If You Have Nipples, America Doesn't Want You
Here we go again. Apparently, it's OK to blow up stuff in TV commercials (see Verizon's Michael Bay commercial) but OMFG, show a fleeting glimpse of a natural human body part and the country freaks to high alert, places a blindfold over the collective eyeballs of every kid in the country (nudity is bad!!) and launches the cause group machine.
Yes. This is America. Nudity is bad. Nudity is something to be shunned. Natural beauty? Screw that. Put a potato sack on! Cover that God-given beauty. Sex is bad. Sex dirty. Sex is nasty. Sex should never be thought about. Sex should be shunned.
Yes. This is America. A recently created commercial for Calvin Klein Secret Obsession featuring Eva Mendes has been shunned (yes, shunned!) by American networks because it contains a fleeting glimpse of Mendes' nipple.
Just think. If America put as much effort into glorifying the wonders of natural human beauty and the natural human behavior known as sex (with proper education) as it did glorifying violence, it's kind of a forgone conclusion, the country just might be a less uptight, more forgiving and happier...and maybe even less violent...place to live.
Who knows. Humans kill humans. Always have always will. Maybe now we'll just do it naked instead of wearing 100 pounds of combat equipment.
Comments
spoken like a true Liberal. show more titties, and everyone won't be so uptight about sex.
Make love, not war...yadda yadda. heard it since the 60's, still doesn't work.
Don't forget that it is ok on TV to show someone stabbing a woman in the boobs, but you can't show a woman taking a shower with a view of her boobs.
:-)
Oh I know it will never happen, Shane. I can still bitch about it:-)
shane, it's never been tried, so your assertion that it doesn't work is BS.
I think Fox is doing that one as a reality show next year. Survivor XTreme, the Richard Hatch Edition or something like that.
Has anyone told Bob Garfield about this spot? While it's not homophobic, I'm sure he'll want to write a letter to someone about it.
u don't even notice the nipple unless you're looking for it.
Tom Murry, president and chief operating officer of Calvin Klein, commented to WWD, 'This development is not entirely a surprise for the US market.
No shit?!? You intentionally left a nipple slip in a TV spot that was to air in the US. C'mon. You actually thought that would fly?
This was a conscious editing decision in order to incite controversy and chatter. Which it has. And everyone is playing right along.
sheesh you find this stuff fast! i sent the link to you on twitter a little bit ago; should have known you'd already seen it :)
Steve Hall,
If you're so open about sexual imagery, why don't you post more penis pictures to balance all the titties and women butts?
jordan,
You wrote: "u don't even notice the nipple unless you're looking for it." Um, if Eva Mendes is rolling around nekkid, believe me, I'm looking for it.
One could also ask why people still frown from using women in adverts. Reality is that if it didn't work, they'd stop using them. Clearly there's a requirement or need.
In this CK context, I guess it boils down to respect for viewers. And while nudity will always be a taboo-like topic, if it's sexy, it will sell, and that's what advertisers want. The balance I think sits with keeping it away from those who'd find offense in it....and that's where the difficulty lies.
Reality is that we need a more mature society...
someone asked:If you're so open about sexual imagery, why don't you post more penis pictures to balance all the titties and women butts?
I was not asked, but here is my simple response:
your rquest only provides visual satisfaction to a very small minority, and in terms of marketing /advertising it is not profitable.
I know , you were expecting a racist/segregationist reponse, but numbers speak for themselves....
Regards
ha! i was just considering matters in light of the recent snickers fiasco.
although it does point to the heavily-male audience this blog attracts.
You'd think, given that even Americans complain about these things being banned, that someone in high places would have noticed by now...
Mind you, it's not like the UK doesn't have similarly ridiculous censorship. Channel flipping I came across a live feed of "Big Brother" with the sound cut out because they were discussing "adult stuff." At 2 am. Think about it.
Just wanted to be sure you knew, Steve, that that nipple is still up there. ;^)
I love this rant. And I'm still laughing about Jordan's comment; spot on.
Cheers! -- Roger D.