2008 Woodie Awards
Our readers' voice
Defining what is offensive
Issue date: 3/31/08 Section: Voices
So, I'm reading Friday's Central Michigan Life when I see this letter accusing the paper of engaging in 'yellow journalism' for publishing 'obscene pictures' in the Wednesday edition and I wondered how I could have missed it.
Hey, I'm a red-blooded American male and what red-blooded American male would miss the opportunity to check out some obscene pictures in the paper? So I found a copy of the offending issue and imagine my surprise when I found the pictures of these plastic, battery operated toys.
Obscene? I didn't think so. So I looked up the definition on dictionary.com. This is what I found: 1. offensive to morality or decency; indecent; depraved; 2. causing uncontrolled sexual desire.
The pictures didn't seem offensive to my morality or sense of decency. They didn't seem depraved. I wasn't feeling uncontrolled sexual desire. Suddenly, however, I felt a tingling in my nether regions and I thought to myself 'You're one sick SOB, getting turned on by plastic toys.' Fortunately, it was just my cell phone, set to vibrate and ringing in my pants pocket!
Mark Lehman
Communication Disorders professor
Hey, I'm a red-blooded American male and what red-blooded American male would miss the opportunity to check out some obscene pictures in the paper? So I found a copy of the offending issue and imagine my surprise when I found the pictures of these plastic, battery operated toys.
Obscene? I didn't think so. So I looked up the definition on dictionary.com. This is what I found: 1. offensive to morality or decency; indecent; depraved; 2. causing uncontrolled sexual desire.
The pictures didn't seem offensive to my morality or sense of decency. They didn't seem depraved. I wasn't feeling uncontrolled sexual desire. Suddenly, however, I felt a tingling in my nether regions and I thought to myself 'You're one sick SOB, getting turned on by plastic toys.' Fortunately, it was just my cell phone, set to vibrate and ringing in my pants pocket!
Mark Lehman
Communication Disorders professor
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