craig@think.ARPA (Craig Stanfill) (10/30/85)
> The problem with a nude however presented on the cover of an IEEE > publication is the same problem I've seen in ads for some electronic > parts advertised in similar publications: using women's bodies to > sell products. It's certainly a popular advertising technique these > days with all kinds of products. > > Since it's a professional society that some of us belong to maybe we > can have an impact on their policies. I also think it reflects > an attitude that all of the readers they are targeting are > heterosexual males. To me, this endless debate about the IEEE computer society publications catalog illustrates why censorship is so awful a response to poronography. I have seen the IEEE cover, and I think it is both tasteful and artistic. Obviously, there are those who find the cover offensive (for whatever reasons, sometimes without having even seen it). How are we to coexist? Some would have the IEEE to refrain from publishing such covers in the future. ``We should not be unwillingly exposed to offensive material,'' they might say.'' But what constitutes ``ofensive?'' No matter where you draw the line, there are those with more conservative outlooks, and there are those with more liberal outlooks. Where does it end? Probably in Iran, where women may be arrested for wearing makeup or not covering their face with a veil. Where does this leave us? With art that ignores the human body? With literature that ignores human sexuality? Probably. Nudity in art and sexuality in literature have long been persecuted by the prudes. And if the prudes win, we are left with a sadder and Victorian world. The crux of the matter is that the prudes and censors don't know the difference between art and trash. They see a nude and conclude the nude was put there for the purpose of titilating the viewer (this is clearly what the above writer infers). Sometimes they're right (women in bikinis selling semiconductor chips) and sometimes they're wrong (the IEEE cover). How are we to coexist? I think the best way is for those who object to such things as the IEEE cover to first count to three and try to understand that the intent was artistic. And then, if they still feel that the material is offensive, to write a letter to the editor expressing their opinion. Perhaps the editors will change their policies, or maybe they will say ``Dammit, this is art not trash, we're not going to be intimidated.'' If this happens, maybe the people who were complaining will understand they are being overly sensitive. I certainly understand with the viewpoint that womens bodies are used as a sales device, and I find the practice offensive. But I think people are overreacting to this cover. I rather like it for reasons that have nothing to do with sex. -Craig Stanfill