Exposed Vagaga Begs the Question, Is the Media Too Conserative?

In a blink, I saw her goods. Dumbfounded, I re-winded and paused (I love DVR). Yes, she is not wearing panties. Yes, she is on national television. Yes, that cut was intentional.

The cameraman got the shot. The editor snickered. He inserted the clip into what would be Tuesday night’s So You Think You Can Dance (SYTYCD) episode. As soon as the final cut was approved, he text'ed all of this editing buddies and assured them that Tuesday was the night to watch SYTYCD. Remember Fight Club, the penis clip in the Cartoon? Rogue editing.

Make no mistake about it, that clip was intentionally inserted; and so begins the initial tumbling of puritan television in America.

As we all know, some networks and individuals have been jumping back and forth over the “decency on TV” line. Some examples:

1. NYPB Blue: butt shots and swears: American’s felt risky when NYPD Blue started to “grey” the line.
2. Janet Jackson’s wardrobe malfunction: Ha! Yea, right, malfunction. She has a CD coming out…
3. Jennifer Slate: F-bomb on SNL; and now
4. SYTYCD: Yoni surprise.

America remains the only industrialized nation with an overly conservative code of ethics when it comes to television. At the same time, we broadcast war, murder, drug use, and many other “sinful” acts on “LIVE” TV. But, you won’t see a boob! They continue to suppress the human body (while exploiting sexuality), so rebel media mavens will continue to commit subtle terrorist attacks on our American eyes until this “code of ethics” is dismissed for good.

The Huffington Post is a “line” jumper, but they are on the Internet. They recent published a piece about the SYTYCD and I noticed an interesting comment that inspired me to write my thoughts;

“If there was more nudity on television, I think that more people would be more comfortable with their own bodies. This country has no problem with extreme violence, and simulated lewd acts, but this is offensive? Give me a break. There is something seriously wrong with you republicans, mentally and morally. Keep your puritan extremism to yourselves, or get off the planet. You are ruining people's lives.”

This is a great point. Suppression feeds our urges to commit “lewd” acts. Just like alcohol. Young American’s are forced by law not to consume alcohol until they reach 21, yet many of them do (40%). This suppression leads to abuse and alcoholism, unlike our neighbors across the pond.

Back to media. Jack Johnson, in his song “Cookie Jar” said this;
Well "You can't blame me", says the media man Well "I wasn't the one who came up with the plan I just point my camera at what the people want to see Man it's a two way mirror and you cant blame me"

Is this true? Partially, yes, it is true. But, interpretation is a key variable here, along with political influence from the government and major consumer brands.

The roadblock lies in the assumption that Americans want more censorship. I imagine most do, but this censorship is having negative effects on our society from a social standpoint. Let’s face the facts:

• Our leaders are having sex with prostitutes and doing drugs
• Professional athletes kill dogs and shoot guns
• Priests molest little boys
• Men and women have affairs
• Accountants steal money from clients

The list goes on.

Censorship may not seem like an important problem, but actually could be the source of our problems. Censorship is suppression. When people are suppressed, they act out. Sexuality is a staple in advertising and entertainment. Yet, we censor (suppress) the full picture to the audience. I consulted a master meditator, Scott Desgrosseilliers about this;

"People receive mixed media messages subconsciously that they can't sort out. So media-manifested subconscious guilt contributes to overall general bad vibe. People don’t have coping mechanisms, or realize they need them. I would also say that it still comes back to personal responsibility. People need to become aware of this influence. And now thanks to your article, people are aware and must be responsible for dealing with it appropriately."

I agree that personal responsibility needs to be addressed, but if it takes a village to raise a child, and the media is the village…what do we do?

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