Word: jacksonism
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...spent too much time last week talking about the what of the "malfunction" and relatively little about the how. Even at MTV's risque V.M.A. shows, the naughty acts usually involve women artists taking off their own clothesthat is, controlling their sexuality. Jackson's flashing was not, despite press descriptions, a "striptease." It was Timberlake ripping off her cup and exposing a breast to hang out like a chuck roast as she cowered in real or feigned shame. It wasn't erotic; it was violent. It wasn't adult; it was preadolescent. It wasn't sexual; it was a choreographed...
That's the thing about obscenity: you can't find it on an anatomical chart. It's about context and tone, a subtle and very subjective judgment. Arguably, Jackson's lightning flash was no more offensive than several ads that ran during the Super Bowl and focused on humiliation, especially sexual humiliation, especially of women. In spots for Bud Light, a woman on a date was farted on by a horse; another was hit on by a horny monkey...
...this kind of TV crudity going to wane after the Jackson incident? Absolutely. Just as surely as Columbine ended screen violence, the Who Wants to Marry a Multi-Millionaire? scandal finished reality TV and the Sept. 11 attacks killed irony. Betting against the transgressiveness of pop culture is like shorting the market: you may be right for a period, but over time you will lose. Even if the FCC does leash the big networks meaningfully--a long shot--viewers remain free to go to cable. "It's acceptable for Tiger Woods to curse on ESPN," notes NBC Entertainment president Jeff...
...culture swinging between cynical sex-sells greed and moral parentalism. A culture obsessed by, and terrified of, a human organ that gives sustenance to babies. And a culture that apparently can't tell the difference between contextually appropriate nudity and a rape fantasy. By the end of Jackson and Timberlake's song, that culture was naked. --Reported by Jeffrey Ressner/Los Angeles, Sean Gregory/New York, Paul Cuadros, Pittsboro, N.C., and Fran Stewart/Cleveland, Ohio
...Spike in TiVo replays when Janet Jackson's breast was exposed during the Super Bowl halftime show--the most re-played moment in TiVo history...