Why Anonymous gravitates to cases like Maryville and Steubenville

The hacktivist group has created a vigilante niche for small-town rape cases

Steubenville protesters
(Image credit: (REUTERS/Jason Cohn))

A teenage girl in a small Midwestern town says she was raped by a popular football player while drunk. The act was filmed on a smartphone. When the girl reports it, she and her family are harassed by their neighbors and on social media.

But this isn't Steubenville — it's Maryville.

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Emily Shire is chief researcher for The Week magazine. She has written about pop culture, religion, and women and gender issues at publications including Slate, The Forward, and Jewcy.