Duggar Fox News Interviews - Mild, Inappropriate Lying

[DuggarsTheEndIsNear]

Bringing these over from the other thread:

Well, I guess it is a combo of dealing with it and saying it really wasn't a big deal (that whole attitude that they took).. Just seemed over reacted. I know I wouldn't want that to come out either, but just pick one and go with it, the whole reaction seemed conflicting.

I dont find it conflicting. I mean, I don't view my abuses as "a big deal." They hardly define me, and I'm able to have put them behind me. However, I would find it a big deal if people found out without my permission. It's not the abuse that is the problem so much as the way people treat/view you when they find out about your past. Look at these boards, for instance. How many people sat their and disected EVERY facial expression and every word ever witnessed from this family, especially the girls, after we found out?

Plus, these girls were taught that purity is THE MOST important thing and that they're worth nothing if they're damaged goods. And, they're taught that ANY advance from any man/boy towards any woman/girl of any age is the girl's fault. Now, these two are lucky that they're married and they don't have to worry SO MUCH about how people view them, but they have two unmarried sisters who do and they're going to worry about those sisters and their prospects, now. Not to mention, they may not understand that the majority of people don't victim blame in situations like this. Their upbringing puts them to believe that everyone in this world is going to see Josh's transgressions as their own. No matter how you slice this, the general public knowing about their past HAS to be terrifying, even if they've all secretly hoped that one day people would know the truth.

So would you then go to the media to talk about such?

At which point would the privacy concerns end and the need to publicly speak begin?

Totally understand the need for privacy.

Do not understand the actions, specifically of JB Duggar, of selling the family to the public.

We all have private issues that we would never want shared with the world- and that would prevent most from ever selling our lives and private moments.

IMO, this is what is wrong with reality TV, and certainly when it comes to minors, you're being paid to live your life...well, that includes the bad and ugly too. Far, far different from celebrities who are paid to act out a role, or entertainers who are paid to perform. These folks are paid to let the public in on their personal lives...privacy is gone.

if the Duggars want privacy, reality TV needs to end.

If the media found out, yes I would go to them. I mean not right away, of course, much like these girls didn't go right away. I would wait until I knew what I wanted to say and had an idea of how to say it. I wouldn't take the route these girls did, but I was also raised in a better family with a better way of handling abuse situations and sex in general. I mean, when I was 14 and my classmate was reaching up my shirt and my friend's shirts, my parents wasted no time in getting the school, his parents, and the authorities involved. They never once blamed me or my friends, and they helped us understand that, despite being ostracized by the rest of our class, we were right in reporting the problem. The Duggar kids were not allowed that and were, instead, brainwashed into submission. What they're saying is largely a result of their brainwashing. Had they been given the proper support, counseling, and education, they probably would have had completely different answers themselves. But, they weren't. And, they were also taught JOY; no matter what they want, they have to put Josh and the rest of their family before themselves. So, even if they had better answers, it'd be unlikely they'd be able to say them; especially since the interviews happened in the compound with their parents there to make sure they said all the right things.

I do agree that, to an extent, privacy is gone when the family signs on to be in a reality TV show. However, their participation in a reality TV show shouldn't have resulted in the girls being outed as his victims. I have no problem with Josh being outed as a perpetrator, and definitely no problem with Michelle and JB being outed as bad parents and bad people; but, I do feel for the girls. Until we discover otherwise, I think it's fair to say that these girls didn't sign up to be outed as victims, even with a reality TV show going on. It's not like they talked about it on the show or anything. This went straight to the tabloids, robbing them of control of who knew what.

I just had a thought. Wasn't there a rumor years ago that Jinger's diary was stolen, and the thief blackmailed the family for money in exchange for the diary? Could the letter actually be pages from the diary? This speculation on my part.

From what I understand, the story is in one of the Duggar books. It wasn't stolen for blackmail, the person who stole it tried to sell it on eBay.

[DuggarsTheEndIsNear]

It makes me wonder. Josh was 14 when the first molestations occurred. That means JD and Jana were, what? 12? 13?.... WHY did they NEED a babysitter? That has always caused me to wonder. In my state, a child can babysit for money after taking a Safe Sitter class offered by the county. Surely, the parents thought Josh or the top three could handle the "other ones"...

Jana was 13 with 10 younger siblings to watch, including a very young infant. I really doubt that the sister moms would have been left in charge for too many hours unsupervised. Too much can go wrong with that scenario. Plus, it was probably one of those situations where they had family friends over, which meant even more kids. The girl who was touched on the couch was probably an older girl from the other family.

[nst]

apparently according to Entertainment tonight 2.2 million people watched Jessa and Jill's interview

[DuggarsTheEndIsNear]

The focus on "rapist" was irritating. And a mild lie. Go to the extreme, minority comments. Pretend THAT is the issue. Very few were saying that he was a rapist. "Hypocrite" is the majority view. "Molester who hid the truth"... Concern for the victims AND Josh due to "a culture that caused this to happen". That is more often the sentiment than "rapist". Typical Faux spin to deflect.

It is the extremist religious tactic that has made our government stop functioning. They brought it into Congress. All or nothing. Black and white. Conplete infallibility of one's ideals. No compromise.

.

It's entirely possible that the girls don't know what's being said about them. And, if they're judging by what is said on their social media accounts, I'm not surprised that they'd go with the extreme. Josh has been called A LOT of things, especially rapist, all over their accounts; and people have even called for his death, or worse.

[DuggarsTheEndIsNear]

That's what I thought. Because she said, "...whenever he went away..." But someone said that that is just how they talk. It could be he went away for other offenses. God knows the boys have to get the stamp of approval from Gothard's group before they can start a life away from dad.

All the Duggars say "whenever" instead of "when." It's one of the things that pisses me off the most. However, someone on here a few years back said that it's common for people in that area to say "whenever" instead of "when."

[DuggarsTheEndIsNear]

Megyn Kelly’s Interview With Duggar Sisters Draws 2.2 Million Viewers

I sure hope TLC doesn't think this means we all want to see the show come back.

That's substantially less viewers than Jill took in with her wedding, so they've definitely lost interest.

[DuggarsTheEndIsNear]

Megyn Kelly said "your younger sisters" when she was talking to Jessa and Jill. Thus eliminating Jana.

Jana was eliminated when Jill was labeled a victim. One of the girls was getting ready to get her GED and hadn't been touched. Jill and Jana were the only ones even close to getting their GEDs at the time of the investigation. So, it was always a matter of which of those 2 wasn't a victim.

[JenniferJuniper]

I do agree that, to an extent, privacy is gone when the family signs on to be in a reality TV show. However, their participation in a reality TV show shouldn't have resulted in the girls being outed as his victims. I have no problem with Josh being outed as a perpetrator, and definitely no problem with Michelle and JB being outed as bad parents and bad people; but, I do feel for the girls. Until we discover otherwise, I think it's fair to say that these girls didn't sign up to be outed as victims, even with a reality TV show going on. It's not like they talked about it on the show or anything. This went straight to the tabloids, robbing them of control of who knew what.

We cannot escape the fact that the reality show is the reason for all of this.

The release of the report was legal, indeed, the police were required by law to release it. You can blame In Touch for doing the investigation, but they would not have been investigating Josh but for the reality show and his - and his parents' - hateful stances against people who are different from them.

None of the children signed up for the reality show. Their parents pimped them all out for the money, several from birth, DESPITE KNOWING THAT MANY PEOPLE KNEW ABOUT THE SEXUAL ASSAULTS.

This was all bound to come out sooner or later. The true wonder is why it didn't come out sooner (well it did, but most people who heard it didn't believe it) but with the Duggars plastered all over the place with the courtships and marriages and births, Josh constantly spewing hate for his hate group, Michelle's robocalls, Bin's anti-Catholic rants, there was no way it was staying hidden much longer.

I'm sorry for the victims too, but the blame lays squarely with their parents for bringing so much attention to the family when they were hiding so much. And as much as they babble about how the show is a platform for them to spread their messages about Jesus and modesty and the sanctity of the family, everything was a lie. It was all driven by greed.

Kids shouldn't be on reality shows. Period. It's never good for them.

[iheartchacos]

I say whenever sometimes. Don't judge me; I promise I'm not a Duggar!

[DuggarsTheEndIsNear]

We cannot escape the fact that the reality show is the reason for all of this.

The release of the report was legal, indeed, the police were required by law to release it. You can blame In Touch for doing the investigation, but they would not have been investigating Josh but for the reality show and his - and his parents' - hateful stances against people who are different from them.

None of the children signed up for the reality show. Their parents pimped them all out for the money, several from birth, DESPITE KNOWING THAT MANY PEOPLE KNEW ABOUT THE SEXUAL ASSAULTS.

This was all bound to come out sooner or later. The true wonder is why it didn't come out sooner (well it did, but most people who heard it didn't believe it) but with the Duggars plastered all over the place with the courtships and marriages and births, Josh constantly spewing hate for his hate group, Michelle's robocalls, Bin's anti-Catholic rants, there was no way it was staying hidden much longer.

I'm sorry for the victims too, but the blame lays squarely with their parents for bringing so much attention to the family when they were hiding so much. And as much as they babble about how the show is a platform for them to spread their messages about Jesus and modesty and the sanctity of the family, everything was a lie. It was all driven by greed.

Kids shouldn't be on reality shows. Period. It's never good for them.

I don't disagree with you that the show and their fame are what caused this. If it wasn't for either, no one would care about the Duggars enough to dig into them to this extent. However, that doesn't change the fact that, as victims, the girls should have been the ones to identify themselves as such IF they wanted to. But, the police report came out and it was obvious that 4 of the 5 victims were Duggar girls; so that wasn't an option they had.

Again, I have absolutely no problem with In Touch reporting Josh to the public as being a child molester. I have no problem with them showing the hypocrisy of the Duggar's and their beliefs. I have no problem with Josh, JB, and Michelle being taken down.

But, that doesn't mean that I think the girls deserved to be outed in the process.

edited because I forgot words.

[nastyhobbitses]

Bringing these over from the other thread:

I dont find it conflicting. I mean, I don't view my abuses as "a big deal." They hardly define me, and I'm able to have put them behind me. However, I would find it a big deal if people found out without my permission. It's not the abuse that is the problem so much as the way people treat/view you when they find out about your past. Look at these boards, for instance. How many people sat their and disected EVERY facial expression and every word ever witnessed from this family, especially the girls, after we found out?

Plus, these girls were taught that purity is THE MOST important thing and that they're worth nothing if they're damaged goods. And, they're taught that ANY advance from any man/boy towards any woman/girl of any age is the girl's fault. Now, these two are lucky that they're married and they don't have to worry SO MUCH about how people view them, but they have two unmarried sisters who do and they're going to worry about those sisters and their prospects, now. Not to mention, they may not understand that the majority of people don't victim blame in situations like this. Their upbringing puts them to believe that everyone in this world is going to see Josh's transgressions as their own. No matter how you slice this, the general public knowing about their past HAS to be terrifying, even if they've all secretly hoped that one day people would know the truth.

If the media found out, yes I would go to them. I mean not right away, of course, much like these girls didn't go right away. I would wait until I knew what I wanted to say and had an idea of how to say it. I wouldn't take the route these girls did, but I was also raised in a better family with a better way of handling abuse situations and sex in general. I mean, when I was 14 and my classmate was reaching up my shirt and my friend's shirts, my parents wasted no time in getting the school, his parents, and the authorities involved. They never once blamed me or my friends, and they helped us understand that, despite being ostracized by the rest of our class, we were right in reporting the problem. The Duggar kids were not allowed that and were, instead, brainwashed into submission. What they're saying is largely a result of their brainwashing. Had they been given the proper support, counseling, and education, they probably would have had completely different answers themselves. But, they weren't. And, they were also taught JOY; no matter what they want, they have to put Josh and the rest of their family before themselves. So, even if they had better answers, it'd be unlikely they'd be able to say them; especially since the interviews happened in the compound with their parents there to make sure they said all the right things.

I do agree that, to an extent, privacy is gone when the family signs on to be in a reality TV show. However, their participation in a reality TV show shouldn't have resulted in the girls being outed as his victims. I have no problem with Josh being outed as a perpetrator, and definitely no problem with Michelle and JB being outed as bad parents and bad people; but, I do feel for the girls. Until we discover otherwise, I think it's fair to say that these girls didn't sign up to be outed as victims, even with a reality TV show going on. It's not like they talked about it on the show or anything. This went straight to the tabloids, robbing them of control of who knew what.

From what I understand, the story is in one of the Duggar books. It wasn't stolen for blackmail, the person who stole it tried to sell it on eBay.

I myself feel pretty conflicted about the way the girls are reacting to all this, since I'm a survivor of sexual assault. I was and am very much able to put it behind me. It is not the entirety of who I am as a person, it does not define me, and I do not want to give my ex/assailant the dignity of fear. I hate him (mostly because I'm not the only one he assaulted), I wouldn't piss in his mouth if his gums were on fire, but he and his actions do not rule my life. But if someone spread around what happened to me without my consent or my full account of what happened, I'd be angry and hurt. If someone brought up in living color what happened to me five years ago and asked me to basically mentally relive it for the cameras, I'd be pretty choked up, even though I can be happy and collected the rest of the time.

I am angry at Jill for passing the screwed-up messages she lived with to her son, but I am more angry at Josh for doing what he did to her and four other girls, angry at Bill Got-hard for creating teachings that broke Jill and the others' self-worth and trust down so much, and I am most angry at Jim Bob and Michelle, because they let it happen five times, they brushed it off (what parent in their right mind would do that to their own precious daughters), they swept it under the rug, and then they exploited, exposed, and whored out their children to the highest bidder for ten years while condemning anyone who deviated from their fucked-up cult as sinners and sex fiends. Then, when asked how they felt about how they utterly failed their obviously sick son and their victimized daughters, not a word was said about the girls, just about the son they failed and how vewwy vewwy sad they felt.

Honestly, I'm not going to get too wrapped up in how Jill and Jessa should react. They've been dealing with this crap for twelve freakin' years, and then the media dug up their painful past and shoved a camera in their face yet again. Crying to the 911 operator about your baby sister seizing on camera is one thing; having to go on national television to talk about how you felt when your older brother molested you is an entirely more unpleasant kettle of fish.

[JenniferJuniper]

I don't disagree with you that the show and their fame are what caused this. If it wasn't for either, no one would care. However, that doesn't change the fact that, as victims, the girls should have been the ones to identify themselves as such IF they wanted to. But, the police report came out and it was obvious that 4 of the 5 victims were Duggar girls; so that wasn't an option they had.

Again, I have absolutely no problem with In Touch reporting to the public as being a child molester. I have no problem with them showing the hypocrisy of the Duggar's and their beliefs. I have no problem with Josh, JB, and Michelle being taken down.

But, that doesn't mean that I think the girls deserved to be outed in the process.

And I'm not suggesting for a moment that they deserved it. Only that it couldn't be helped because of the situation their parents put them in. If they weren't all reality show stars no one would have been interested in pulling the report, it wouldn't have been published, and no one would have identified the victims.

The law is what it is. It was Jim Bob's and Michelle's reckless behavior, especially in light of the secrets they were keeping, that created the entire situation, not the FOI law, not the police, not the city attorneys, not even In Touch because if it hadn't been them, someone else was bound to get wind of the story and start digging.

[ApologistsBeDamned]

All the Duggars say "whenever" instead of "when." It's one of the things that pisses me off the most. However, someone on here a few years back said that it's common for people in that area to say "whenever" instead of "when."

I would say it is a more shorthand way of saying "Whenever it was that he went away." A past generic timeframe.

[SassyPants]

And I'm not suggesting for a moment that they deserved it. Only that it couldn't be helped because of the situation their parents put them in. If they weren't all reality show stars no one would have been interested in pulling the report, it wouldn't have been published, and no one would have identified the victims.

The law is what it is. It was Jim Bob's and Michelle's reckless behavior, especially in light of the secrets they were keeping, that created the entire situation, not the FOI law, not the police, not the city attorneys, not even In Touch because if it hadn't been them, someone else was bound to get wind of the story and start digging.

And arrogance. JB thought he could sell his family's privacy, private moments and anonymity away for easy cash, without ever considering that the family's "secrets" would never remain hidden. HE sold it all away.

[DuggarsTheEndIsNear]

I am angry at Jill for passing the screwed-up messages she lived with to her son, but I am more angry at Josh for doing what he did to her and four other girls, angry at Bill Got-hard for creating teachings that broke Jill and the others' self-worth and trust down so much, and I am most angry at Jim Bob and Michelle, because they let it happen five times, they brushed it off (what parent in their right mind would do that to their own precious daughters), they swept it under the rug, and then they exploited, exposed, and whored out their children to the highest bidder for ten years while condemning anyone who deviated from their fucked-up cult as sinners and sex fiends. Then, when asked how they felt about how they utterly failed their obviously sick son and their victimized daughters, not a word was said about the girls, just about the son they failed and how vewwy vewwy sad they felt.

I don't blame Jill for passing on the screwed up messages. I mean, she was 10-12 when her family started believing that crap, and those messages were the only coping mechanisms her parents and the other authority figures in her life really gave her. It's not like she went to a licensed therapist who really helped her understand how these things happen and that it wasn't anyone's fault but Josh's. And, if it's true that a lot of families they know had similar problems with their sons, I can see why she'd believe that it's just something boys have a with.

I also don't think that this is one of those things that Derick is going to be correcting her on right now. I mean, he's not really well equipped for dealing with it on his own, and getting her professional help is going to take more time than he's had with her. I mean, his first obstacle will be even convincing her to go get help. He might just see it as easier to appease her for now.

[DuggarsTheEndIsNear]

I would say it is a more shorthand way of saying "Whenever it was that he went away." A past generic timeframe.

Maybe in this situation that could be the case, but they substitute "whenever" for "when" all the time. "Whenever Derick proposed to Jill..." "Whenever I saw Jason after he had fallen..." "Whenever Josie was having her seizure..." It's always "whenever" and never "when."

[Alexa]

I feel bad that Jill and Jessa were coerced by their parents to do this interview to help make Josh look like the victim and to help keep their show on the air. The girls had no way of looking good from this interview because they were trying to cover for their parents, and at the end of the day there is no good way to spin Jim Bob and Michelle covering up for their son's continual molestation of young girls and protecting him from legal action. Michelle and Jim Bob were wrong and did a very bad thing by not going through the authorities and it came at the expense of the 5 victims and Josh.

I don't see how these interviews could have possibly helped the Duggars keep their show.

[DuggarsTheEndIsNear]

I feel bad that Jill and Jessa were coerced by their parents to do this interview to help make Josh look like the victim and to help keep their show on the air. The girls had no way of looking good from this interview because they were trying to cover for their parents, and at the end of the day there is no good way to spin Jim Bob and Michelle covering up for their son's continual molestation of young girls and protecting him from legal action. Michelle and Jim Bob were wrong and did a very bad thing by not going through the authorities and it came at the expense of the 5 victims and Josh.

I don't see how these interviews could have possibly helped the Duggars keep their show.

I have no doubt in my mind that the parents, if not all the Duggars, truly believe that all they have to say is that Josh is "cured through God" and "all is forgiven" for people to get back on their side.

Edited because I forgot to finish what I was saying.

[mebeforee]

I'm actually not sure that the Duggar parents coerced the daughters into doing the interview, or that they would have even had to. I don't think that the daughters saw it as covering for their parents, or even covering for Josh. They've spent their entire lives thinking that obedience was the most important quality a person can have, and that they should ALWAYS defer to their parents' guidance on literally every issue in their lives. What the parents did at the time of the original abuse would have had lifelong effects on the girls and the way they thought about their molestations. I didn't get the impression at all that the girls were reluctantly being interviewed and would not be remotely surprised if they had volunteered to do it, because they believe their parents are led by God and thus God taught them the 'right' way to handle the abuse through JB and Michelle. If they have lingering reservations about what happened to them, it doesn't show at all.

It may help that the two of them were both asleep at the time of the molestations, it would have made it much easier for their parents to downplay what happened and convince them that it was a minor transgression. That doesn't mean the abuse wasn't a big deal or that there aren't any lingering problems from their molestations. But I can't help but think there's a reason we didn't hear from Jinger or Joy about what happened. They have both already demonstrated different attitudes about their upbringing than most of the Duggar children have, their facial expressions often seem to indicate they are thinking something different than their siblings about any given scenario, and neither of them has ever convincingly discussed the family beliefs. They also were both awake at the time of their molestations and may have had more trouble controlling their emotional reactions to what happened. The parents may not believe that they could sell their forgiveness of Josh because they already give the impression of not being fully on-board with Gothard's teachings, even if they've never outright denied them. I get the feeling that if the parents had any large hand in the interview, it was in who they prevented from speaking out rather than in trying to convince the older two to do it.

IDK, I just didn't get the feeling that Jill and Jessa were coerced into doing this. Their whole lives were based around coercion and spiritual guilt that their parents use to control them, but they have also always seemed like some of the least likely to think twice about what they've been taught. I do think that Jessa is a fairly intelligent person and that Jill is genuinely kind-hearted, but they don't question anything about their upbringing and I don't see that changing anytime soon (though perhaps as they begin their families and have more children they will start to think twice about the way they want to raise their own kids).

[ClaraOswin]

Maybe in this situation that could be the case, but they substitute "whenever" for "when" all the time. "Whenever Derick proposed to Jill..." "Whenever I saw Jason after he had fallen..." "Whenever Josie was having her seizure..." It's always "whenever" and never "when."

Yeah...the above drives me crazy! It's definitely a regional thing and not just a Duggar thing. It's so weird.

[Alexa]

I'm actually not sure that the Duggar parents coerced the daughters into doing the interview, or that they would have even had to. I don't think that the daughters saw it as covering for their parents, or even covering for Josh. They've spent their entire lives thinking that obedience was the most important quality a person can have, and that they should ALWAYS defer to their parents' guidance on literally every issue in their lives. What the parents did at the time of the original abuse would have had lifelong effects on the girls and the way they thought about their molestations. I didn't get the impression at all that the girls were reluctantly being interviewed and would not be remotely surprised if they had volunteered to do it, because they believe their parents are led by God and thus God taught them the 'right' way to handle the abuse through JB and Michelle. If they have lingering reservations about what happened to them, it doesn't show at all.

It may help that the two of them were both asleep at the time of the molestations, it would have made it much easier for their parents to downplay what happened and convince them that it was a minor transgression. That doesn't mean the abuse wasn't a big deal or that there aren't any lingering problems from their molestations. But I can't help but think there's a reason we didn't hear from Jinger or Joy about what happened. They have both already demonstrated different attitudes about their upbringing than most of the Duggar children have, their facial expressions often seem to indicate they are thinking something different than their siblings about any given scenario, and neither of them has ever convincingly discussed the family beliefs. They also were both awake at the time of their molestations and may have had more trouble controlling their emotional reactions to what happened. The parents may not believe that they could sell their forgiveness of Josh because they already give the impression of not being fully on-board with Gothard's teachings, even if they've never outright denied them. I get the feeling that if the parents had any large hand in the interview, it was in who they prevented from speaking out rather than in trying to convince the older two to do it.

IDK, I just didn't get the feeling that Jill and Jessa were coerced into doing this. Their whole lives were based around coercion and spiritual guilt that their parents use to control them, but they have also always seemed like some of the least likely to think twice about what they've been taught. I do think that Jessa is a fairly intelligent person and that Jill is genuinely kind-hearted, but they don't question anything about their upbringing and I don't see that changing anytime soon (though perhaps as they begin their families and

have more children they will start to think twice about the way they want to raise their own kids).

Oh, I am sure Jill and Jessa had no doubts about doing the interview and that they were doing the right thing. I also think that aside from Jim Bob, Michelle, Josh, and Anna they have the most to lose now financially if/when the show goes. This was possibly the first season or 2 that they were receiving their own paychecks that they actually had access to. Not to mention all the positive magazine covers and interviews. Jill and Derrick might be okay financially without the show, but they won't be living as high on the hog and Ben and Jessa will be royally screwed when the show is cancelled.

As for Jinger and Joy, from the sounds of it they couldn't have downplayed the molestation as much in the interview. You brought up some good points about their personalities. I really worry about Jinger, she didn't seem to be doing so well with Jessa getting married this past season. I also worry that this will "taint" them in the eyes of their fellow fundies and how that could hurt them personally. The odds of them ever getting real help from their parents is nil, I just hope with all the pressure Jim Bob and Michelle loosen their hold and let them go to college or have some type of freedom. One can dream.

[Nic]

In regard to the Radar Online article, I hope the 5th victim is the one with the letter. I know it's unlikely, but I can dream. If I were that person and listened to the way Josh's family were so dismissive of what happened, I'd be ready to fire back. Oh, I would so be cheering her on!

The 5th victim wouldn't need to be the letter writer? She'd have her story. It's my understanding the author is an unrelated to the crime, so therefore wrote down what they found out.

[mebeforee]

I have had some concerns about Jinger, too. She and Jessa are so close to each other that I can't imagine how she's been without her closest friend around all the time. On top of that, for this story to become public when they're no longer living together, perhaps Jinger doesn't feel she can speak to her other sisters as freely as she can with Jessa and may have had more trouble dealing with the media attention and being identified as a victim because of that. I'm sure it would already be harder for her to discuss the idea over the phone with Jessa, and knowing that all of their text messages are filtered through a family-wide monitoring system (so the parents see every text that comes to or is sent from one of the family member's cellphones) it would be even harder to communicate her feelings that way. Jessa would certainly have been at the house more during the scandal but I doubt she would have been away from Ben for any of that time - even if he wanted to be by her side for wholly supportive reasons (and I do believe he would have wanted to do that), I can't imagine Jinger and Jessa getting much one-on-one sister talk in that time. Joy has always seemed closest with Josiah but I'm sure she wouldn't have talked much to him about this situation and I'm not sure he's even been at home much lately, and their relationship may have diminished some since he's spent so much time away at ALERT. And he's now courting, which would pull him away from home, too. The lives of the girls at home may have been much more significantly altered by the news than the ones living outside, because at least the ones who are married and on their own have a confidant who will not share their feelings with anyone else (their husbands). The girls at home might not have access to that kind of relationship right now because of all the external factors with the media and the oppressive need of the parents to monitor the state of their children without giving them an opportunity to breathe or talk privately with other siblings they are more comfortable with and rely on emotionally more than they do with their parents.

Things have been moving so fast here with all this stuff coming out, and I haven't managed to find a real answer to this question I have... when did the Duggar homechurch shut down? I wonder if the police contacting the Duggars about the FOIA requests drove that to some degree. I know I read about the Church of the Blacked Out Windows being disbanded somewhere on FJ (or maybe Pickles? But I don't read her as much as I do here), and it happened with enough proximity to all this that I wonder if the two events are linked in some way. At first I thought that perhaps the family was trying to reduce any damage their fall from grace might have on the other families in the church, but the way they have publicly reacted to the 'scandal' has me now doubting that would ever happen. They're trying very hard to bail out the TLC $$ boat. They're much more likely to cling the families close to them as evidence of their tremendous community support.

ETA: please forgive any poor grammar or punctuation in this post. It's very late and I had to work a lot this week, lmao, and I just can't look at my writing as critically as I normally would. Thanks lovelies :sleeping:

[JenniferJuniper]

I'm actually not sure that the Duggar parents coerced the daughters into doing the interview, or that they would have even had to. I don't think that the daughters saw it as covering for their parents, or even covering for Josh. They've spent their entire lives thinking that obedience was the most important quality a person can have, and that they should ALWAYS defer to their parents' guidance on literally every issue in their lives. What the parents did at the time of the original abuse would have had lifelong effects on the girls and the way they thought about their molestations. I didn't get the impression at all that the girls were reluctantly being interviewed and would not be remotely surprised if they had volunteered to do it, because they believe their parents are led by God and thus God taught them the 'right' way to handle the abuse through JB and Michelle. If they have lingering reservations about what happened to them, it doesn't show at all.

It may help that the two of them were both asleep at the time of the molestations, it would have made it much easier for their parents to downplay what happened and convince them that it was a minor transgression. That doesn't mean the abuse wasn't a big deal or that there aren't any lingering problems from their molestations. But I can't help but think there's a reason we didn't hear from Jinger or Joy about what happened. They have both already demonstrated different attitudes about their upbringing than most of the Duggar children have, their facial expressions often seem to indicate they are thinking something different than their siblings about any given scenario, and neither of them has ever convincingly discussed the family beliefs. They also were both awake at the time of their molestations and may have had more trouble controlling their emotional reactions to what happened. The parents may not believe that they could sell their forgiveness of Josh because they already give the impression of not being fully on-board with Gothard's teachings, even if they've never outright denied them. I get the feeling that if the parents had any large hand in the interview, it was in who they prevented from speaking out rather than in trying to convince the older two to do it.

IDK, I just didn't get the feeling that Jill and Jessa were coerced into doing this. Their whole lives were based around coercion and spiritual guilt that their parents use to control them, but they have also always seemed like some of the least likely to think twice about what they've been taught. I do think that Jessa is a fairly intelligent person and that Jill is genuinely kind-hearted, but they don't question anything about their upbringing and I don't see that changing anytime soon (though perhaps as they begin their families and have more children they will start to think twice about the way they want to raise their own kids).

I don't think they were coerced at all. I think Jim Bob set 'em both down and said, "Hey guys, Mom and I are gonna do an interview and explain that Josh made some mistakes with that mild touching we told ya'll he did when you didn't remember, and they want to know if you girls will help explain that Jesus has forgiven Josh and you weren't really bothered by it at all. Don't mean to scare you girls, but the show is on the line here and we need to make sure everybody understands that you are way more upset about what the liberal media is doing to you than those few little incidents over your clothes when you were sleeping way back 12 years ago when Josh was just a curious young boy."

And they were happy to comply. I do wonder about what Ben and especially Derick, thought of their wives doing the interview but am guessing that, as for now, Jim Bob is pretty much their headship too. This probably won't change until money from the show is no longer flowing and everyone is fending for themselves.

Joy wasn't interviewed because she's a minor and Jinger wasn't interviewed because it sounds like she experienced the worst of it. And she seems so emotionally fragile these days that I can't imagine her being able to spin away the assaults the way the other two did. Also, being unmarried, JB probably didn't want to highlight her status as a sexual assault victim, possibly minimizing her chances with potential fundie suitors.

BTW, I don't believe for a second they slept through the assaults. And I don't understand how Jim Bob could possibly know that the girls who were touched directly on their genitals only experienced a 3 second assault. This is a desperate, obvious attempt to further minimize what really happened to the victims. To his own daughters.

[mebeforee]

I've wondered a lot if there was more exaggeration about them not knowing what happened than is necessarily true. Josh's actions seemed to be escalating in terms of what exactly he was doing as well as how much the girls knew. He moved from touching over clothing to under clothing and from sleeping to waking victims in what appears to have been a fairly short amount of time.

But at least one of the girls said, when the parents 'told' the girls about what happened, that it made sense because she once remembered waking up to see Josh taking away the blanket. I don't remember there being anything to identify which daughter said that, but it has been bothering me ever since. I don't know how you could wake up enough to see your brother taking a blanket off you while sleeping and then just fall back asleep. You wouldn't be woken by being cold? By seeing someone who wasn't supposed to be in your room? And by what, given the context, was almost certainly followed by 'inappropriate touching'? She woke up enough to see him and remember it later, so I don't know how that could have been dismissed by her as unimportant. It was important enough in her mind to bring it up when later having a conversation about the sexual abuse that had occurred. Maybe she didn't want to admit that she remembered what happened because these families teach that women who don't "cry out" are at fault for abuse? And if she was asleep at the time, the blame for the abuse wouldn't have fallen on her.

(A side note, it really creeped me out the way Jessa had a sort of smile when she said Josh was 'sly' about how he molested them. Like him being smart or 'sly' was a good attribute to have, even in this context.)