The abusive woman and her boyfriend are actors, hired by "Primetime" for
a hidden camera experiment.
On previous shows, "Primetime" has staged scenes of abuse in which the
man is the aggressor, and the woman is the victim. And in these
situations, passersby — men and women — often stepped up and intervened.
So producers were curious. What would happen if the tables were turned,
and the man was suddenly the victim? Would people be just as willing to
come to his defense?
This staged scenario happens more often in real life than you may think.
According to Colgate University psychology professor Carrie Keating,
women abusing, even assaulting their male partners "is a big problem in
this country."
http://abcnews.go.com/Primetime/story?id=2741047&page=1
ABC News 20/20 was one of the first major TV forums to devote
substantial time to battered men in their Sept. 19, 1997 segment:
"Battered By Their Wives: Men Who Are Abused More Common Than You
Think". 20/20 has given coverage to battered men since then.