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Grex Arts Item 63: Sex on the tube.... is it time or what?
Entered by aa8ij on Fri Aug 13 05:04:46 UTC 1993:

    This week's TV guide (tm) has several articles on the way certain actors
and actresses "push the envelope" when it comes to sex and sex on the tube.
if you will recall, it wasn't that long ago that the word "abortion" wasn't
heard and things like that just didn't happen. Remember what "SOAP" was famous
for? the first gay character, and later on "thirtysomthing" showed 2 men
in bed together. Tonight, 20/20 will air a segment on lesbians and a certain
little town in New England which has a overabundence of lesbians.

How far can./will they go in the future???

14 responses total.

#1 of 14 by hawkeye on Fri Aug 13 14:11:24 1993:

Actually, I hope they go farther and let the market decide what it 
wants.

#2 of 14 by katie on Fri Aug 13 14:57:43 1993:

How many lesbians are allowed before it's an overabundance?

#3 of 14 by mta on Fri Aug 13 18:12:08 1993:

Well, I hardly think sex on TV is a major issue -- but I long ago ecided
that given the choice I'd much rather have my sons watching media with
lots of good wholesome sex than have them watching the endless violence
TV was offering at the time.

(I do stress the wholesome, though.  An explicit sex scene between charaters 
portrayed as being very much in love is far better than a less explicit
scene between characters from the typical "can't get enough" porno
scenario.)

I do wish that TV could turn its attention to something a little more
radical, though.  Like real stories, perhaps.  




If you need me, I'll be sucking up some PBS.    ;)

#4 of 14 by aa8ij on Sat Aug 14 00:18:56 1993:

  re 2: Katie, maybe that word was not exactly the one that should have
been used, but according to ABC, the town is almost 100% lesbian, which 
I have no problem with. I was just pointing out that since the 1970's
more and more sex has been on the tube, and society has been forced more
or less to accept it, or tune out.

#5 of 14 by polygon on Sat Aug 14 06:25:06 1993:

What, Northampton, Massachusetts?  I doubt it's even 50% lesbian.  After
all, a great many men live there as well.

#6 of 14 by aa8ij on Sat Aug 14 19:11:04 1993:

  I saw that on Lynn Sherer's report. But according to Diana "know nothing"
Lewis, the town was a "ALL lesbian community". go figure.
  
  I thought that the report was rather well done and balanced.

 (I don't mean to imply that Diana Lewis is less a newscaster than
anyone else, but she has got to get better writers or better sources.)

#7 of 14 by polygon on Sat Aug 14 21:28:55 1993:

I've never seen any of these reports, but Northampton is reputed to be
a very friendly place for lesbians.  Calling it "all lesbian" is nonsense.

#8 of 14 by aa8ij on Sun Aug 15 02:17:52 1993:

  Diana Lewis said this as a tease for 20/20. It was not a report of any kind.

#9 of 14 by young on Tue Sep 14 05:05:46 1993:

Northampton does not so much have an abundance of lesbians so much as it has an
abundance of "reporters" (and I use the term loosely) looking for lesbians.  
There's been a lesbian community there for some time (which makes sense, what
with Mount Holyoke and Smith--women's colleges--in the area), but I've heard 
that the more pieces have been done on Northampton, the higher profile it gets,
the more lesbians think Northampton might be a good place to move, the more
pieces get done on Northampton, and so on.

#10 of 14 by wh on Thu Sep 16 04:52:00 1993:

Re #3. I agree completely with the sex vs. violence crap that
hogs the screen so much. Also, wholesome an important distinction.
So much on TV is lust for entertainment as opposed to
relationships and meaningful stories.

#11 of 14 by young on Thu Sep 16 05:12:07 1993:

This summer there was an interesting article in the Boston Globe on the sex vs.
violence issue.  According to studies, people approved of sex in movies more 
than violence, but they thought that other people would approve of violence 
more than sex.

#12 of 14 by other on Sun Feb 6 21:14:42 1994:

re #2  Overabundance = abundance + 1
 :)

#13 of 14 by lumen on Fri Mar 21 08:12:53 1997:

I would definitely say that potty humor, besides just plain sex, is quite
popular now.  Also, I would have to say that honestly, it is undeniable-- sex
and violence are getting more graphic in TV.  Oh, it has always been there,
but it was likely much more subtle.

The real issue is not controlling the content of TV, but choosing the best
shows to watch.  If you don't approve of sex in television, try to avoid the
shows that gratify it so much.  Re: #3.. I would rather kids saw more of the
subtle points of love in TV, rather than the sex.  I do agree that TV often
portrays unhealthy attitudes towards sex, but in general, sex is so much more
openly dealt with.

I guess it's all a matter of personal control and choice, but I am glad there
is a ratings system now so that those who would beware are forewarned.

#14 of 14 by wrl on Wed Mar 1 19:39:42 2006:

It is funny.

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