Pornography / Indecency
Apple iPhone Now Offers Pornography Applications?
Apple has begun to allow the sale of pornography applications for its very popular iPhone through its iTunes online store. Some of these applications are free to children and adults. There are also links to more explicit pornography available right on iTunes as well. The applications, both free and paid, are very popular. Unfortunately, one of the most popular FREE app is one called "Tasty Pasties 18+ Amateurs." Apple provides samples of the pornography right on iTunes for all to see.
Take ACTION: Please let your voice be heard. Click HERE to fill out a brief form. For "feedback type" on form, click on "Enhancement Request."
If you prefer to call, Apple Public Relations can be reached at (408) 974-2042 (press "0" and ask for "customer relations.")
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Disturbing Study Strongly Links Child Porn Use and Child Molestation
LifeSiteNews.com recently posted an article reporting on research which suggests a strong link between the use of child pornography and child abuse. Conducted between 2002-2005, the study -- chronicled in an article by Tori DeAngelis in the December edition of the American Psychological Association's Monitor on Psychology -- studied men who had already been convicted of child pornography crimes to determine if they had also molested children.
Clinical psychologists Michael Bourke, Ph.D., and Andres Hernandez, Psy.D., found that, while many child-pornography viewers denied having molested children before their trials, the vast majority of them changed their stories after being convicted.
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Major New Study on Effects of Pornography
New Comprehensive Study Shows How Pornography Threatens Marriages, Children, Communities and Individual Happiness.
The Family Research Council released a new study this week that comprehensively details the effects of pornography on marriages, children, communities and individual happiness.
The study, "The Effects of Pornography on Individuals, Marriage, Family and Community," synthesizes all available research on the effects of pornography on families and communities.
Pornography distorts an individual's concept of the nature of conjugal relations, which, in turn, alters both sexual attitudes and behavior. It is a major threat to marriage, to family, to children and to individual happiness. In undermining marriage, it is one of the major factors in undermining social stability.
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Why enable pornographers? Justice Department Tilts Toward the Titillating
Not long ago, President Obama addressed America's schoolchildren, asking them to take personal responsibility for their choices and always strive for excellence.
Unfortunately, while he's preaching responsibility to the next generation, his Justice Department is turning a blind eye to those who would destroy that generation's future for personal gain.
Earlier this year, I was one of nearly 400 pro-family advocates from across the nation's political, philosophical and legal spectrums who signed a letter to Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr., asking him to meet with concerned citizens and step up his department's efforts to combat what has become a multibillion-dollar stranglehold on the minds and souls of millions of American men, women and children.
In response, we received one short form-letter paragraph two months later from a department official assuring us our input was valued and our concerns were being considered "carefully." Since then ... nothing but crickets.
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AFA TO 7-Eleven: DON'T STOCK SIMPSON P*RN
American Family Association (AFA) today called on 7-Eleven stores to reconsider their decision to sell the November issue of Playboy, which will feature a cartoon character on the cover. The magazine will hit newsstands on October 16 with a cover and two-page centerfold featuring Marge Simpson, the mother on the Fox animated series The Simpsons.
"Most American dads know the dangers that porn represents to young males. It's irresponsible of 7-Eleven to display porn in front of boys who pop into 7-11s for a hot dog or a Slurpee," said Randy Sharp, AFA Special Projects Director.
"The cover will create the kind of curiosity that can easily lead them into an addictive porn habit," he said. "This is not what American families want to see in their neighborhood convenience store."
The magazine will be carried in the 1,200 7-Eleven stores that are corporately owned, stores that have been virtually porn-free for the last two decades.
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Child-Porn Arrests: `Shooting Fish in a Barrel'
When a single Florida county arrested 45 men and boys from all walks of life last June on charges of downloading child pornography, some people worried the place had become a haven for deviants.
But top law enforcement officials and child welfare experts say the only thing unusual about Polk County is that its sheriff, Grady Judd, happens to pursue child-porn enthusiasts with more fervor and resources than most.
Child porn has grown so pervasive on the Internet, they say, that police agencies all over the country, using the latest file-tracking technology, could easily spend every day finding and arresting offenders.
"Today, it's truly like shooting fish in a barrel," said Judd, who has directed four child pornography roundups since 2006, resulting in at least 176 arrests in Polk County, a patchwork of orange groves, phosphate mines, modest towns and a half-million people between Tampa and Orlando. The biggest city is Lakeland, population 90,000.
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Pornography Awareness Week and White Ribbon Against Pornography Week: Sunday, Oct. 25 though Sunday, Nov. 1
Pornography Awareness Week and White Ribbon Against Pornography Week (both running Sunday, Oct. 25, through Sunday, Nov. 1, 2009) will soon be here. Please, if you can, take at least one action step against pornography. Among the other things, an individual or organization can:Display white ribbons
Write a letter to U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder
Ask your governor, mayor or city council to enact a resolution
Make a complaint to a public official about distribution of obscene material in your community
Ask a local business to stop distributing pornography
Thank a local business for not distributing pornography
Distribute literature to public officials, members of an organization or the general public
Invite someone to your church or other religious group to give a testimony about their experience with pornography (as a victim or addict)
Ask your pastor or other religious leader to preach or teach against pornography
Pray fervently and in faith believing There are many resources available at www.moralityinmedia.org (click to "WRAP Campaign").
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MIM Report Shows How the Explosion of Hardcore Adult Pornography on the Internet and Elsewhere is Contributing to the Sexual Exploitation of Children
10/1/2009 8:25:00 PM
By Robert Peters
-Christian Newswire
Morality in Media has compiled information from hundreds of news articles and from court cases, social science studies, books, Congressional testimony, and other sources that show how the explosion of hardcore adult pornography on the Internet and elsewhere is contributing to the sexual exploitation of children. The works cited in the report were published from 1980 to the present.
The evidence compiled shows:Perpetrators use adult pornography to groom their victims.
For many perpetrators there is a progression from viewing adult pornography to viewing child pornography.
Johns act out what they view in adult pornography with child prostitutes and pimps use adult pornography to instruct child prostitutes.
Children imitate behavior they view in adult pornography with other children
Perpetrators use adult pornography to sexually arouse themselves.
Addiction to adult pornography destroys marriages, and children raised in one-parent households are more likely to be sexually exploited. The 40-page report entitled, "How Adult Pornography Contributes to Sexual Exploitation of Children," is supplemented by 175 pages of appendices.
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Parent Take Note: NCMEC Issues White Paper on "Sexting"
As more and more teenagers get caught sending and receiving sexually explicit images of themselves and classmates, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children has released a policy statement on "sexting." This publication serves as a primer for parents (and teenagers) about what sexting is, what it is not, how prevalent the problem is, and the consequences for those involved.
Teenagers, and even preteens, can and do use cell phones, computers, web cams, and digital cameras to produce sexually explicit pictures and videos. While this alone could be passed off as "kids being kids," it is when these images and videos are transmitted over phones and the Internet that serious problems can arise. They may be intended for only one person, but can quickly spread, especially if that other person is a stranger or predator.
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Pressing the DOJ on Porn Prosecutions
Hundreds of pro-family activists say they're not giving up in their quest for a meeting with U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder over pornography prosecutions.
In mid-July, more than 400 people signed a letter to Holder, requesting a meeting to discuss the expansion of pornography prosecutions. Late last month, the criminal division of the Department of Justice responded with a short note, thanking those who signed that letter and touting the DOJ's crime-fighting efforts.
Pat Trueman, special counsel with the Alliance Defense Fund, says the situation deserves special attention.
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Knights of Columbus Resolve to Oppose Porn
The Knights of Columbus have taken a stand against the porn industry, calling on law enforcement to vigorously prosecute illegal pornography, encouraging the entertainment industry to help halt the steady erosion of public standards of decency and calling on all Knights to support groups that work to oppose pornography. The full resolution is re-printed below. The 1.78 million member Knights of Columbus is the world's largest Catholic fraternal and philanthropic organization.
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Obscenity -- More Prevalent Than Ever
The pornography industry, which experienced huge growth during the 1990s -- thanks in large part to the lack of prosecution by the federal Department of Justice -- is suffering large losses during the most recent recession. A growing abundance of free content on the Internet is undercutting consumers' willingness to pay for porn, according to a story in the LA Times.
Industry insiders estimate that since 2007, revenue for most porn production and distribution companies has declined 30 to 50 percent and the number of new films made has fallen sharply. "It's the free stuff that's killing us, and that's not going away," said Dion Jurasso, owner of porn production company Combat Zone, which has seen its business fall about 50 percent in the last three years.
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Porn Industry Hit With 16 Confirmed HIV Cases
6/20/2009 10:54:00 AM By Associated Press
- Fox News
Los Angeles County health officials say there have been 16 previously unpublicized confirmed cases of HIV in adult film industry performers since 2004 when an outbreak shut down porn production for a month.
The county Department of Public Health data was requested by The Los Angeles Times and announced Thursday.
The newly released data brings the number of known HIV cases in adult film performers to 22 since 2004, including a porn actress who tested positive late last week.
The San Fernando Valley-based Adult Industry Medical Healthcare Foundation announced Wednesday that an actress tested positive for HIV last Saturday.
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Computer Porn and Men
A growing problem that calls for serious solutions
Henry seemed to have it all - a good marriage, four young children, and a solid middle-management position with a financial corporation. He and his family lived in a good suburban neighborhood and were active in their local parish, where Henry was involved in the music ministry. At 35 years of age, he was poised for a promotion to a more lucrative upper-management post within the next few years.
He always worked long hours, both at the office and at home, but in recent months he had shown signs of stress. To his wife and children, he seemed more distant, irritable and gloomy, and he was spending longer and longer hours at the computer. He often missed family outings, saying he needed to complete more work. Even his co-workers noticed a change in his mood and productivity. He simply wasn't himself.
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'Sexting' - Innocent Behavior or Child Porn?
An associate professor at York University in Toronto believes "sexting" -- youngsters sending nude photos of themselves via cell phone -- is not child pornography, and senders shouldn't be prosecuted.
Professor Peter Cumming presented a paper at the 78th Congress of the Humanities and Social Sciences, saying sexting is similar to "spin-the-bottle" or "playing doctor." Pat Trueman, special counsel for Alliance Defense Fund, tells OneNewsNow that is a real stretch.
"Sexting is really children producing child pornography. Our society is in deep trouble that we've come to this," he believes. "Child pornography is a serious crime for anyone. But to have children beginning in their young ages producing child pornography -- what will these kids grow up to be like as adults?"
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Microsoft's New Search Engine Puts Porn in Motion
Your kids may get a bang out of Bing - and that's not a good thing, Internet safety experts warned on Monday.
Bing, Microsoft's new search engine (www.bing.com), went live in the U.S. this weekend, aiming to challenge and possibly unseat industry titan Google.
But bloggers and Internet safety experts quickly discovered that one of Bing's "features" is that it takes only a few clicks for anyone - of any age - to view explicit pornographic videos without even leaving the search engine.
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Prostitution, Porn Linked to Human Trafficking
Some Canadians have their "moral compasses screwed up" on the issues of pornography and prostitution, an RCMP officer who monitors human trafficking said in London yesterday.
If you use prostitutes or buy pornography, "you're probably supporting human trafficking," said retired superintendent Marty Van Doren.
And if you buy cheap knockoff products from abroad, you're probably supporting human trafficking, too, Van Doren told participants in a one-day conference held by the Salvation Army.
Knockoffs are often made by poorly paid child labourers, sometimes sold into servitude, said Van Doren, human trafficking co-ordinator for Ontario division.
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Children Who View Adult-Targeted TV May Become Sexually Active Earlier in Life
Longitudinal study tracked content viewed during childhood and adolescence
Early onset of sexual activity among teens may relate to the amount of adult content children were exposed to during their childhood, according to a new study released by Children's Hospital Boston. Based on a longitudinal study tracking children from age six to eighteen, researchers found that the younger children are exposed to content intended for adults in television and movies, the earlier they become sexually active during adolescence. The findings are being presented at the Pediatric Academic Societies meetings on Monday, May 4 in Baltimore.
"Television and movies are among the leading sources of information about sex and relationships for adolescents," says Hernan Delgado, MD, fellow in the Division of Adolescent/Young Adult Medicine at Children's Hospital Boston and lead author of the study. "Our research shows that their sexual attitudes and expectations are influenced much earlier in life."
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Girls on Our Streets
Jasmine Caldwell was 14 and selling sex on the streets when an opportunity arose to escape her pimp: an undercover policeman picked her up.
The cop could have rescued her from the pimp, who ran a string of 13 girls and took every cent they earned. If the cop had taken Jasmine to a shelter, she could have resumed her education and tried to put her life back in order.
Instead, the policeman showed her his handcuffs and threatened to send her to prison. Terrified, she cried and pleaded not to be jailed. Then, she said, he offered to release her in exchange for sex.
Afterward, the policeman returned her to the street. Then her pimp beat her up for failing to collect any money.
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Supreme Court Finds in Favor of FCC in Profanity Case
Today, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its ruling in FCC v. Fox.The Court found in favor of the Federal Communications Commission, stating that the FCC acted properly in citing the Fox network for airing the f- and s-words during awards shows. (Click here for a full history of the case and the treatment of indecency by the FCC.)
This ruling is a victory for every American family, and the Parents Television Council praises the Supreme Court for taking the case and the FCC for pursuing its appeal. Parents have a right to expect that their children will not be exposed to profanity; and by its decision, the Supreme Court has reaffirmed that the broadcast airwaves do indeed belong to the American people, not the broadcast networks which use them, free of charge, to make billions of dollars in profit every year.
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Porn Lessons
Showing adult films on campus debases both men and women
So the porn industry is now in the business of educating our youth. A spokesman for Digital Playground expressed disappointment with the cancellation of a public screening of one of the company's porn movies at the University of Maryland, College Park, claiming that showing such a movie "opens up a discussion, a discourse on sexuality and gender roles."
Actually, it does no such thing. Showing porn movies on campus creates a hostile and dangerous environment for its female students, it distorts how students think about sex and it debases both men and women.
This generation of college students has grown up with hard-core porn just a click away, and the men who use it (the average age of first downloading porn is 11.5 years old) begin to see the world through a pornographic lens.
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Retired Agent Calls for Harsher Porn Penalties
3/25/2009 10:39:00 PM
By James Gilbert, Sun Staff Writer
A retired FBI agent who specialized in obscenity and sexual crimes against children for 23 years while with the bureau, said the investigation and prosecution of illegal adult pornography in many instances could reduce the number of children getting sexually exploited.
Roger Young, who now serves as a consultant to law enforcement agencies and nonprofits, said in almost every child sex crime case he investigated, hard-core illegal adult pornography was involved in some way.
"Illegal hard-core adult pornography and sexual exploitation of children are closely connected because it is often shown to children in order to seduce them," he said during a recent visit to Yuma. "Child pornography grew out of adult pornography and it is now difficult to separate the two."
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Will Supreme Court Hear Super Bowl 'Striptease' Case?
The Parents Television Council (PTC) says the U.S. Supreme Court should hear the Janet Jackson broadcast decency case to maintain the integrity of the broadcast decency law.
Last summer, the Third U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals threw out the fine levied by the Federal Communications Commission against CBS for airing the so-called "wardrobe malfunction" during the 2004 Super Bowl. On Monday, the Supreme Court was asked to hear the case, which occurred during halftime festivities at the game and involved Jackson and her co-performer, Justin Timberlake.
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Appeals Court Upholds Porn Law Protecting Children
A federal appeals court on Friday upheld a law that requires pornographers who take photos of people engaged in sexually explicit acts to provide "proof of age," a ruling that strengthens prevention on the exploitation of children by pornographers.
A federal appeals court on Friday upheld a law that requires pornographers who take photos of people engaged in sexually explicit acts to provide "proof of age," a ruling that strengthens prevention on the exploitation of children by pornographers.
The full panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit upheld the Child Protection and Obscenity Enforcement Act of 1988, after a three-judge panel ruled it unconstitutional in October 2007.
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High Court Says No to Protecting Minors From Porn
The U.S. Supreme Court has refused to revive the Child Online Protection Act, designed to protect children from sexual material and other objectionable content on the Internet.
Pat Trueman, who was a pornography prosecutor in the Ronald Reagan administration, is now special counsel for the Alliance Defense Fund. He objects to the decision by the nation's highest court on Wednesday not to revive the federal law that would have barred websites from making harmful content available to minors over the Internet.
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Social Costs of Pornography
1/28/2009 12:56:00 PM By Robert Peters, President of Morality in Media
- MoralityInMedia
Presentation at Kings College (NYC,) January 2009
By way of a brief introduction, I would like to say the following. My father had three stashes of smut in the basement: a stash of Playboy magazines, a stash of "men's magazines," and a small stash of hardcore pornography. The latter was under lock & key. I got into all of it while still in grade school.
My primary modus operandi was to connect in my mind (fantasize about) what I read in the "men's magazines" to the Playboy foldouts that I was most attracted to. I find it amazing that I started writing my own pornography when I was a freshman or sophomore in high school, which is an indication to me of how strong the grip of pornography can be on a boy's life, or a teen's life, or a young adult's life.
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GOD TV Joins Fight Against Human Trafficking
Global Christian network to broadcast 'The Stand' this weekend - a top UK music concert calling for freedom for those in slavery.
Centuries after the abolition of slavery, there are now more slaves in the world through human trafficking than ever before - a modern day catastrophe, which many people and organizations are trying to stop. Now GOD TV is joining in the fight as it partners with Hope for Justice to air 'The Stand', a major event aimed at inspiring viewers to take action and see God restore broken lives.
Recorded in Birmingham, UK, in November last year, 'The Stand - Freedom to Reign' comprises three programs with performances from leading musicians as well as an address by UN.GIFT Special Advisor on Community Action against Human Trafficking, Steve Chalke. Top-ranking British bands, Delirious?, YFriday and bandwithnoname are featured, as well as Jon Foreman from the US band, Switchfoot and many other prominent musicians.
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Internet Porn Feeds X-rated Addiction
At the age of 5, Mark entered a phase of male initiation that many men are familiar with: He saw his first Playboy magazine and the experience piqued his interest.
By the age of 10, he was looking at lingerie catalogs and masturbating, sometimes as much as four times a week.
And by the time he was in high school at the age of 14, he realized he had a problem to deal with. Masturbation had gone from a youthful curiosity to a compulsive habit.
"I knew I liked to do it but I also knew I wasn't supposed to be doing it. I also knew I couldn't stop," says Mark, whose full name is being withheld by TZR.
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Library Pornography -- Still a Big Problem
Last week, Julie Unruh, investigative reporter for Chicago's local WGN Channel 9, exposed how free Internet access is being widely abused in Chicago's Harold Washington Library, and how the library is unwilling to do anything about it. In this interview, Chicago Library Commissioner Mary Dempsey falsely claims that Internet filtering (to block out pornographic websites) does not work. She is either woefully uninformed or deliberately untruthful. Today's filtering technology works very well as many suburban library systems (e.g. Schaumburg, Lansing, Naperville) that are successfully blocking Internet smut have found.
Despite the fact that family and children are being visually assaulted with unwanted exposure to degrading and sexually hostile images, and despite the fact that hundreds of complaint have been brought to the attention of library officials from concerned taxpayers and patrons, Commissioner Dempsey and Chicago Public Library officials absurdly maintain that the constitutionally protected "freedom of speech" protects the right of citizens to view pornography in our public libraries.
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Good News: Dozens of Children Rescued from Sex Trafficking
Forty-seven children were rescued from commercial sexual exploitation during Operation Cross Country Two, a three-day national prostitution crackdown.
The FBI reported 642 adults were arrested last week in 29 cities. Law-enforcement officials targeted casinos, escort services, Web sites and truck stops.
Lisa Thompson, The Salvation Army's liaison for the abolition of sexual trafficking, said helping women to leave prostitution takes time and love.
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CBS Increasingly Airing Indecency
CBS and other broadcast television networks increasingly are pushing the boundaries of what is acceptable entertainment as the Federal Communications Commission, the government body charged with enforcing indecency laws, awaits an upcoming Supreme Court hearing in order to determine a response.
The Parents Television Council, a nonpartisan watchdog group, filed an indecency complaint with the FCC after an Oct. 20 episode of the CBS show "Two and a Half Men" which featured a three-minute-long strip club scene featuring a lap dance. The show aired at 8 p.m. in the Central and Mountain time zones, violating a law that prohibits the airing of indecent material before 10 p.m.
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FBI: Child-Prostitution Roundup Snares Over 600
More than 600 adults have been arrested and 47 children rescued in a three-day roundup targeting people who force children into prostitution.
The FBI said the roundup by federal, state and local law enforcement occurred in 29 cities, adding that the raids dismantled 12 large-scale prostitution operations run through call services, truck stops, casinos and Web sites.
At a news conference announcing the results of Operation Cross Country II, FBI Deputy Director John Pistole said the arrests were made possible by intelligence gathered during a similar series of raids in June.
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White Ribbon Against Pornography Week
Each year, Morality in Media (MIM) urges every American concerned about the floodtide of illegal pornography into all areas of our society to get busy and play a part in combating the "obscenity plague."
Through their White Ribbon Against Pornography (WRAP) campaign, they make the public aware of the damage that pornography has done to healthy relationships between men and women and the tragic affect it has on our innocent children through Internet porn channels. Please visit the MIM web site and know how you can become a participant in the WRAP campaign now and throughout the year.
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WRAP Up Porn and Throw It Out
In the days before automatic garbage disposals in kitchen sinks, good housewives would wrap up the household garbage and throw it away. Harkening back to those "good 'ole days," several organizations joined together in 1987 with Norma Norris, a woman who was determined to get rid of pornography by raising awareness of the numerous ways that pornography hurts people and harms communities. Thus, the annual White Ribbons Against Pornography (WRAP) campaign was launched - with dozens of organizations, including Concerned Women for America - urging supporters to wear and/or display a white ribbon indicating their opposition to pornography during WRAP week, October 26 - November 2.
Since 1987, the problem of porn has become infinitely greater - from less than 80,000 Internet porn sites in 1998 to nearly 1.5 million in 2003 - because the Internet has brought that evil right into our homes and bombarded even our children with obscene language and images. There are nearly 35 million visits to porn sites every month - some experts estimate that constitutes 1-in-4 Internet users.
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Porn Prosecutions Result in Convictions, Says Attorney
10/17/2008 9:29:00 AM By Charlie Butts
- OneNewsNow
A California couple accused of violating federal obscenity laws will finally stand trial, nearly five years after their indictment.
A federal grand jury charged Robert Zicari and his wife, Janet Romano, in 2003 with ten counts of obscenity-related crimes. The owners of Extreme Associates, a Los Angeles-based pornography industry, produced films depicting rape and murder. (See related Sept. 2003 article)
However, a judge dismissed the case leading much later to an appeals court decision to reinstate it. Pat Trueman, special counsel to the Alliance Defense Fund, believes there will be a conviction. "And that's because the material is really, as the title says, quite extreme," he contends. "And I think people will say, 'This is beyond the pale. You'll get a jury to convict.'"
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Delta to filter Wi-Fi sites
Delta Air Lines plans to block inappropriate Web sites from its in-flight Wi-Fi service to be launched this year.
Delta previously said it planned to rely on flight attendants to handle inappropriate situations, such as pornography surfing. But after feedback from customers and attendants, the airline changed its policy and is working with Wi-Fi provider Aircell to use a system to block inappropriate content.
"Blocking will be limited in scope and will be for sites that few, if any, would question are inappropriate to be viewed on an aircraft," Delta spokesman Kent Landers said Thursday. "Our focus is to achieve a balanced approach."
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 | TAKE ACTION:
Contact Levi-Strauss' President and CEO John Anderson through thier consumer line at 415-501-7340 or send a message via their website by clicking HERE. |
Tell Levi Strauss to Button Up Its New Ad Campaign
Since sex sells, financially-struggling Levi-Strauss has turned to sexually-explicit ads to entice young jean-wearers to abandon wholesome, traditional living and "Live Unbuttoned."
Levi-Strauss grossed almost half a billion in sales last year, but company investors complain Levis' and Dockers' appeal shrunk to a mere $1 million net profit in 2007.
So, the directors now running the 145 year old family business have decided to go where the money is -- to a mysterious growing target market of clandestine casual sex participants and homosexual lovers. Levi's has bet their last million dollars in an ad campaign they hope will cause their undone, trademark button-front jeans to be this year's new sensual icon.
Although Levi's "Live Unbuttoned" campaign rolled out in July, busy American parents took notice of Levi's "Sex and Lies" ad broadcast during the heavily-viewed national party conventions in late August and early September. "Sex and Lies' features two twenty-somethings groping each other as they come in from the street, up the stairs, breathlessly lying to each other as they climb into a stranger's bed.
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American Air Attendants Urge Filters to Bar Web Porn
American Airlines flight attendants are urging the world's largest carrier to filter its in-flight Internet service to block access to pornography and other Web sites the workers said were inappropriate.
Attendants and passengers raised ``a lot of complaints,'' and leaders of the Association of Professional Flight Attendants broached the issue with management, without making a formal request for filters, union spokesman David Roscow said today in an interview. He didn't give specifics about any objections.
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The Public Also Wants Porn Filtered on Flights
9/18/2008 1:00:00 PM
Girls Against Porn is sending a letter, co-signed by organizations, to American Airlines, stating it is in the airline's best interest to filter porn as part of its in-flight Internet. The leaders of the Association of Professional Flight Attendants voiced concern over being designated "moral police" of the in-flight service. They want it filtered. Blogs and complaints from the public concur. Porn is indecent; hardcore pornography can be prosecuted under federal obscenity laws.
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The 2008 Presidential Election and Its Impact on Enforcement of Federal Obscenity Laws
9/17/2008 4:00:00 PM
By Robert Peters, President
-Morality in Media
In this 4,500-word article, MIM President Robert Peters discusses the history of enforcement of federal obscenity laws and why this Presidential Election is important for future enforcement. Mr. Peters also supports his assertion that "what has now become a floodtide of obscenity is one of the most pressing moral problems of our time, primarily because of its effects on marriages and children." Excerpts from the article, published at www.obscenitycrimes.org and www.moralityinmedia.org (Current News pages), follow:
Most people know that the First Amendment does not protect child pornography. Most people may not know that the U.S. Supreme Court has repeatedly held that obscene material is also unprotected by the First Amendment; and that there are federal and state obscenity laws now on the books which can be enforced against hardcore pornography.
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Former Stripper Glad to See Club Closed
9/5/2008 11:13:00 AM By Wayne Crenshaw
- Macon.com
Many people had hoped Cafe Erotica would close, but for seven years one of its former dancers prayed for it.
Rachel Simms, who danced there for nearly four years in the late '90s, is today a happily married Christian and church volunteer. She was among the people who watched the "We Bare All" sign come down in Friday's "grand closing ceremony."
Her story was much like that of many other dancers she knew. She was a single mom with a daughter to look after, she says. Simms had $3 to her name when she first walked through the doors of the 24-hour strip-club/restaurant in 1996.
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Judicial Malfunction
The FCC and CBS
It was the most infamous Super Bowl halftime show in history: In 2004, pop stars Justin Timberlake and Janet Jackson, bumping and grinding their way through a racy routine, had a raunchy finale planned, which they rehearsed two days before. In front of 90 million viewers, including many children, Timberlake yanked off a section of Jackson's shirt, exposing her right breast.
The nudity angered many viewers, and gave the world a cynical new term: "wardrobe malfunction." Jackson's wardrobe is not the only thing that malfunctioned; so did the Third Circuit Court of Appeals. Last Monday the court threw out a $550,000 fine the Federal Communications Commission assessed against CBS. The three-judge panel ruled that the FCC fine was "arbitrary" and "capricious." Apparently, exposing oneself no longer qualifies as broadcast indecency.
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 | Take ACTION:
Click HERE to sign a petition to Barnes & Noble executives, asking them to either change their policy & stop selling this material, place it behind a counter or in a restricted area where only adults 18 and older can enter. |
Barnes & Noble Allows Minors Access to 'Adult' Material
In the not too distant past, pornography was a thing relegated to dingy bookstores located in seedy neighborhoods and visited by men who wanted to keep their hobby immoral hidden from the respectable world. There were sleazy theaters which ran XXX-rated films with patrons huddled in dark corners as their sexual fantasies were played out on screen.
Today, pornography is a multi-billion dollar business. Thousands of companies flaunt their pornographic wares, in many cases, literally featuring the "girl next door." The negative stigma associated with pornography has largely become a thing of the past, and, sadly, millions of men and women are now ambivalent to the misanthropic images and messages of pornography. As a result, a exponential number of men and women are becoming addicted to a dank and troubled existence.
Pornography is pervasive. A disturbing example of its saturation was recently described by my friend Brannon Howse, president and founder of World View Weekend. Brannon recently published an article recounting a disturbing incident he and his his eleven year-old son had during a visit to a local Barnes & Noble, one of the nation's largest chains of bookstores:
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Launching a .XXX domain through ICANN's backdoor, instead of its front door, won't protect kids or society from hardcore pornography
Yesterday, ICANN approved a recommendation that could see many new names introduced to the Internet's addressing system. Presently, users have a range of 21 top-level domains to choose from (e.g., .com and .org). According to a news report, when Dr. Paul Twomey, President of ICANN, was asked about the .XXX domain name that ICANN rejected in March 2007, he stated that the new system would be "open to anyone." According to a statement published on the www.icann.org website, "offensive names will be subject to an objection-based process based on public morality and order...ICANN will not be the decision maker on these objections."
Robert Peters, president of Morality in Media, had the following comments:
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ADF defends FCC indecency regulations
Attorneys and allied attorneys with the Alliance Defense Fund filed a friend-of-the-court brief Monday with the U.S. Supreme Court asking it to reverse an appellate court judgment that overturned the Federal Communications Commission's censure of indecent language broadcast during Fox's televised Billboard Music Awards. The appellate court held that because the words in question were merely "fleeting expletives," Fox shouldn't be held accountable for breaking FCC rules that forbid the use of indecent language on network television while children are likely to be watching.
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 | Take ACTION:
Sign the petition to Barnes and Noble executives:
Click HERE. |
Eleven Year Old Exposed To Gay Porn At Barnes and Noble
They Knew This Sort of Thing Was Happening
On June 5th, my eleven year old son joined me in a visit to our local Barnes and Noble Bookstore in Collierville, TN. I was horrified at what my son saw. Open on a table was a very large, full-color, picture book displaying a man in full frontal nudity. The cover was two men kissing with the title GAY SEX.
This book was filled with full-color pictures of gay men doing what they do...Yes, it was that graphic.
The assistant manager told me that this was the second time that night this book had been laid open in the store. She also informed me that such books were regularly found in the men's room. I believe some homosexual or child predator was trolling and using the book to find a date or victim. The assistant manager told me a young boy had been sexually assaulted in the bathroom at this store and the man was never caught. She also said they had found a gun on the counter in the bathroom on another occasion.
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U.S. Supreme Court Upholds Child Pornography Law
Legitimate free speech had a victory at the U.S. Supreme Court last week. In the U.S. vs. Williams case, the Supreme Court agreed that federal law can prohibit providing and soliciting child pornography.
The case revolves around Michael Williams, who participated in a public chat room and solicited child pornography. He plead guilty on one count of promoting the behavior and one count of possessing child pornography. Williams argued the law was unconstitutional based on his first amendment rights. However, the Supreme Court disagreed with Williams and in a 7-2 decision upheld the federal statute that prohibits promoting and obtaining child pornography.
Justices David Souter and Ruth Bader Ginsburg dissented saying that promotion of images that are not real children engaging in pornography could still be the basis for prosecution under the law. However, possessing the images might not be prosecuted.
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Bush Administration Should Protect Kids from Porn and Predators
5/22/2008 4:12:00 PM
By Patrick Trueman
"Protecting children from Internet pornographers and predators needs to be the Bush Justice Department's key priority. Today's indictment of Loren Jay Adams, a fringe member of America's pornography empire, who focuses on human and animal sex, is the wrong strategy," said Patrick Trueman, former chief of the Department of Justice Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section. We need multiple prosecutions of Internet hardcore pornography that can be found in a matter of seconds by kids. The only deterrent pornographers recognize is loss of profits and significant jail time. When the Justice Department limits prosecutions to the most vile and bizarre of material, the porn industry sees a "green light" for all other forms of illegal pornography.
"In nearly eight years of the Bush Administration, we have yet to see one major Internet pornographer indicted," Trueman said. Illegal, hardcore pornography is exploding on the Internet and much of it is accessed by children. Tens of thousands of parents have complained to the Department but their pleas have been ignored. "It is time to make kids the priority and begin vigorous prosecution of the major Internet pornographers who violate U.S. laws. Allowing kids to have ready access to pornography is a form of child abuse."
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ADF Update: Supreme Court Upholds Law Aimed at Child Pornography
The Supreme Court on Monday upheld a 2003 federal law aimed at child pornography, concluding in a 7-to-2 opinion that a federal appeals court was wrong to find the law unconstitutionally vague.
"Child pornography harms and debases the most defenseless of our citizens," Justice Antonin Scalia wrote for the court. "Both the state and federal governments have sought to suppress it for many years, only to find it proliferating through the new medium of the Internet."
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Family Research Council Calls On Department of Justice, Presidential Candidates to Enforce Obscenity Laws
Today, the Family Research Council joined leading pro-family and pro-decency organizations at the National Press Club, in urging the United States Department of Justice to vigorously enforce obscenity laws. Cathy Ruse, Senior Fellow for Legal Studies at Family Research Council had the following comments at today's press conference:
"The porn industry and their friends at the ACLU seek an America where there are no legal limits on pornography - no limit to how graphic it may be, no limit to the people it can exploit for profit, including children. And they're winning. Not because what they're doing is legal, but because they're getting away with it.
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Wikipedia Peddles Porn to Kids
It would be a tall order, but parents around the world may want to make every effort to keep their kids away from Wikipedia.com, the enormously popular, user-generated online encyclopedia. While doing homework, research for term papers, or for just plain fun, millions of kids visit Wikipedia every day. That's why parents may be alarmed to learn that, as recently exposed by WorldNetDaily.com, Wikipedia features hundreds, if not thousands, of hardcore pornographic images and online sex videos, making them easily accessible to children.
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Video Games New Frontier For Sexual Predators
Special Report: Video Game Predators
Video game systems are more high tech than ever. They are also more popular than ever before, not only with kids but with the sexual predators searching for young victims.
In a cyber world where life is a game, the playground is turning into a danger zone, police say.
"Predators are going to go where the children are," said Lt. Jeff Braley of the Hamilton Township, Ohio, Police Department.
And these days, that's usually in front a TV playing video games.
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Open Letter from MIM President to FBI Director: Failing to Enforce Federal Obscenity Laws Undermines FBI Efforts to Curb Traffic in Child Pornography
On April 28, Morality in Media President Robert Peters released the following open letter to FBI Director Robert Mueller, in response to Mr. Mueller's statement during a House Judiciary Committee hearing last week that "We're losing" the war against child pornography.
Dear Mr. Mueller:
It doesn't surprise me that we are losing the war against child pornography. I still recall the shock I felt upon hearing that the U.S. Justice Department's focus under Janet Reno was on apprehending suspected child molesters, not on curbing child pornography as such.
This seemed awfully stupid to me, since it is child pornography that often fuels a molester's sexual fantasies, and surveys indicate that high percentage of persons arrested for possessing or distributing child pornography have molested a child or attempted to do so.
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 | John Stagliano |
Federal Grand Jury Charges Two Companies and Owner John Stagliano With Obscenity Violations
A producer of allegedly obscene movies and two companies owned by him have been charged by a federal grand jury in Washington, D.C., with operating an obscenity distribution business and related offenses, Assistant Attorney General Alice S. Fisher of the Criminal Division announced today.
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MIM President Comments on Sports Illustrated 2008 Swimsuit Edition
Seven year old girl discerns what Wal-Mart execs apparently do not-- Namely, the 'model' on the front cover of Sports Illustrated Magazine's Swimsuit Edition 'isn't wearing a bathing suit top' (like the Emperor of old)
On Monday, March 31, Robert Peters, President of MIM, took a phone call from a mother in North Carolina, who later emailed her account in writing (told in part here):
"While visiting a new Super Wal-Mart last week, my 7-year-old daughter handed my mom (her grandmother) Sports Illustrated (SI) magazine's 2008 'Swimsuit Edition.' She said, 'Look Grandma, this woman isn't wearing a bathing suit top!' My mom then went to a Wal-Mart employee and told her what happened stating that this should have never be on a shelf where children can be exposed to it. The woman agreed and went immediately and removed all the magazines from the shelf.
"Today, we returned to the same Wal-Mart to see if the magazines were still gone. They were not. Wal-Mart had put the magazines back out on the magazine rack...
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Supreme Court to Hear "Fleeting Expletives" Case
Most Americans agree that there are some appropriate limitations to the First Amendment's right of free speech and press. Consider the fact that libel and slander are not protected free speech. Inciting panic in the public by yelling, "FIRE!" is not protected either. Nor is anyone free to distribute obscenity, falsely advertise a product, etc. You get the picture.
This is especially true when it comes to the use of public airwaves -- where there is a compelling government interest in prohibiting and regulating indecent and vulgar content of radio and television broadcasts in an effort to protect children and uphold community standards.
Many, many people, including myself, are very disturbed about the prevalence of obscene and indecent radio and television broadcasts, and its impact on the well-being of our families and children.
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Porn's Stranglehold
Seventy percent of American men ages 18-34 view Internet pornography once a month. This shocking fact is one of many that CT consulting editor John W. Kennedy found during his research for this month's cover story, "Help for the Sexually Desperate".
Don't assume that porn isn't a problem in the church. One evangelical leader was skeptical of survey findings that said 50 percent of Christian men have looked at porn recently. So he surveyed his own congregation. He found that 60 percent had done so within the past year, and 25 percent within the past 30 days. Other surveys reveal that one in three visitors to adult websites are women.
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Study Shows Increased Levels of Pornography Acceptance Among Young Adult Women
According to a study led by BYU Associate Professor Jason Carroll, college-aged women may be more accepting of pornography than are their fathers. Carroll worked on a study that analyzed the increased use of pornography in recent years. This research was a part of a larger study called Project Ready focusing on people ages 18 to 25 who are transitioning into adulthood.
According to a BYU news release, researchers had students respond to the following statement: "Viewing pornographic materials such as (magazines, movies, and/or Internet sites) is an acceptable way to express one's sexuality."
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Planned Parenthood Web Site Promotes Porn to Teens
2/26/2008 12:56:00 PM By Penny Starr, Senior Staff Writer
- CNSNews.com
(Editor's note: Contains quoted passages that some readers may find offensive.)
(CNSNews.com) - Teenwire.com, the Planned Parenthood Web site that says it was created "to provide medically accurate sexual health information for teens on the Internet," is advising teens that viewing pornography is a normal and "safer" way of enjoying sex.
In a 2007 article, "Birth Control Choices for Teens," the writer for the Planned Parenthood site tells readers about "Outercourse."
Under the subtitle, "lower-risk forms of outercourse," in addition to kissing, masturbation, erotic massage and body rubbing, or frottage, is "fantasy."
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ObscenityCrimes.org Website Project Passes 70,000 Citizen Complaints
In June 2002, Morality in Media (MIM) launched the ObscenityCrimes.org website, where citizens can make complaints about possible violations of federal Internet obscenity laws. The site was created primarily for citizens who are unintentionally exposed to pornography on the Internet or whose children are exposed to pornography on the Internet. On Saturday, February 23, the ObscenityCrimes.org website recorded its 70,000th citizen complaint.
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Library Filtering Legislation Needed
Illinois Library Association (ILA) misinformation is reported without balance in a recent Daily Herald article, "Librarians Want Local Control of Harmful Content," Feb. 19.
An ILA "lobbyist" deceives the legislators who are then reported to be in agreement with the misinformation.
Remember the possibly illegal public library computer boycotts the ILA staged and aimed at legislators? The media must provide balance or the ILA will gain another trick victory at the expense of children.
At the core of the false information is the claim that local libraries should decide whether to use Internet filters.
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The End of the Net Porn Wars
2/6/2008 11:29:00 AM By Jason Krause
- ABA JournalFebruary 2008 Issue
Despite big talk, federal efforts against adult obscenity online have withered.
It may be hard to remember now, but when the Bush administration came into power, it said fighting Internet pornography would be a priority. At their confirmation hearings, U.S. Attorneys General John Ashcroft and Alberto Gonzales each vowed that fighting obscenity on the Web would be a top concern.
And since 1995, the criminalization of Internet pornography has been a priority in Congress, with major pieces of legislation passing by wide majorities.
Yet 35 years after the U.S. Supreme Court defined obscenity in Miller v. California, adult entertainment has moved out of darkened movie theaters...
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Porn leads to aggressive behavior
The adult film industry is a multi-billion dollar machine that has a growing presence in today's society. From the Internet to videos to cell phones, porn is accessible 24-hours a day - to virtually anyone who desires to indulge.
The industry has become more mainstream throughout the last decade, especially for college students. It is everywhere - and as evidenced by the 9,740,000 search results yielded by a Google search for college porn, college students are both a primary target and consumer.
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Hard-core pornography isn't "free speech"
In recent years, the U.S. Department of Justice has paid only lip service to the enforcement of federal obscenity laws. In some instances, DOJ has gone after child pornographers and - in a scant few cases - has prosecuted purveyors of the most obscene and graphic adult pornography. But unfortunately, the government has been largely AWOL when it comes to enforcing an entire section of U.S. law, 18 U.S.C. §§ 1460-1470, which criminalizes much of the adult hard-core pornography that has saturated both the Internet and our communities.
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ABC Faces Indecency Fine For 2003 'NYPD Blue' Episode
The Federal Communications Commission yesterday proposed a $1.43 million indecency fine against ABC television stations for a 2003 episode of "NYPD Blue," the second-largest proposed indecency fine against a television broadcaster ever.
The agency proposed a $27,500 fine against 52 ABC-owned and affiliate stations in the Central and Mountain time zones, which broadcast the episode before 10 p.m., when the FCC's authority to police the airwaves for indecency expires each day.
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Many libraries circumventing laws meant to protect kids
An El Paso, Texas man was taking his little brother and a young cousin to the public library when he saw another child looking at pornography. Junior Valera complained to the attendant, but was told there was nothing that could be done.
Valera, an adult, was helping his 10-year-old brother and a cousin with a school research project at the El Paso Public Library. He got an eyeful when he looked at his neighbor's computer.
"I glanced at a little kid's computer, same age as my brother, nine, 10 years old and he was looking at porn."
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Adult-Porn Industry Drives Child Porn Views
'We've got to attack all points where people are being treated as sexual commodities.'
Communities across America are struggling with news of doctors, businessmen, educators and the average family man being caught downloading graphic, illegal images of child porn.
A wealthy Texas businessman was busted over possession of child porn on his computer. Just down the road, a third-grade teacher in Houston was prosecuted over the same abusive material.
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Experts Tie Aggressive Behavior to Porn Use
'Men go from just consuming pornography to acting out.'
According to the Journal of Research in Personality, six in 10 men said they would force a woman to do something she did not want to do, and/or rape her, if they knew they wouldn't get caught.
Patrick Trueman with the Alliance Defense Fund said the porn industry, which took in $13 billion last year, is to thank.
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Petition to Encourage the NFL to Ban Indecent Commercials During Games
We, the undersigned, respectfully request that Commissioner Roger Goodell and other NFL officials take proactive steps to require television networks broadcasting their licensed games to choose responsible sponsors and promotional spots that will not alienate or offend families with young children in the audience.
Today, children who watch NFL games with their parents are exposed to sexually suggestive images and violence. This is completely unnecessary.
Our concern is sincere, and it needs to be heard. The standard for commercial content during NFL games must be elevated to the same high standards the NFL requires of its owners, players, and officials.
We hope that the NFL will be a good neighbor and respond quickly and appropriately to this request to protect our families and children from indecent content.
Sign the Petition
This petition will be forwarded to Commissioner Roger Goodell on 2/29/2008
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Hefner's bunny on a Trojan horse
Can important lessons still be learned from history and cherished Greek mythology? In 1184 B.C., Sinon, a Greek spy, tricked the Trojan leaders into bringing Ulysses' wooden horse into their walled city. The destruction of Troy, and the enslavement of her women and children, is now legend.
But how could the lesson of Troy's costly naivete apply to our own times?
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Sex-Obsessed Culture Can Damage Young Brains, Says Doctor
11/14/2007 11:35:00 AM By Pete Winn, Senior Staff Writer
- CNSNews.com
(CNSNews.com) - Critics have long debated the effect on society of overtly sexualized images from television, movies and music. But one medical educator and physician has reached a conclusion: He thinks that because of what we have learned scientifically about the brain and the biochemistry behind sexuality, our sex-obsessed culture may be "warping" the minds of young people.
In an exclusive interview with Cybercast News Service, Gary Rose, M.D., president of the Medical Institute for Sexual Health in Austin, Tex., talked about his forthcoming book on the neurochemistry of sex. (The Medical Institute for Sexual Health describes itself as a non-profit group founded to confront the global epidemics of teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections.)
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High court to decide constitutionality of child porn law
A child pornography case pending before the Supreme Court highlights the tension that exists between freedom of speech and the state's interest in protecting its most vulnerable citizens -- children.
Tuesday the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in a challenge to a law enacted by Congress in 2003 that criminalizes the advertisement or promotion of child pornography. A federal appeals court last year struck down the ban as an overly broad violation of free speech, arguing the law could cover fake or non-existent porn offerings.
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Explosive Increase in Hardcore Pornography and its Accessibility to Children Should Concern Every Presidential Candidate
Explosive Increase in Hardcore Pornography and its Accessibility to Children Should Concern Every Presidential Candidate, Says Morality In Media President Robert Peters in Conjunction with the 20th Annual White Ribbon Against Pornography (WRAP) Week
NEW YORK, Oct. 29 /Christian Newswire/ -- In conjunction with the 20th annual White Ribbon Against Pornography (WRAP) Week, which this year runs from Sunday, October 28, through Sunday, November 4, Morality in Media president Robert Peters had the following additional comments:
"Our nation faces many problems, including the threat of terrorism, health care crisis, social security crises, environmental pollution, racial divisions, entrenched poverty, decaying infrastructure, loss of jobs to foreign countries, and schools that don't teach.
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The Victims of Porn
Note: The following commentary contains information that may not be suitable for children.
A teenage girl was recalling what her childhood had been like-a childhood marred by porn. "When I was eight years old," she wrote, "my father made me look at [pornographic] pictures" involving sex acts he wanted her to perform. "I went along with him, not knowing any better," she said.
For years this girl's father raped her while using these pictures-and at age 16, she had a sexually transmitted disease. "I may die of this disease," she wrote sadly. "Pornography has ruined my life."
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 | CLICK HERE to download a church bulletin on this issue. |
White Ribbon Against Pornography Week 2007
Morality in Media asks every American concerned about the floodtide of pornography pouring into our nation's communities, homes, and children's minds to do one or more of the following in conjunction with the White Ribbon Against Pornography (WRAP) Week, which runs this year from Sunday, October 28 through Sunday, November 4, 2007. Wear a WRAP lapel pin. Put a WRAP magnet on your car. Display white ribbons ! www.moralityinmedia.org offers many ideas on how citizens can become involved in this year's campaign.
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Unusual obscenity case to go to trial in Pittsburgh
A case that could test the definition of obscenity will be heard next year in a Pittsburgh federal courtroom.
The case involves Karen Fletcher, a 54-year-old recluse, who has been indicted by a federal grand jury and will face obscenity charges in connection with a website that featured excerpts of her writings and, for a monthly membership fee, made them available in whole. She is charged with six felony counts for posting detailed fictional accounts of the molestation, torture, and sometimes grizzly murders of children nine years and younger. The stories cited in the case have been removed from the website.
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Where has common decency gone?
Once upon a time, long-long ago, there was a land where the inhabitants lived by an unwritten law. The law had a common name, everyone knew it, most understood it-- even children were expected to obey it. It was known as common decency.
The law lives on in most of the country today. Its practice has been handed down from generation to generation. Although most of the people who live by it give it little thought. They live in peace with their neighbors with little need of enforcement.
But beware; there are dark powers that want to snuff out that light of decency that grows in the hearts of children.
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No Quit
Despite the drive to make porn mainstream, most Americans still want to fight it.
The mainstream media often give the idea that the public largely accepts pornography as normal. Is that accurate?
There appears to be a concerted effort to normalize pornography in the mainstream media, especially in the entertainment media. Jay Leno promotes porn use on Oprah, a reality show follows Hugh Hefner's three "girlfriends," "porn stars" publish best-selling books. Porn is portrayed as mere recreation or just another lifestyle choice.
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IFI Considering Class Action Suit Against Public Libraries
As we reported in our summer newsletter and on our website, legislation that would require public libraries in Illinois to use filtering technology to block sexually graphic websites on Internet computers finally passed the House of Representatives in Springfield this spring.
This legislation is very important because the vast majority of Illinois' 4000 plus libraries - as many as 80 percent - believe that providing unfettered access to the Internet for everyone, including children, is a First Amendment right. This means that an 8, 48 or 88 year old library patron could visit your neighborhood public library and accidentally or intentionally access pornographic websites.
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House bill would nullify controversial broadcast decency ruling
Federal Issue
The Parents Television Council is backing a House bill aimed at restoring the FCC's ability to prohibit profanity and indecency on television during children's viewing hours.
Congressman Chip Pickering (R-Mississippi) introduced the bill in response to a Second U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruling that bars the Federal Communications Commission from imposing fines on broadcast networks that air so-called "fleeting" instances of profanity on the public airwaves before 10:00 p.m.
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Despite Court Ruling, the 'F-Word' is Indecent
Federal Issue
Legislation would correct court ruling allowing profanity on TV.
Representative Chip Pickering (R-Mississippi) introduced the Protecting Children from Indecent Programming Act today to restore authority to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to determine broadcast decency standards when children are most likely to be watching television.
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Blushing Brides
As the shinny black Expedition slowly rolled by, I caught a glimpse of writing painted on the passenger windows. Fully expecting to discover a young football player's name and jersey number, I read, and then re-read the name, sounding it out slowly and trying different pronunciations.
At first, the name written on the window struck me as odd. I thought, poor thing has the same last name as male genitalia--but then I saw the accompanying illustration.
It wasn't a proud mama supporting a winning team after all. I continued to read the windows that were beginning to resemble a bathroom wall in a dirty gas station. As the vehicle rolled away, the back window revealed the punch line, "Honk for the bride-to-be."
Is this the latest trend in weddings? Public humiliation for the new bride?
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 | ACTION: CLICK HERE to contact Commissioner Goodell. Ask him to please encourage television networks broadcasting NFL games to cease airing indecent advertisements and promos. |
An Open Letter to the NFL
September 5, 2007
Commissioner Roger Goodell
National Football League
280 Park Avenue
New York, NY 10017
Dear Commissioner Goodell,
Millions of families enjoy watching NFL games. As a lifelong Chicago resident, I am -- and always will be -- a diehard Chicago Bears fan. And as the father of two young boys under the age of six, I greatly anticipate being able to share "manly" activities with them, such as sports, fishing, and hunting. To that end, I am already teaching my older son the rules of football while we watch Sunday afternoon Bears games on television.
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ACLU Lawyer Convicted of Child Porn Possession-- Sentenced to 7 years in prison
ALEXANDRIA, Virginia, September 11, 2007 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Charles Rust-Tierney, an attorney who served as the president of the Virginia chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) from 1993 to 2005, was arrested February 23, 2007 and charged with possession of child pornography. He pleaded guilty to one count of receipt of child pornography, was convicted and on September 8, was sentenced to seven years in prison.
Tierney had downloaded and paid for what the judge called "abhorrent" child pornography including torture and sexual assaults on children as young as 6. Police found 850 still images and 36 videos on his computer. The sentence is a year less than the minimum recommended by federal sentencing guidelines.
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PTC Study: Broadcast TV Family Hour Fare Filthier Than Ever
Corporate Interests Have Hijacked the Family Hour from Families
LOS ANGELES (September 5, 2007) - A new Parents Television Council™ study of Family Hour programming conclusively shows that children watching television during the first hour of prime time are assaulted by violence, profanity or sexual content once every 3.5 minutes of non-commercial airtime. During the 2006-2007 study period, almost 90% of the 208 television shows reviewed contained objectionable content.
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Close the Web on predators
As more sites sexually exploit children, those who profit must be held to account
August 27, 2007
BY LAURA BERMAN
Every year, 300,000 children in the United States are sexually abused. Researchers have found that one in three girls will be molested during their childhood, while one in seven boys will as well.
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More Indictments Against Pornographers
Experts call on the feds to prosecute more than the most objectionable material.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) is increasing obscenity prosecutions. In recent months, four major charges have been handed down, meaning peddlers of some of the most explicit material out there will finally see their day in court.
All are charged with interstate transportation of illegal obscene material. One indictment involves a major pornographer from Hollywood, another charges a man who was shipping porn from Ohio to Utah, and two prolific porn spammers were also charged.
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The Problem of Pornography
Pornography, once viewed as taboo, is expanding with easy access due to technology. What was once only available in shady downtown stores and then hidden under mattresses or in garage hide-aways, pornography now visually assault adults and children via the Internet -- even popping up unwanted on home computer screens -- on cable TV, and through video.
Now, underscoring the well-documented link between child pornography and child sexual abuse, a study done by psychologists at the Federal Bureau of Prisons found the link may be even stronger.
Read more...
What's the Connection?
Violent & Sexual Content in Media May Explain AP Report on More Younger, More Violent Sex Offenders
After analyzing state and federal crime statistics, the Associated Press recently reported their findings, revealing that the number of sex offense cases involving juvenile offenders has risen dramatically in recent years. Treatment professionals say the offenders are getting younger, while the crimes are becoming more violent.
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US Senate Committee approves stronger FCC decency regulations
Federal Issues
WASHINGTON -- A Senate committee on Thursday, July 19, 2007, acted to restore the government's authority to fine television and radio broadcasters for airing profanities, even if they are fleeting references.
The Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee approved a bill that would undo an appeals court ruling that invalidated the Federal Communications Commission's new profanity policy.
For years the agency punished broadcasters for airing profanities only if they referred to a sexual or excretory activity.
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An Open Letter from Morality in Media President Bob Peters
Robert Peters, President of Morality in Media, sent the following letter to Marriott Hotels CEO Bill Marriott on July 18, 2007:Dear Mr. Marriott:
Whenever possible, I avoid staying at Marriott Hotels, despite their quality and affordability, because Marriott Hotels is a major distributor of hardcore pornography on its pay-TV channels.
I realize that Marriott is not the only major hotel chain that distributes pay-TV pornography. Marriott is, however, the only major chain whose founder (your father) was honored by Morality in Media (see enclosed brochure) for his efforts to fight pornography.
Read more...
Debate on Child Pornography's Link to Molesting
7/19/2007 2:20:00 PM By Julian Sher and Benedict Carey
- New York Times
Experts have often wondered what proportion of men who download explicit sexual images of children also molest them. A new government study of convicted Internet offenders suggests that the number may be startlingly high: 85 percent of the offenders said they had committed acts of sexual abuse against minors, from inappropriate touching to rape.
The study, which has not yet been published, is stirring a vehement debate among psychologists, law enforcement officers and prison officials, who cannot agree on how the findings should be presented or interpreted.
The research, carried out by psychologists at the Federal Bureau of Prisons, is the first in-depth survey of such online offenders' sexual behavior done by prison therapists who were actively performing treatment. Its findings have circulated privately among experts, who say they could have enormous implications for public safety and law enforcement.
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Poll Reveals American Attitudes Regarding Expletives on Major Television Networks
More than half of adult Americans say the FCC should have authority to fine major TV networks for airing a single expletive
NEW YORK (July 12, 2007) - More than half (52%) of adult Americans say the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) should have authority to fine any of the major broadcast TV networks, such as NBC, ABC, CBS and FOX, for airing a single expletive or "four letter word," according to a new poll conducted by Harris Interactive on behalf of Morality in Media. Forty-two percent of adult Americans disagreed with the statement. Here are the question and results:
To what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statement: "The Federal Communications Commission, or FCC, should have authority to fine any of the major broadcast TV networks, such as NBC, ABC, CBS and FOX, for airing a single expletive or 'four letter word?'"
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Group Wants Porn Eradicated From Hotel Cable Line-Up
Campaign aims to clean up pay-per-view channels.
LodgeNet Entertainment Corp., a company that supplies pay-per-view movies to America's hotels, is under fire for making most of its profits off hardcore pornography.
In August, family advocates will ask the Department of Justice to investigate and bring charges against the company.
Phil Burress, president and executive director of Ohio's Citizens for Community Values (CCV), said much of the content in question is prosecutable under the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in Miller v. California.
Read more...
Slavery still in the U.S.? It's more common than you think!
7/6/2007 8:00:00 AM By David E. Smith, IFI Executive Director
Detroit man sentenced to 14 years in prison for enslaving women in area clubs. Sex slave ring included three Chicago-area men.
On June 26, 2007, a Michigan man pled guilty to bringing women to the U.S. and forcing them to work as strippers or otherwise face reporting to immigration authorities and deportation.
Along with the physical and sexual abuse, the club owners imposed upon the dancers thousands of dollars of debt that had to be paid with money made stripping. According to many former dancers who have left the industry, debt is a very common means by which club owners gain control over a girl's life. CLICK HERE to read more about this particular offense.
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Media Harm Nation's Moral Values
While the nation's morals continue to decay, divorce rates soar and families are, as a result, rent asunder with consequent increase in crime rates, it is baffling that the news and entertainment media have not paused to rethink the negative impact of some of their publications and telecasts. The fact that the message, particularly in some violent TV shows and films, remains so unedifying and unchanging proves that the media are not heeding what the public is saying.
That seems to be the point the findings of two recent national surveys made.
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Cable Choice Would Empower Families
Lawmakers seek federal protection to keep harmful TV from kids.
Bipartisan legislation introduced today in the U.S. House would allow consumers to choose the cable channels that enter their homes.
Rep. Dan Lipinski, D-Ill., and Rep. Jeff Fortenberry, R-Neb., are sponsoring the Family Choice Act of 2007. The bill calls for a family tier, indecency standards or "a la carte" programming and would allow subscribers to get a refund for channels they choose to block.
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PTC: Court OK's F-Word In Front of Kids
6/5/2007 11:00:00 AM
Ruling Permits Unedited Profanities to Air During Any Time of Day
LOS ANGELES (June 4, 2007) - The Parents Television Council™ issued a statement in response to the Second Circuit Court of Appeals ruling today that overturned FCC decisions finding as indecent the airing of the "F-word" and "S-word" during the live broadcasts of the 2002 and 2003 Billboard Music Awards' shows. The PTC and its members filed FCC indecency complaints over these two incidents and also submitted an Amicus brief in support of the FCC decisions.
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Evangelicals are Addicted to Porn
6/4/2007 4:00:00 PM -Christian Newswire
If there could be one place protected from the cancerous infection of pornography and sexual misconducts, one would assume that the Christian church would be that sanctuary. But, recent research is revealing that no one is immunized against the vice-grip clutches of sexual addictive behaviors.
The people who struggle with the repeated pursuit of sexual gratification include church members, deacons, staff, and yes, even clergy. And, to the surprise of many, a large number of women in the church have become victim to this widespread problem. Recently, the world's most visited Christian website, ChristiaNet.com, conducted a survey asking site visitors eleven questions about their personal sexual conduct.
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