So you got drunk at a party and two people take advantage of you,that's not rape you're just a loose drunk slut." Of course, cases like the Steubenville rape trial can be polarizing, and we've long known how distorted some notions of justice can be. 
 
 The blogosphere went to town on CNN. Gawker's Mallory Ortberg really didn't appreciate Crowley and company waxing sympathetic about the damage done to the rapists' "promising futures." She wrote, "Their dreams and hopes were not crushed by an impersonal, inexorable legal system; Mays and Richardson raped a girl and have been sentenced accordingly." Ortberg added, "Reporting like this presents viewers with anonymous female victims and dynamic, sympathetic, complicated male figures." That's a strong point, especially since we didn't really hear from the victim until nearly the end of the trial. 
 
 That said, the media's actually been grieving the ends of these rapists' young lives for a few days now. It's just a little more infuriating now that they're officially guilty. Just before the trial started, for instance, Good Morning America published a sprawling preview under the headline, "The Steubenville Rape Case: What You Haven't Heard." What follows is a retelling of the whole saga with plenty of attention paid to the "honors student" Mays and wrong-side-of-the-tracks Richmond. The piece ends on a sympathetic note, almost bemoaning the fact that the two teens "face incarceration in a detention center until their 21st birthdays and the almost-certain demise of their dreams of playing football." Feeling sorry for the boys was a little bit more acceptable before they were convicted, but still, it hardly feels like objective reporting. 
 
 If all this upsets you, don't use up all your rage now. The Steubenville case is hardly over. Next, the state of Ohio will convene a grand jury to investigate further charges, and the media circus will get an encore, if not an entirely new act. All any decent person can do is hope for a little bit more balance. "As I said already, any rape is a tragedy," Ohio attorney general Mike DeWine said after the verdict on Sunday. "But, it is even more of a tragedy when that victim is continually re-victimized in the social media." Let's hope the mainstream media doesn't do the same. 
 
 Update, Monday: Even as questions grow about the grand jury hearing, one thing is clear: CNN is not alone — MSNBC and Fox let the victim's name get on air, too. 
 
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 Adam Clark Estes ||||| CNN's coverage of the verdict in the Steubenville rape case appeared to be curiously weighted on Sunday, focusing on the effect the guilty verdict would have on the lives of the now-convicted rapists and their families, rather than that of the victim and her family. 
 
 Steubenville High School football players Trent Mays, 17, and Ma'lik Richmond, 16, were accused of raping a severely intoxicated 16-year-old West Virginia girl who also attends the Ohio school. Thousands of text messages introduced in the case presented a picture of teens swapping graphic stories about the assault. 
 
 In a Sunday afternoon segment, anchor Fredricka Whitfield followed the straight news of the guilty verdict (which she described as rape occurring "after a night of heavy partying") by showing the rapists' parents' weeping in court. Footage of Richmond, his mother and father offering emotional appeals to the victim's family dominated the segment. 
 
 Whitfield threw the story to reporter Poppy Harlow, but not before reiterating that Mays and Richmond's "family members tried their hardest to plead for some forgiveness from the victim's family, as well as from the judge." 
 
 To her credit, Harlow appeared to try and correct the segment's tone: "That's true Fredricka," she said of the tears of the convicted rapist's families, "but this is an incredibly serious crime, it's the crime of rape." 
 
 And yet, the effects of the rape on the victim seemed to be an afterthought: "It was incredibly emotional, it was difficult for anyone in there to watch those boys break down," Harlow said. "[It was] also difficult, of course, for the victim's family." 
 
 "Also difficult, of course?" Over the course of the segment, CNN twice aired Richmond's father's appeal for forgiveness in full and also included footage from an interview in which Harlow asks Richmond if it's true that he told Ma'like he loved him for the first time after the verdict came down. The father emotionally explained that he blames himself for the incident because he wasn't "around" enough. "I want to stress that parents need to get involved more in their kids' lives," Nathaniel Richmond said. 
 
 CNN did air the entirety of the victim's mother's statement on the verdict, but that came after the tears of the Richmond, his mother and father. 
 
 The Sunday afternoon segment was hardly the first time CNN had fumbled its coverage of the case. Earlier on Sunday, anchor Candy Crowley expressed her deepest sympathies for Mays and Richmond. 
 
 Harlow set up the scene, which she said was "incredibly difficult" to watch, thusly: "These two young men -- who had such promising futures, star football players, very good students -- literally watched as they believed their life fell apart." 
 
 "What's the lasting effect though on two young men being found guilty juvenile court of rape essentially?" Crowley asked CNN's legal analyst Paul Callan. 
 
 The slant of the day's coverage was revealing in two capacities. First, CNN appears to have bet on the emotions of those it could show on camera -- for obvious reasons, the victim's identity has been protected, and the victim's family was not shown weeping in court. Networks know that people crying make for great TV. Secondly, it's telling that this tone continued over multiple segments, despite a cadre of tweets and blog posts deriding the network's earlier coverage. 
 
 Later on Sunday, Whitfield wrapped the first segment of her coverage on the case by describing it as "a heart-breaking case to watch, no matter how you look at it." That CNN can find so many ways to look at a rape trial is perhaps to blame for their embarrassing and damaging coverage. 
 
 Correction: This post incorrectly attributed the quote describing the courtroom scene as "incredibly difficult" to Candy Crowley and has since been corrected to note that the quote comes from Poppy Harlow. 
 
 WATCH: 
 
 
 
 Others noticing CNN's faulty coverage: 
 
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 Flavia Dzodan CNN a month ago: OMG SOMETHING NEEDS TO BE DONE FOR THOSE POOR INDIAN WOMEN! CNN today:poor defendants #Steubenville! what abt their future! 
 
 Sharon So far @cnn has made no comments on Candy @crowleyCNN s thoughts on the #Steubenville rapists? Didn't fire her yet? Good w/rape? 
 
 Flavia Dzodan CNN seems to want us to believe that rape culture is "other people's problems" and not pervasive and toxic in the West as well 
 
 Matt Bors CNN's reaction to the Steubenville rape verdict is shameful http://t.co/V6lHy0kmff 
 
 Danice Andrus RT @Anniefromkansas: HOW ABOUT RAPE VICTIM???CNN grieves that guilty verdict ruined ‘promising’ lives of Steubenville rapists | http://t.co/p4NOWXwIN2 
 
 Rhonda Hansome Not the #rape but guilty verdict ruined ‘promising’ lives of #SteubenvilleRapists? #RealMenDoNotRape http://t.co/uA8p1aWMq6 
 
 Txue Yang RT @HalloweenBlogs: .@jmcaninch68 They were doing the same sympathetic nonsense on #AlexWitt on @msnbc - RAPE is RAPE @cnn #CNNFail #MSNBCFail #EpicFail 
 
 Muffin's Mom CNN promoting rape culture! #SCUM CNN grieves that guilty verdict ruined ‘promising’ lives of Steubenville rapists | http://t.co/koAGibcz7t 
 
 LondonFringe RT @tonyajonemiller: Hey @CNN, glad you care so much about the rapists. What about what happens to the rape VICTIM? http://t.co/iq6jC5xqiT (via @MattBors) 
 
 maggie RT @usedtobgop: @jungmuse HEY @cnn men who rape AREN'T pillars of society! WAKE THE HELL UP! NO wonder your ratings stink! http://t.co/Cr8x5P7EEy … 
 
 Warren 2016 RT @Angie_Coiro: I've always respected @crowleyCNN so much, and hope she will address this publicly: http://t.co/JQcIAOyNB5 … It's just so wrong. 
 
 Rodd RT @ScottySSWB: Dear @CNN when reporting a story about rape you probably shouldnt try to make us feel bad for the rapists lives being ruined, #Steubenville 
 
 Scott Dear @CNN when reporting a story about rape you probably shouldnt try to make us feel bad for the rapists lives being ruined, #Steubenville 
 
 The Notorious B.F.G. @CNN Please rethink your approach on Steubenville. The football players are not the victims so don't portray them as such. 
 
 Luis Heras CNN grieves that guilty verdict ruined ‘promising’ lives of Steubenville rapists | The Raw Story http://t.co/uThdDSC6lM 
 
 Follow Kia Makarechi on Twitter: www.twitter.com/Kia_Mak ||||| [There was a video here] 
 
 One way to report on the outcome of a rape trial is to discuss the legal ramifications of the decision or the effect the proceedings may have on the life of the victim. Another angle reporters can take is to publicly worry about the "promising future" of the convicted rapists, now less promising as a direct result of their choice to rape someone. 
 
 Reporters at CNN today chose the latter technique. General correspondent Poppy Harlow, speaking to anchor Candy Crowley, had this to say about the verdict: 
 
 "Incredibly difficult, even for an outsider like me, to watch what happened as these two young men that had such promising futures, star football players, very good students, literally watched as they believed their lives fell apart...when that sentence came down, [Ma'lik] collapsed in the arms of his attorney...He said to him, 'My life is over. No one is going to want me now.' Very serious crime here, both found guilty of raping the sixteen-year-old girl at a series of parties back in August." 
 
 CNN also played footage of both convicted rapists tearfully apologizing in court. Harlow went on to describe in detail an emotional exchange between Ma'lik Richmond, one of the defendants, and his estranged father. 
 
 Candy asked Paul Callan, a legal expert, to elaborate on the future of the two young men, stressing their youth and emotional vulnerability. 
 
 "Sixteen-year-olds just sobbing in court, regardless of what big football players they are, they still sound like sixteen-year-olds...what's the lasting effect, though, on two young men being found guilty in juvenile court of rape, essentially?" "The most severe thing with these young men is being labeled as registered sex offenders. That label is now placed on them by Ohio law...That will haunt them for the rest of their lives. Employers, when looking up their background, will see that they're registered sex offenders. When they move into a new neighborhood and somebody goes on the Internet, where these things are posted, neighbors will know that they are registered sex offenders." 
 
 Yes, that is how the sex offender registry works. People who commit acts of sexual violence (rape, for example) and are convicted in a court of law are required to register with the national sex offender public registry, so that future employers and neighbors might do things like check said registry. 
 
 For readers interested in learning more about how not to be labeled as registered sex offenders, a good first step is not to rape unconscious women, no matter how good your grades are. Regardless of the strength of your GPA (weighted or unweighted), if you commit rape, there is a possibility you may someday be convicted of a sex crime. This is because of your decision to commit a sex crime instead of going for a walk, or reading a book by Cormac McCarthy. Your ability to perform calculus or play football is generally not taken into consideration in a court of law. Should you prefer to be known as "Good student and excellent football player Trent Mays" rather than "Convicted sex offender Trent Mays," try stressing the studying and tackling and giving the sex crimes a miss altogether. 
 
 It's perfectly understandable, when reporting on a rape trial, to discuss the length and severity of the sentence; it is less understandable to discuss the end of two convicted rapists' future athletic and academic careers as if it were somehow divorced from the laws of cause and effect. Their dreams and hopes were not crushed by an impersonal, inexorable legal system; Mays and Richmond raped a girl and have been sentenced accordingly. Had they not raped her, they would not be spending at least one year each in a juvenile detention facility. 
 
 It is unlikely that Candy Crowley and Poppy Harlow are committed rape apologists; more likely they simply wanted a showy, emotional angle at the close of a messy and sensationalized trial. Since the identity of the victim is protected, and the rapists obliged the camera crews by memorably breaking down and crying in court, they found an angle to match: extremely gifted young men were brought tragically low by... mumblemumblesomething. 
 
 That isn't how rape trials ought to be discussed by professional journalists. 
 
 Trent Mays and Ma'lik Richmond are not the "stars" of the Steubenville rape trial. They aren't the only characters in a drama playing out in eastern Ohio. And yet a CNN viewer learning about the Steubenville rape verdict is presented with dynamic, sympathetic, complicated male figures, and a nonentity of an anonymous victim, the "lasting effects" of whose graphic, public sexual assault are ignored. Small wonder, then, that anyone would find themselves on the side of these men—these poor young men, who were very good at taking tests and playing sports when they were not raping their classmates.
– CNN is getting slammed everywhere from Twitter to the blogosphere to mainstream media today, thanks to its coverage of the Steubenville rape verdict yesterday. After the teen boys were found guilty, anchor Candy Crowley kicked it to her reporter by saying, "I cannot imagine having just watched this on the feed coming in. How emotional that must have been sitting in the courtroom." Correspondent Poppy Harlow responded, "It was ... incredibly difficult even for an outsider like me to watch what happened as these two young men that had such promising futures, star football players, very good students, literally watched as they believe their life fell apart." More of the same followed, as Crowley, Harlow, and legal contributor Paul Callan continued to focus on the rapists rather than on the victim. Washington Post has a full transcript. A sample of the reactions: How about calling the boys what they are, suggests Laura Beck on Jezebel. The coverage should have been more along the lines of, "These two young rapists that had such promising futures—star football players, very good students, rapists—literally watched as they believed their lives fell apart because they brutally raped a girl." "Trent Mays and Ma'lik Richmond are not the 'stars' of the Steubenville rape trial," writes Mallory Ortberg on Gawker. "They aren't the only characters in a drama playing out in eastern Ohio. And yet a CNN viewer learning about the Steubenville rape verdict is presented with dynamic, sympathetic, complicated male figures, and a nonentity of an anonymous victim." The Huffington Post rounds up some of the incensed tweets, and editor Kia Makarechi calls the coverage "embarrassing and damaging." Other portions of CNN's coverage were similarly problematic, one activist points out to Poynter, such as the fact that the journalists focused on the victim being drunk. And CNN wasn't the only network with issues in its coverage, she adds: Nightline called the case a "cautionary tale for teenagers living in today's digital world." Good Morning America also got in on the act, the Atlantic Wire notes. Before the conviction, the show offered up "a sprawling preview ... with plenty of attention paid to the 'honors student' Mays and wrong-side-of-the-tracks Richmond. The piece ends on a sympathetic note, almost bemoaning the fact that the two teens 'face incarceration in a detention center until their 21st birthdays and the almost-certain demise of their dreams of playing football.'" The Frisky points out that the Onion brilliantly parodied this very circumstance back in 2011.