consent
Last updatedDefinition
Consent is a mutual limited agreement between two or more people of the age of legal majority. It can be revoked at any time, and it refers to the explicit permission for a given person to take an action.
Consent can refer to sexual acts and, in the context of journalism, to the act of contacting someone, using someone’s name, or otherwise disclosing information about them, either to another party or in a published piece of media.
Disclosing someone’s private information, e.g., about their disability or immigration status, location, mental health, or other identifying information could put them at risk of institutional and/or reputational harm. Not obtaining their consent increases the likelihood that they may suffer unanticipated consequences as a result of your work. It’s important to ensure an interviewee understands how the information they are disclosing will be used, and any potential consequences, in order to give informed consent.
Consent must be given freely without the use of force, threats, intimidation, or manipulation. The lack of a “no” does not translate to a “yes” — for example, someone who is intoxicated, incapacitated, or unconscious cannot give consent.
Power dynamics can affect whether consent can be given; for instance, if a manager attempts to coerce an employee, or in the case of an adult-minor relationship.
Consent cannot “carry over.” A person who gets consent to kiss their date, for instance, does not automatically get a license to have sex with their date, or to kiss them on a future occasion. Permission to tell one person a piece of private information does not automatically mean that you have permission to tell others. Consent can be withdrawn at any time. An individual may agree to do something in the future and then change their mind later.
Consent can also refer to the age of consent, the minimum age at which a person can consent to sex. This varies by state, though as of 2004, every state had set it between 16 and 18. Regardless of the age of consent, a person under 18 is legally a minor and should be referred to as such; for instance, referring to someone as a “17-year-old woman” is inaccurate and can have misleading or harmful implications in, for one example, the context of sexual abuse or assault.
No matter a state’s age of consent, federal law considers it a crime to have sex with a minor between ages 12 and 16 if one is at least four years older than the child. A 17-year-old having sex with a 12-year-old is considered a crime. Even if the minor agrees to sex or the perpetrator is unaware of the minor’s age, it is still considered statutory rape.
Consent can also refer to a person’s decision to undergo treatment. To give informed consent, a person must be aware of the potential risks and benefits of a procedure. Someone whose decision-making ability is impaired, whether due to age, disability, or substance use, may not be able to give informed consent. It’s important for news coverage to make clear when consent was not obtained or when a situation makes it impossible for consent to be given. Being precise with language (e.g., referring to nonconsensual sex as rape rather than as sex) is also important for clarity and accuracy.
Additional resources
- Consent (Project Respect)
- Publication of Private Facts (Digital Media Law Project)
- What Consent Looks Like (Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network)
- What Raising the Age of Sexual Consent Taught Women About the Vote (Smithsonian Magazine)
Summary
Consent is a mutual limited agreement between two or more people of the age of legal majority. It can be revoked at any time, and it refers to the explicit permission for a given person to take an action.
Consent can refer to sexual acts and, in the context of journalism, to the act of contacting someone, using someone’s name, or otherwise disclosing information about them, either to another party or in a published piece of media.
It’s important for journalists to ensure informed consent is obtained from sources, and for news coverage to make clear when consent was not obtained or when a situation makes it impossible for consent to be given. Being precise with language (e.g., referring to nonconsensual sex as rape rather than as sex) is also important for clarity and accuracy.