The bare truth
We've gotten a handful of complaints about a photograph we published on page 34 of Go Triad last Thursday. The photo was of a gray-haired woman stretching out before a 5K run at the Bar-S-Ranch in Reidsville.
The hitch: The Bar-S-Ranch is a clothing-optional kind of place and the woman took the optional part pretty liberally. She wore shoes, socks, a runner's registration number and that's it. But with judicious cropping, no body parts that might traditionally be considered prurient were visible.
We published the photo because it was tasteful, occurred in a public event tp benefit a charity -- the Monroeton Volunteer Fire Department -- and, well, was worth a smile.
Oddly, we got no complaints that I'm aware of for a photograph on the front page of the local section last Sunday of men running in the same race. (A ribbon marking the course appropriately obscured whether they were wearing running shorts. Or not.)
Comments (5)
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I doubt these folks would have complained if the woman was in her 20's.
Posted on August 7, 2005 11:03 AM
The fact that one drew complaints and the other didn't isn't just bizarre, it's disturbing. What does it tell us? I could hazard some guesses, but I really have no idea. If you learn any more John, I'd love to hear about it.
Posted on August 7, 2005 12:51 PM
(tongue firmly planted in cheek)
Pictures of naked running men? And women? Is this a circulation boost mechanism? If so, I could make some suggestions as to content. (Sorry, Chewie, couldn't resist. And I've been away.)
Posted on August 7, 2005 5:01 PM
I saw your comment on the letter, Sue, and I ain't going there. And if you think those photos would serve circulation boosters, you have a different perspective on our audience of potential readers than I do. (My tongue is firmly planted in cheek, too.)
I think -- I'm going on memory -- that the four letters to the editor I've seen so far have all been from women, Chewie, for what that's worth.
Posted on August 7, 2005 5:24 PM
I just checked. The letters I referred to above were all from women, for what that's worth. We got a fifth today, also from a woman, who said:
"Get your Go Triad to see that it's actually a great photo showing an older, very fit woman (so nice in this youth-obsessed culture), participating in a race and one that testifies to the skill of the photographer. Not a single 'naughty' part exposed -- hardly what most would consider offensive!
"I wonder why a real-life, normal, healthy body shown with absolutely no sexual connotation is reason to get all discombobulated. And I wonder why there's no outrage over the commonplace exploitative, often degrading, usually sexually explicit, and always airbrushed nudity in
advertising and the entertainment media."
Posted on August 8, 2005 12:25 PM