Letter to the Editor: A XXX-rated phenomenon has biased sources

The article “A XXX-rated phenomenon on campuses” (Jan. 20) is an article I’ve been reading and re-reading and in my opinion should not have published in The Colonnade. 

There’s a lack of supporting data to the point of the article, the statistics are likewise biased, the quotes given seem taken out of context and there appears to be a grievous misuse of the word addiction, not to mention lack of credible sources.

There’s no evidence to suggest that there is any link between sex addiction and pornography. There is however a significant correlation between the accessibility to pornography and a drop in sex crimes according to Science Daily.

“Results from the Czech Republic showed, as seen everywhere else studied (Canada, Croatia, Denmark, Germany, Finland, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Sweden, USA), that rape and other sex crimes have not increased following the legalization and wide availability of pornography.”

“Sexual addiction is, in its simplest form, a normal sex drive that has become compulsive to the point where the behavior is out of control,” is a line in The Colonnade article that is not only lacking a citation that provides supporting data or evidence, it appears subjective in that it fails to provide a definition of what is or is not out of control.

Many in the fields of sexology and sexuality are still on the fence of whether or not sex can be considered an addictive behavior and there is certainly yet to be a link between that and pornography. If an article like this is going to be printed, it should have sources from journals that directly pertain to the subject.

Next, there is an atrocious lack of credible sources.

Focus on the Family, United Families International and Safe Families are all biased. Data should come from independent, peer reviewed articles and journals, not biased organizations such as these that hide behind the guise of family values.

It is organizations like these that keep gays and lesbians at the level of second-class citizens by arguing against their right to marry. On matters like pornography and sexuality, they are most definitely inadequate to use in citation.

In societies where restrictions on sexual behavior, such as abortion and pornography, are lessened, there are actually fewer cases of sex crimes and unintended pregnancy. This shows that there is a correlation between sex positive views, or sexual pluralism, and safer sexual habits.

The incorrect generalization of information from these biased sources to the college population is a heinous generalization and there should be cited information specifically regarding research of college campuses.

-Lucia Caltabiano, senior psychology major

Posted by gcsunade on Feb 2 2012. Filed under Letters to the Editor, Opinion. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.