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Victims of Pornography—Statement by Robert H. Knight, Culture and Family Institute 1/1/2002 In America today, cultural sharks are circling our children, sometimes masking themselves with the imagery of more innocent times. For decades, comic books had been a primary reading source for millions of kids. They were a colorful gateway into the world of reading, and their stories were often inspiring. Many parents are unaware of how bad comic books have become. Some drop their children off at comic stores, thinking that the kids are taking the easy route into reading that they themselves enjoyed as children. But comic stores have become little more than gateways into pornography and graphic violence. It used to be that you found a few bad comics amid the adventure stories and tales of superheroes. Now, the decent comics are difficult to find. Most of the titles are bizarre, with some being openly pornographic, such as Purgatori, Bettie Page and Lady Death. They are chockfull of nudity, homosexuality, violence, and demonic portrayals. Some openly attack religions and religious believers, particularly Christians. Many also have foul language, with repeated use of the F-word. The purveyors of this smut, like most moral wrecking crews, argue that there is worse stuff out there. So what? They can’t argue away the obvious fact that they are working in a medium that has special appeal to children. And porn is porn, whatever the medium. In 1954 Dr. Fred Wertham wrote an influential book called Seduction of the Innocent. He said the difference between pornography and comic books was that porn was meant to attract deviants, while the comics were meant to create them. The book triggered congressional hearings and eventually the industry wrote a comics code, which cleaned up comic books for years. Later, the code was watered down, and now it has about as much punch as Superman after downing a Kryptonite cocktail. A few good comic books remain that are consistently imaginative and nonexploitative. The Archie series is a good example. Archie comics have become the top-selling comic books in America. This is partly because of their quality and wholesome consistency. But they are also a dominant market force because there are few competitors. Disney and Marvel also put out quality comic books for the most part. But most comics publishers seem to have lost any concern they ever had for the effects of their product on impressionable young minds. The head of DC comics, which publishes some good comics but also now routinely features sex, violence, foul language and even anti-Christian themes in some of its products, said in an interview that she wanted to push the envelope as far as possible. In their own defense, comics makers say, “Hey, we’re no longer appealing to children. We’re aiming at the 18 to 35 male market.” The tobacco companies said pretty much the same thing about Joe Camel, but it didn’t fool anybody. Inside the comics, the ads betray them. They sell candy. They promote movies that appeal to juveniles. The art is clearly aimed at a juvenile mind. Parents need to know that comics are not what they were when they were young. But parents need help. We keep hearing that parents should be with their children every waking minute to keep them from being poisoned by the products of perverse imaginations. What about making sure that these toxic materials do not find their way into children’s hands and into their vulnerable hearts? The Federal Trade Commission recently issued a report accusing the music industry of aggressively marketing adult material to children. It’s time for them to look into the comic book industry’s deceptive and seductive marketing. Congress can hold hearings to shine a light on the dark corners of the comics world. Meanwhile, law enforcement authorities don’t have to wait. They can prosecute people who would exploit children. Merchants who sell smut to children should be put behind bars, where they can encounter first-hand some of the tender, loving behavior inspired by their products. It won’t take a superhero to clean up this mess, just good people who are willing to do the job. Robert H. Knight, a former news editor for the Los Angeles Times, is the author of The Age of Consent: The Rise of Relativism and the Corruption of Popular Culture (Spence Publishing, 1998, 2000). |
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