I want sex ““ a sex magazine, that is.
Big-name university students across the nation have begun publishing magazines dedicated to sex, and some, such as Harvard’s H Bomb, are receiving university funding and even faculty advisers.
According to a New York Times article, the creators of the H Bomb wanted a “literary arts magazine about sex and sex issues,” while the Boston University cofounder of Boink oriented the subject matter more toward traditional porn ““ except all the material, including the photos, are produced by and feature college students.
While some campuses are using the guise of “a sex magazine” to publish raunchy porn in the style of Hustler, UCLA could create an open forum for a discussion of the social and political implications of sex. Operating under the assumption that a sex magazine would be welcome on campus, I have a few suggestions for the structure and content of such a publication.
A literary or art-fueled publication delving into the plurality of roles of sex could be positive.
“A sex magazine could help students become more comfortable with their sexuality and help facilitate sexual discovery,” said Cailin Crockett, a first-year intern at the UCLA Center for Women & Men. “It could also be empowering for women to take part in this sexual discussion because sex is seen as something only men think about, but women are sexual beings too.”
An open discussion of sex encourages sexual health and safety, and we could add something to the discussion of sex rather than lapping up exhibitionist smut. According to Arvli Ward, director of UCLA Student Media, a print magazine would have to be independently financed and published, although in recent years, Student Media has supported a couple of Web magazines.
For this endeavor to be successful, a university-affiliated magazine must be carefully edited for content, with the lines drawn for appropriate material.
First, the purpose would be clearly defined ““ education and open discussion. Ideally, the content would be a balance between factual and feature pieces.
Relevant news on contraception, STIs and legal policy, coupled with commentaries on sex in the media and student features like, “How did you lose it?” and “What is porn?” demystify sex and allow for a level of comfort.
The magazine would employ a more intellectual perspective on sexual relationships, the history of sex, the depiction of sex in mainstream culture in the entertainment industry, sexual health and sexual acts.
Secondly, a wide demographic must be addressed. The aim would be the general college-age population, male and female, straight and gay, the virginal and the not-so-virginal.
With so many students to appeal to, sexually explicit material would have to be limited to not “turn off” anyone. Again, the purpose of this magazine is to create a dialogue, and a dialogue is hard to achieve when the readers of your magazine have locked themselves in the bathroom.
It’s not that I am against nudity as a form of self-expression, but creating images solely for entertainment, aka masturbation, objectifies and degrades the human body into a sexual gratifier.
There is no definable line between visual and literary depictions of the human body and sex as art versus pornography. Minimizing sexually graphic descriptions and visuals would avoid complications.
For instance, an informative piece on how to safely engage in certain sexual practices, such as anal sex, is educational, while a play-by-play personal account is rather disturbing. Sex is still an intimate act and not a thing to be commercialized or undermined in the quest for physical pleasure or a pitiful act of social rebellion.
Also pieces or depictions of bondage, sadomasochism, etc., would not be included. Although a part in some people’s healthy sex lives, the underlying violent tendencies are not to be ignored and not to be encouraged.
A college sex magazine should not be used as an excuse for porn to become “cool” or as an outlet for suppressed, hormonally challenged college students to release their pathetic sexual angst.