media

Butch Fatale: Lesbian Glamour (NY Times)

by Viviane on 03/02/2009

in media

. . .Which isn’t to say there haven’t been noticeable changes, beginning in the late ’80s, when k.d. lang became an icon of lesbian chic. Nor is it to minimize the impact of ‘‘The L Word,’’ a tribute to the high testosterone level of gay babes, or to ignore hip same-sex Hollywood couples, like Lindsay Lohan and Samantha Ronson. It is to say rather that Sapphic archetypes tend to raise questions more than answer them, since both categories (butch and femme) borrow from gender-influenced dichotomies of beauty. There have, that is, always been women known for a sort of arrant handsomeness — like Gertrude Stein, who always struck me as resembling no one so much as Hadrian VII— or for their arresting exoticism, like the painter Romaine Brooks. And then there are the gay women, known as ‘‘lipstick lesbians,’’ who look like any other pretty young thing. Indeed, the power of lipstick lesbians relies precisely on the fact that theirs is an exclusively inner ‘‘outing’’; outside they are all mascara, blush and, yes, lipstick. Their allure is in their ability to mimic the normative language of sexual discourse while at the same time poking it in the eye.

Well, look again. Lesbianism has finally come into a glamour of its own, an appeal that goes beyond butch and femme archetypes into a more universal seduction. Her name is Rachel Maddow, the polished-looking, self-declared gay newscaster who stares out from the MSNBC studio every weekday night and makes love to her audience.

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Casting Call: Real swingers on TV?

by Viviane on 02/25/2009

in media

Posted at the request of Alana Lowe, who’s developing a documentary style, reality TV show for a major cable network about a group of friends, some of whom are part of the lifestyle:

Real swingers on TV?! The media portrays the lifestyle as a bunch of old, unattractive weirdos – but we all know the truth! I am developing a documentary-style reality series for a major cable network, that will open America’s eyes to what it really means to be in the lifestyle today.

I am looking for a group of friends that already exists, anywhere in the US, that includes some vanillas and some swingers, who are comfortable being ‘out’ about their lifestyle. Couples who go out and party, who hang out with their friends, who go out to dinner, who gossip about what happened last night, and, of course, who are sexy.

If this sounds like something you and your sweetheart are interested in or if you know anyone who might be, please pass this information along. Contact me for more information. alana DOT research AT gmail dot com. Credentials available upon request.

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Linkage

by Viviane on 10/14/2008

in sex

Jefferson has posted an FAQ about the custody case, which is still pending.

AAG is writing about an ugly situation with an affiliate company.

The Village Voice has a slideshow of this past weekends NY Leather Weekend.

Lee Harrington’s October newsletter and appearances may be found here.

The children of Dr. Martin Luther King are fighting over love letters he sent to his wife, Coretta Scott King.

The Arizona Supreme Court ruled Thursday that a lower court must re-examine a state law restricting hours for sexually oriented businesses in a case involving two Phoenix adult bookstores.

The Extreme Associates case is now scheduled to go to trial on March 16th.

The next Vanguard Leather Retreat will be held November 7-9.

An interview with Lenny Waller, who managed the Hellfire Club. (I took that picture of Lenny)

IFC has a new documentary about commercial photographer Ellen Stagg, whose love of photography extends from her mainstream job as a commercial photographer to her more personal erotic work.

Sarah Palin was a Mean Girl.

The latest Feminist Carnival of Sexual Freedom and Autonomy is up.

Barbara Nitke has redesigned her website and has a blog – go have a look at what she’s been up to.

Cinekink, the really alternative film festival, is accepting early bird entries until October 15th. The final deadline is November 15th.

There are two classes at Purple Passion this weekend: Elegant Pain Compliance & Control & Self Defense for Women.

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Sex Doesn’t Sell (Violet Blue; SFGate.com)

by Viviane on 10/09/2008

in media, sex

Violet Blue says that if you think “sex sells” then you’re not paying attention.

VB (Violet Blue): Does sex really sell?

SH (Steve Hall): According to some studies, the “sex sells” adage in misleading if not wrong. Several studies have found ads laced with sexual imagery of women targeted to women actually turn women off to the product. And it’s not a new conclusion about sex and advertising, either.

Initially sexual imagery can “sell” — when it comes to attracting attention to an ad. After all, humans are innately programmed to respond to titillating imagery and the possibility of sex. It’s just in our DNA. So it’s natural for marketers to use this attraction and for people to respond. But, it can be a lame cop-out used by marketers who lack imagination to create more compelling work that will sustain itself beyond the initial titillation. Despite studies minimizing its benefits, sex will continue to be used in advertising because it’s a quick and easy solution which doesn’t require much thought and can garner the immediate attention some marketers need for their promotional efforts.

. . .

VB: Should there be more sex in advertising?

SH: Yes and no. Yes, in the sense that sex is normal. It should not be taboo. It should be a normal part of everyone’s life and so therefore should be represented as such in advertising. No, because it’s just too easy and makes for too much bad advertising. And the sexual content in a sexually-laced ad can overshadow the product being promoted and therefore make it even more difficult to remember what the ad was actually promoting.

Link

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Help save Bitch

by Viviane on 09/18/2008

in feminism, publishing

from publisher Debbie Rasmussen:

First the bad news: The print publishing industry as a whole is staring into a void. Across the board, newsstand magazine sales are in a slump, subscriber numbers are down, and paper and postal costs continue to rise. But it’s not magazines like US Weekly or Vogue that you’ll see disappearing from the newsstands—they have the parent companies and the resources to weather industry ill winds. It’s the small, independent magazines like Bitch that will disappear, because the odds are already stacked high against us. And simply put: We need to raise $40,000 by October 15th in order to print the next issue of Bitch.

Donate here.

Link

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Media Update: National Coalition for Sexual Freedom (NCSF)

by Viviane on 09/09/2008

in bdsm, media

1. Sex-slave conviction overturned
2. Murder-suicide autopsies: 3 died of gunshot wounds
3. ‘Booger Red’ Gets Life
4. This swinger feels persecuted
5. Study Suggests Polygamy May Lead To A Longer Life
6. For some, Gitmo interrogation techniques are a real turn-on
7. Court overturns conviction of NYC’s ‘S&M Svengali’

National Coalition for Sexual Freedom — Media Update

media@ncsfreedom.org

August 22, 2008

NCSF Media Updates represent a sampling of recent stories printed in US newspapers, magazines, and selected websites containing significant mention of SM-leather-fetish, polyamory, or swing issues and topics.

These stories may be positive, negative, accurate, inaccurate – or anywhere in between.

NCSF publishes the Updates to provide readers a comprehensive look at what media outlets are writing about these topics. NCSF permits and encourages readers to forward these Updates where appropriate.

[click to continue…]

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NBC Censors Sexual Orientation Of Openly Gay Gold Medalist Diver (Think Progress)

by Viviane on 08/25/2008

in gay, media, sex

According to OutSports.com, of the 10,708 athletes at the Olympics this year, just 10 have identified themselves publicly as being gay. Of the 10, Australian diver Matthew Mitcham is the only male gay athlete.

Yesterday, Mitcham won the gold in the in the 10m platform diving event, scoring an upset over the Chinese team, which was heavily favored to win. But as Maggie Hendricks at Yahoo’s Olympics blog notes, NBC never mentioned Mitcham’s orientation.

Link

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Working Girl (New Yorker)

by Viviane on 07/03/2008

in media, sex work

A British take on the world’s oldest profession.

. . .when a number of high-profile memoirs have turned out to be, to some degree or in their entirety, not what they professed to be. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find them in the Ho section of my local Barnes & Noble (the subtitle of the American edition, earnest and accurate, is “Diary of an Unlikely Call Girl”), so I’ve seen only the Telegraph columns and short passages from the books. The writing I have come across seems not just fictional but false; there’s a lazy archness to the tone, a superficial intelligence, and a mere pose of thoughtfulness—all of which may be intentional, part of the joke. The diaries aren’t trying for greatness; they’re trying to make the cash register ring, and that they have done.

. . .Issues of authenticity fade away, however, when it comes to the TV series, because it’s not at pains to sell itself as the real deal. You don’t have to believe that the story comes from a true-life prostitute, just that the character you’re watching is believable.

. . .It’s not that much fun to watch an actress who, except for the occasional times when she lets loose one of her charmingly loud second-soprano laughs, seems always to be asking more of us than she’s giving, but “Secret Diary of a Call Girl” does get better as it goes along, although it doesn’t greatly distinguish itself from most other shows you’ve seen about young single women in the big city.

Link

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secret diary of a call girl, existential emptiness, and functionally stupid journalists. (debauchette)

by Viviane on 06/17/2008

in media, sexwork

Aren’t we past this, yet? Is this even a question? Are journalists so incompetent, so incapable of carrying out the most basic research, that they can only assume that sex, for us, is intolerable? Or are these journalists really just uninterested in sex themselves and can’t resist transferring their sex-is-gross attitudes to the women who do it by choice? And why aren’t they capable of parsing the differences among sex workers, between those who have financial leverage and those who do not, those who are trafficked and those who act out of choice, those who have options and those who do not, and so on? This isn’t rocket science. This isn’t even advanced sociology.

Link

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NCSF Entertainment Media Update for “Swingtown”

by Viviane on 06/10/2008

in marriage, ncsf, polyamory, sex

swingtown cbs promo picture 300x259 NCSF Entertainment Media Update for Swingtown

Swingtown – Molly Parker as Susan Miller, Jack Davenport as Bruce Miller, Lana Parrilla as Trina Decker, Grant Show as Tom Decker (CBS Photo by Cliff Lipson)

Show Title: Swingtown
Episode Title: “Pilot”
Original airdate: June 5, 2008
Series continues: Thursday, 10 pm
Network: CBS
Produced by: CBS Paramount Television
Executive Producers: Michael Kelley, Allen Poul and Carol Barbee

Description
From the program’s website – “SWINGTOWN, from the director of ‘Big Love’ and ‘Rome,’ traces two generations of friends and neighbors as they forge intimate connections and explore new freedoms during the culturally transformative decade of the 1970s. It portrays the ever-shifting “swing” of the pendulum that reflected the change in America’s collective value system — morally, politically and socially. After moving to an upscale lakeside Chicago suburb in July of 1976, Susan and Bruce Miller must confront temptation in the form of their provocative new neighbors, Tom and Trina Decker, while not abandoning their old friends Janet and Roger Thompson. As the adult couples evaluate whether to embrace or avoid newfound personal freedoms, the curious Miller and Thompson children begin to discover and assert their own morality and sexual identities as they come of age in a world on the precipice of change. In a shifting social climate — defined by its music, fashion and style — everyone in SWINGTOWN is confronted with personal choices, experimentation and varying attitudes.”

More info, including clips and the most recent episode of the show,
can be found at:
http://www.cbs.com/primetime/swingtown/

NCSF Reviewer’s Note
Originally intended for a cable network outlet, “Swingtown” has obviously been retooled to meet broadcast standards and withstand certain scrutiny from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). Nonetheless, while it shies away from nudity and direct depictions, the show still manages to take a refreshingly
positive approach to sexual exploration and freedom. The most adventurous couple of the three featured, the Deckers, is presented as sharing a mutual enjoyment of their open marriage and seem to have a healthy, affectionate relationship. Similarly the Millers, introduced to the swing lifestyle in the first episode, are shown to be in love, but just seeking a little something to rev up their sex life.

It’s a little difficult to predict where the series will go over the course of its initial 13-episode run, but given how quickly the Millers jump into the action – counter to what most swingers themselves would counsel – there are sure to be complications ahead. While there are likely some consequences to be faced down the line, hopefully the show will maintain the sex-positive tone it exhibited in its premiere episode.

In light of complaints already being registered from media watch groups and religious political extremists, the CBS network and its local affiliates deserve commendation for airing “Swingtown” and should be encouraged to continue its broadcast.

(Reviewed by Lisa Vandever, NCSF Media Committee)

CRITICAL ACTION – GIVE FEEDBACK ON SWINGTOWN TO YOUR LOCAL CBS AFFILIATE:

Find your station here:

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2002/07/31/utility/main517034.shtml

(Hard copy letters are generally more effective, but sending an email is better than nothing.)

ADDITIONAL ACTION – GIVE FEEDBACK ON SWINGTOWN TO THE CBS NETWORK:

CBS Television Network
51 West 52nd Street
New York, NY 10019

(While hard copy letters are generally more effective, you can also send a direct email to the network via a form on their website -
http://www.cbs.com/info/user_services/fb_global_form.shtml.)

YOU CAN ALSO LEAVE INPUT VIA THE “SWINGTOWN” COMMUNITY MESSAGE BOARD:
http://www.cbs.com/primetime/swingtown/community/
(requires email registration)

HOW TO WRITE VIEWER FEEDBACK

Viewer letters are an effective way to convey a positive image of alternate sexual practices such as SM, swinging or polyamory. Your feedback can help to correct negative social myths and misconceptions about these types of practices, and may influence the future decisions of programmers and producers about the entertainment they provide.

These letters help achieve the advocacy goals of the NCSF.

For more information and suggestions of points to include in your letter, see:
http://www.ncsfreedom.org/index.php?option=com_keyword&id=182

Please alert us to positive, negative or neutral stories about SM, swinging and polyamory at media@ncsfreedom.org

***

A joint Project of NCSF and ITCR: The Foundation of NCSF

The National Coalition for Sexual Freedom is a national organization committed to creating a political, legal, and social environment in the United States that advances equal rights of consenting adults who practice forms of alternative sexual expression. NCSF is primarily focused on the rights of consenting adults in the SM-leather-fetish, swing, and polyamory communities, who often face discrimination because of their sexual expression.

National Coalition for Sexual Freedom
822 Guilford Avenue, Box 127
Baltimore, MD 21202-3707
410-539-4824
media AT ncsfreedom DOT org
www.ncsfreedom.org

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links for 2008-06-04

by Viviane on 06/04/2008

in del.icio.us

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links for 2008-06-03

by Viviane on 06/03/2008

in del.icio.us

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links for 2008-05-30

by Viviane on 05/30/2008

in del.icio.us

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links for 2008-05-29

by Viviane on 05/29/2008

in del.icio.us

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From Plymouth Rock to Plato’s Retreat (Inside Higher Ed)

by Viviane on 05/28/2008

in history, sex

By Scott McLemee

Last week, Intellectual Affairs gave the recent cable TV miniseries “Sex: The Revolution” a nod of recognition, however qualified, for its possible educational value. The idea that sex has a history is not, as such, self-evident. The series covers the changes in attitudes and norms between roughly 1950 and 1990 through interviews and archival footage. Most of this flies past at a breakneck speed, alas. The past becomes a hostage of the audience’s presumably diminished attention span.

With that consideration in mind, you tend to watch “Sex: The Revolution” with a certain indulgence — as entertainment with benefits, so to speak. Unfortunately, the makers stopped short. They neglected to interview scholars who might have provided more insight than a viewer might glean from soundbites by demi-celebrities. And so we end up with a version of history not too different from the one presented by Philip Larkin in the poem “Annus Mirabilis” —

Sexual intercourse began
In nineteen sixty-three
(Which was rather late for me) -
Between the end of the Chatterley ban
And the Beatles’ first LP.

— except without the irony. A belief that people in the old days must have been repressed is taken for granted. Was this a good thing or not? Phyllis Schlafly and reasonable people may disagree; but the idea itself is common coin of public discourse.

But suppose a television network made a different sort of program — one incorporating parts of what one might learn from reading the scholarship on the history of sex. What sense of the past might then emerge?
(more. . .)

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