Why Alan Jones' 'sock down the throat' comment is dangerous

Radio announcer Alan Jones has no idea of how his scary his 'shove a sock down her throat' really is, writes journalist Sherele Moody.

ALAN Jones's "shove a sock down her throat" phrase is a reprehensible, abhorrent and clear act of misogyny that Australia can well do without right now.

The radio broadcaster made the comment on Thursday, calling on Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison to shut New Zealand PM Jacinda Ardern's voice down on the Pacific climate crisis because he did not agree with her take on the issue.

Jones called Ardern "a joke", "an absolutely and utter lightweight" and a "clown" who had "swallowed the climate change hoax".

"I just wonder whether Scott Morrison is going to be fully briefed to shove a sock down her throat," he said.

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With 42 Australian women killed this year and the ramifications of the Sydney CBD stabbing attacks still weighing heavy on the shoulders of many females, it is clear Jones has well and truly failed to read the room.

Worse still, I have to ask: Has Jones even given a thought as to what this comment means for people who have lost a loved one - or been the victim - of this type of crime?

Sadly, when I read his words, my first thought was for the two little Queensland girls murdered by stepfather Barry Gordon Hadlow.

The sex-depraved monster ended their lives by shoving clothing down their throats.

It is not only perpetrators of sexual violence that kill in this way.

At least 250 of the 1800 femicides and child deaths I have documented involved males choking, suffocating or strangling their victims to death.

Thousands of strangulation, suffocation and choking cases are prosecuted across the country each year, with experts saying these victims are 800 times more likely to be murdered than those who are not.

The problem is so bad that states and territories have rolled out - or are rolling out- specific laws to deal with perpetrators of this type of violence.

Stopping someone from breathing is an act used specifically to control victims, to instil fear in them and - ultimately - to silence them.

Domestic and gendered violence impacts thousands of women and children each year.

A clear example of one of the key drivers of gendered violence in Australia is disrespectful statements and jokes that demean women or normalise acts of violence against them.

Jones is a repeat offender of questionable language, for example he suggested previous PM Julia Gillard be shoved in a chaff bag and thrown out to sea.

He has also claimed "women are destroying the joint" and he recently had to backtrack on words that "he regretted" after interviewing Sydney Opera House CEO Louise Herron, using language that caused widespread outrage.

You'd think his bosses at 2GB would be fed up with Jones's misogyny. But it seems ratings and sponsors are more important but at least they were smart enough to remove Jones's latest comment from their social media.

We have seen the impact in America that Donald Trump's rhetoric has had on angry men prone to violence - with men who follow the President using guns to commit mass murders.

Of course, no one is suggesting Scott Morrison would actually take Jones up on his word.　　

That doesn't negate the act of violence Jones proposes to silence an outspoken, respected and articulate woman with whom he happens to disagree.

If we have any hope of reducing gendered violence in our country, we need to hold men like Jones to account for using language that normalises violence against women. - NewsRegional　

News Corp journalist Sherele Moody has multiple journalism excellence awards for her work highlighting violence in Australia. Sherele is also a 2019 Our Watch fellow and the founder of The RED HEART Campaign and the Australian Femicide & Child Death Map.

*For 24-hour domestic violence and sexual assault support please call the national hotline 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732.

Originally published as Why Alan Jones' 'sock down the throat' comment is dangerous