NSFW on the F#@king internet

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I am going to open the can of worms that I thought would have been opened already. Lucky me. LET’S TALK ABOUT NSFW stuff!!!!! I grappled with this topic, (and by grappled I mean thought for about half a day) weiged the possible consequences for talking about obscenities, then with a Kanye-esque shrug, I said “Fuck it” and started typing. Knowing for certain that I won’t be running for any public office positions (not that that is stopping anyone… horray Weinergate!) or that I will be bringing any shame to members of my family, I feel comfortable talking about how the internet is used for entertainment, amusement and pleasure.

Matthew Hindman, The Myth of Digital Democracy, p. 61

Now, if you’ll turn in your academic bibles to page 61 (otherwise known as the Hindman book), allow me to draw your attention to figure 4.1. We touched on the issue briefly in class but on a personal level, I stared at the giant black dot at the top that represented the “Adult content” in terms of total web traffic. Now, yes, adult can mean many things but the obvious, for me at least, is porn. Adult content. Whatever you define as NSFW can fall in this category. I recognize the taboo in this, but also how much power is given to what is considered "inappropriate" or “adult." If the internet is a highway for loads of information, who is censoring what we see and what we deem as “adult content?”

I straddle the line (pun totally intended) on this issue; on one side I am cautious of what is and was becoming available for younger generations, particularly because I have a younger sister who grew up on the internet more than I did. It's through her I grow a maternal instinct to monitor her as I did when she was 8 and even now that she is 17. As her older sister, I walk a careful line of being the gatekeeper of sibling fun versus the protective one. While I am not there (she lives in McKinney, Texas) to watch her every move, I still police her through her facebook and twitter, commenting on photos and statuses that I think are inappropriate, in hopes I can nudge, embarrass, and educate her on being careful. During a visit home, my older sister discovered (by doing a quick history search on our younger sisters laptop) several pornographic websites. My older sister was prepared to verbally rip her a new one, but I talked her of the ledge and my sisters and I had a long and at moments painfully awkward conversation about sex and porn. In short, I know that she will look at (if she hasn’t already) things that adults would frown upon, but as a family member who loves her, I do my best to make sure she is making wise choices in what she views, all while carefully allowing her to have freedom.

Demotivational Poster

On the other hand, as someone who adores all things vulgar and profane, I partly could not care less about what she or anyone else sees or hears on the internet. In the same moment where I used to watch what I say in terms of swearing around my younger sister, she could be walking down the street and hear someone weave a web of obscenities because they spilled coffee; or she will sneak into a movie to see Hangover 2 or Superbad. So what’s the point of policing? If that giant dot on figure 4.1 represents and umbrella of things that may not be appropriate for certain users, despite best efforts, they (the ones that are supposed to be protected) may see it offline, in real life. As a well educated older sister, should I be smiting my younger sister for going on a website that is for 18+?

For another example, I call upon the great actor Samuel L. Jackson, who is highly proficient in the swearing and especially the word “Fuck.” Adam Mansbach’s book, Go the Fu@k to sleep was recently graced with Jackson’s stylings as he narrated the book for audio, spurring an instant viral hit on youtube and lots of attention to the book. However, while what for this author this was clearly a satirical demonstration of humor, some parents failed to miss the point. In a CNN commentary, Karen Spears Zacharias and other parents were outraged by the act of swearing to children in this book. The comment of the day from Barak5tar reads, “What has happened to satire? Why are people in the U.S. so ridiculously sensitive? Why is it no longer ok to joke about anything?” The commenters' outcry leads off a plethora of comments both for and against this book. Who is right? Who is going to obtain a copy and let their four year old be read to sleep by Samuel L. Jackson? Furthermore, should I, a gradate student with zero children, even care?

I think that it’s the notion that we want what we cannot have. We are (or at least I am) wooed and won by things that are slightly forbidden. I know that I am tempted to see a video on reddit.com even more if it has NSFW slapped on the title, regardless if I have interest in it or not. However, even I have my limits, both on the internet and even more on real life. While I may (or many not ;) ) spend my free time perusing porn, looking for photos of congressman Weiner’s wiener, watching every booty shaking hip hop video, or watch that video on youtube where they display every time the word “fuck” is used Pulp Fiction, in my reality I am rather tame. Sure there is no simple answer to this; to say “its just (insert whatever you think is vulgar here), get over it” and walk off is silly. But maybe because we have the option to, I guess maybe it’s the point. So while everyone’s search diagram may be different, (truth be told, if I diagramed my own internet usage, facebook and modcloth.com would be two massive dots, followed by a slew of celebrity websites and youtube, and maybe some adult content) maybe that’s the beauty--you can search for what you want, as well as censoring it too.

Now, go the Fu@k to sleep…

:)