[bksvol-discuss] Re: Adult Content
- From: Cindy Rosenthal <grandcyn77@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Sun, 11 Nov 2012 12:44:39 -0800
I did not want my 6th-grade daughters to readI don't think it's bookshare
that labels books A.C.; it's the proofer; the scanner might do so but the
proofer has the option of removing that label before checking in the book.
I have labeled as O.C.books that I thought might offend some of our
sensitive members; that gives them knowledge about the book that can help
them decide whether or not they want to read the book; as far as children
under the age of 18, they are not automatically prevented from reading such
books; if it's o.k. with their parents, the restricted access can be
removed (and I assume such a young adult will discuss it with his/her
parents; I know one such young lady wants to be free to read whatever she
wants, and I think she has had her parents remove the restriction.
I do think parents should be able to decide what they want their children
to be able to read; they know their children and know what might give them
"wrong" ideas or cause bad dreams I did not want my 6th-grade daughters to
read Flowers in the Attic or --what's the book /movie with orange in the
title that's futuristic and has so much violence?
Cindy
On 11/11/2012 12:31 AM, Kelly Pierce wrote:
>
>> The library and bookstore test sounds reasonable until it is realized
>> that communities in different parts of America find certain material
>> unacceptable where other communities do not. Someone under 18 can
>> read on premises or purchase nearly all of the books the Bookshare
>> unit of Benetech says are only suitable to adults at a library or
>> independent or women’s bookstore in San Francisco, new York’s
>> Greenwich village or on the north side of Chicago, where I live. This
>> is likely not the situation in other places in the country not as
>> liberal, permissive, tolerant and accepting.
>>
>> In reviewing some of the items Bookshare has slapped with the adult
>> content label, it seems clear that the organization has adopted some
>> of the attitudes of Todd Akin of Missouri, Richard Mourdock of
>> Indiana, and Paul Ryan of Wisconsin. Their beliefs and views about
>> women were completely repudiated by voters on November 6. Bookshare
>> has labeled the books “My Body, My Self for Boys” and “My Body, My
>> Self for Girls” as for adults only. Information about the books is
>> below. The publisher, Harper Collins, describes the books are for
>> those age 10 and above. Harper Collins is a unit of media giant News
>> Corporation, which owns such properties as the New York Post and the
>> Fox News Channel. A company with a conservative pedigree creates a
>> book about puberty and sexuality for teens that Benetech through
>> Bookshare prevents teens from accessing.
>>
>> Also stuck with the adult label is the book “Our Bodies, Ourselves,”
>> an iconic touchstone of the 1970s women’s liberation movement. The
>> work represents the first major effort of women to share information
>> about women’s health beyond the range of experts and major social
>> institutions. The book has sold millions of copies and has been
>> published in more than 30 languages. I know of a number of places
>> where an adolescent girl could buy this book without any hassle or
>> questions. Some believe, like the three losing politicians and
>> Bookshare, that women and girls along with young males should not have
>> this kind of information. An HIV infection or a pregnancy through a
>> sexual assault, whether or not it meets Paul Ryan’s idea of
>> “forcible,” is “god’s will.” This notion is reprehensible and
>> Bookshare seems to be joining hands with those who advocate this
>> viewpoint.
>>
>> Benetech claims it stands for the human rights of people all
>> throughout the world. Yet, it seeks to control information to girls
>> with disabilities about their bodies that is easily available to girls
>> without disabilities where I live. Supporting human rights includes
>> elevating the status of women and girls so that they have the
>> knowledge to make informed decisions about their bodies. In my state,
>> a teenage girl can become pregnant and have an abortion without
>> telling her parents or getting their permission. Yet Benetech, through
>> Bookshare says information about contraception and abortion found in
>> these books is “adult” material and off limits to girls. Maybe it’s
>> time Bookshare staff recognize human rights includes the freedom to
>> read about topics some would rather not surface.
>>
>> If Bookshare’s decision on these and similar books labeled as “adult”
>> but would never be found in an adult bookstore is an imposition that a
>> funder stipulated to Benetech to receive funds, that funder should be
>> identified and what exactly they stipulated. I want to know if this
>> unnamed funder states that girls with disabilities should not know
>> about contraception or that teens of both sexes should not learn about
>> puberty even though the publisher, a major international corporation,
>> has clearly stated it is age appropriate.
>>
>>
>> Kelly
>>
>>
>>
>> My Body, My Self for Boys
>> Lynda Madaras
>>
>>
>>
>> The Madaras growing-up guides are acknowledged by parents, educators,
>> librarians, and doctors for their unique, nonthreatening style,
>> excellent organization, and thorough coverage of both the physical and
>> emotional issues surrounding puberty and adolescence. And kids love
>> them too! As one fan wrote, "Dear Lynda, I can't believe that you, a
>> mom, knew all this stuff!" My Body, My Self for Boys is filled with
>> activities, checklists, illustrations, and plenty of room for journal
>> jottings, plus lots of personal stories in which boys share their
>> concerns and experiences about growing up. For ages 10 and up.
>>
>> My Body, My Self for Girls
>> Area Madaras
>> and Lynda Madaras
>>
>> Our Bodies, Ourselves
>> Judy Norsigian
>> and Boston Women's Health Book Collective
>>
>> Our Bodies, Ourselves is the resource that women of all ages turn to
>> for information about their bodies, sexuality, and reproductive
>> health.
>>
>>
>>
>> What's happening to my body? Is this normal? This fact-filled journal
>> and activity book makes it fun for girls to find answers to their many
>> questions about the physical and emotional changes that accompany
>> puberty.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> On 11/10/12, Lisa Gorden-Cushman <crysania@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>>
>>> When I was a kid, I would keep reading a book if there were sexual
>>> content,
>>> and laugh a little at the adults who didn't know what I was reading.
>>> Perhaps it would be good to have a little look out for parents.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> From: bksvol-discuss-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
>>> [mailto:bksvol-discuss-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Roger Loran
>>> Bailey
>>> Sent: Saturday, November 10, 2012 11:28 AM
>>> To: bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
>>> Subject: [bksvol-discuss] Re: Adult Content
>>>
>>> I don't see the relevance either. I have never either read or not read
>>> any
>>> book because it either did or did not contain sexual content. Again, if
>>> you
>>> don't like the book, whether it is because of the presence of certain
>>> words
>>> or descriptions of virtually anything or for any other reason, you can
>>> just
>>> stop reading it. It is completely beyond reason to expect other people to
>>> read your mind and to pick and choose and label books for you so that you
>>> will never get one that you do not like,. That goes for teens and kids
>>> too.
>>> If a child picks up a book that contains something that the child does
>>> not
>>> like or finds objectionable then the child will most likely get bored and
>>> just stop reading it. The whole idea that adults need to decide for
>>> children
>>> what they can and cannot read is offensive to me.
>>> On 11/10/2012 1:09 PM, Sandi Ryan wrote:
>>> I have read BARD books since I was ten, and have never once picked a book
>>> simply because it did or did not have the symbols indicating "Explicit
>>> descriptions of sex, strong language, or violence." I suspect some
>>> people
>>> use those designations as a positive reason for choosing certain books,
>>> but
>>> I have always believed that if I chose only those books without such
>>> designations, I'd miss out on an awful lot of real life.
>>>
>>> Your choice is your own, but I see no reason for Bookshare (or the BARD,
>>> for
>>> that matter) to judge the contents of books. It might be helpful for
>>> kids
>>> and teens, but in those cases, if the parents are concerned, they should
>>> pick what books their kids can read.
>>>
>>> Sandi
>>>
>>> ----- Original Message -----
>>> From: Ali Al-hajamy <mailto:aalhajamy@xxxxxxxxx>
>>> To: bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
>>> Sent: Saturday, November 10, 2012 12:02 PM
>>> Subject: [bksvol-discuss] Re: Adult Content
>>>
>>> In addition, there is no way that we can relabel all 170000 books
>>> currently
>>> in the collection to reflect what kind of language they contain or if
>>> there
>>> is violence and sex. I suppose, if you really, really cared, you could
>>> create a program that counts every instance of swear words, and would
>>> insert
>>> some kind of label such as "strong language" into the book's metadata,
>>> say
>>> the short or long description, based on the number of times it found
>>> "obscene" words in the text, but why do that? If our experience is to
>>> mirror
>>> that of the able-eyed user at a bookstore or library, adding such labels
>>> would be counterproductive to that goal, since the sighted don't have
>>> giant
>>> stickers on their books that say that a book has swearing and sex. And
>>> such
>>> a program would only work for strong language, since different writers
>>> use
>>> different words to describe violent and sexual situations. Your best bet
>>> if
>>> you're sensative and want your books to be free of that kind of thing is
>>> to
>>> read reviews and excerpts rather than make everyone else do the work for
>>> you.
>>>
>>> On 10-Nov-12 12:51, Roger Loran Bailey wrote:
>>> I will say this again. There is no way possible to know that you will not
>>> like a book until you read it. You might get an idea by reading reviews
>>> and
>>> listening to people discuss books, but you will not actually know until
>>> you
>>> try it. You should also not expect other people to filter your books for
>>> you. Their opinions of what you will or will not like may not be the same
>>> as
>>> your own opinions. For that reason I would suggest that books just be
>>> submitted in the same manner as any other book no matter what kind of
>>> language they might contain. If a proofreader turns out to not like it
>>> then
>>> that proofreader can just release it.
>>> On 11/9/2012 8:03 PM, Cindy Rosenthal wrote:
>>> Hmmm. But what about our sensitive members who don't like to read books
>>> with profanity or explicit sex; should we, raher than label them AC, put
>>> some kind of warning somewhere? Does what we put in the Comments section
>>> get attached to the book fle? I'munder the impression that those comments
>>> are only for the book share administrators, e.g. like errors in
>>> punctuation
>>> and spelling are as they are in the print book.
>>>
>>> I think I have in the past put such "warnings" in the synopsis or
>>> somewhere
>>> but told it didn't belong there.
>>> Cindy
>>> On Fri, Nov 9, 2012 at 2:53 PM, Madeleine Linares <
>>> Madeleinel@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
>>> wrote:
>>> Hi everyone,
>>>
>>> I thought it was about time for a refresher course in what we mean by
>>> Adult
>>> Content (also known as "AC"). There has been some confusion (off-list)
>>> and
>>> I've noticed it incorrectly marked in the Approval Queue.
>>>
>>> Here is a note from our Collection Development Manager on our definition:
>>>
>>> "Our policy, developed in conjunction with our OSEP funders, is that
>>> there
>>> are certain kinds of content -- explicit depictions of sexual acts with
>>> no
>>> redeeming social value, as well as extreme and gratuitous violence --
>>> will
>>> require a minor to get an adult guardian's permission to access. As a
>>> "content-neutral" collection, we will never exclude a title for any
>>> potentially controversial or distasteful content, but we will tag some
>>> content for adult (or minors with a guardian's permission) use only. The
>>> idea is that parents can control the access their kids have to content
>>> deemed potentially inappropriate -- but they don't have the right to
>>> control
>>> or limit access to anybody else's kids.
>>>
>>> The "walking into a bookstore or library" test continues to be a good
>>> one.
>>> Could a non-print-disabled kid walk into a good bookstore or public
>>> library
>>> and get a copy of this book without an adult being involved? If the
>>> answer
>>> is yes, a print-disabled kid should be able to do the same on Bookshare.
>>> We
>>> are not interested in placing additional barriers to access for our
>>> members
>>> that their peers do not experience. This means we do have stuff
>>> available
>>> to members under 18 that has sex, and swearing, and violence, and
>>> substance
>>> abuse in it, and that is okay and in keeping with the generally
>>> recognized
>>> standards of "freedom to read" policy in this country.
>>>
>>> We don't have a perfect implementation of this policy yet -- I see
>>> evidence
>>> that we were a little more strait-laced in the early days (and fix it
>>> when
>>> I
>>> come across it), and our automated filtering from publisher feeds still
>>> needs some fine-tuning. When I'm trying to navigate something particular
>>> "gray area-y" like the steamier of the romances coming in, I ask myself
>>> about the intent -- is the action (even if hot and heavy) designed to
>>> move
>>> the characters towards relationship, or is the plot driven only by the
>>> need
>>> to get body parts intermingling again? It's the latter that's clearly
>>> AC,
>>> while the former continues to be ambiguous. Author intent is, alas,
>>> pretty
>>> gray-area-y and subjective itself, but I think it can help separate the
>>> sheep from the goats."
>>>
>>> Adult content is confusing and clearly not black and white. Many romances
>>> (such as a lot of the Harlequin ones), though certainly racy, should not
>>> be
>>> labeled as AC. A 16-year-old could walk into a book store and buy ones of
>>> those books just as easily as a 38-year old, although his or her parents
>>> might not approve and might consider the content inappropriate. Anyway,
>>> just
>>> thought it couldn't hurt to remind everyone!
>>>
>>> Feel free to contact me with questions, as always.
>>>
>>> Best,
>>>
>>> Madeleine Linares
>>> Volunteer Coordinator
>>> Bookshare, a Benetech Initiative
>>> 650-644-3459
>>> madeleinel@xxxxxxxxxxxx
>>>
>>> Join us in celebrating our 10
>>> <
>>> http://blog.bookshare.org/2012/03/11/join-bookshares-worldwide-10th-anniver
>>> sary-celebration/> th Anniversary!
>>>
>>> Title:
>>> Bookshare logo: Bringing Reading to Life for
>>> 10 Years
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
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>
> answer was that AIDS is, indeed, one of those real dangers and it is a
very good example. It is a very good example because not only is it a real
danger that is being ignored by those who want to "protect" children by
censorship, but it is also a danger that the anti-sex censors want to
deprive children of the knowledge that they need to actually protect them
from it. The more they try to justify themselves the more ridiculous they
get.
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