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Playboy image from 1972 gets ban from IEEE computer journals
(arstechnica.com)
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this post was submitted on 30 Mar 2024
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i think i've seen it used to demo different image compression algorithms, things like that. it was used as an easy example test image, but this journal has now banned papers from using it because it is weird and creepy to be using cropped porn for that. this won't benefit the model, but she was only pushing to ban it because she wants more women in IT fields.
If a sample image is "making some women feel unwelcome in the field" you may be too sensitive for life.
It's the sample image and dozens of other things. For example: people telling them they're too sensitive for life because they're feeling uncomfortable looking at softcore porn while doing their work or research.
The full picture is never used in academia, let me assure you of that. If it weren't for articles like these, most people would not know where it even came from or that the model was nude in the first place. Not defending the use of the picture, strange choice of a test picture for sure, if you know where it comes from but wanted to give you some context.
You wouldn't know unless someone told you though
If you thought that making this comment was a good idea, you may be too misogynistic for life.
If you thought making this comment was a good idea you might need to get a grip on life.
This is not porn; it's an art. There is nothing creepy about it. Moreover, if this picture is the reason why women aren't in this field, then there is definitely a more serious problem, but it's not where you are looking.
Full picture (NSFW) https://mypmates.club/1972/Miss-November/Lena-Soderberg
It's art, but it's also porn. Those aren't mutually exclusive. It's from Playboy, which is a porn magazine. Look at it all you want, but it isn't appropriate for research papers. There are plenty of alternatives.
Edit: Part of the reason more women aren't in the field is because they're often seen as pieces of meat. They're objectified. They don't use any cropped male nude photos for test images, because the men weren't lusting over them. It's used because it was a field ruled by men, and women were often treated as objects.
The thing is, there is no universal definition of pornography. It varies from country to country. In my country, it doesn't fulfill some of the criteria, in particular because:
The more important thing is that the cropped version of the picture (which was used in the research papers) does not fulfill any criteria to be classified as pornography or even as nude art. Some don't even know that this is only part of a nude photo. I saw this cropped picture in the 90s and was surprised later in the early 2000s by the full version.
I would say more. This is an example where some random nude photo became something more because it became part of science. So it's rather an example of "deobjectification" because this picture is focused on her face in the hat, and not her reproductive organs.
Regarding objectification, the picture of any kind has nothing to do with women being objectified. Any person may be objectified only by being treated by another person or group of people as an object. For example, a cleaning lady may be objectified by one employer who does not treat her like a living, feeling person, but not by another employer. The same applies to sex workers and any other profession. It is our attitude that determines whether we objectify someone, not the picture of a woman in a hat.
Pretend for a moment that you're a woman. You go to the office and the men are openly sharing around a porn magazine with no concern. Does that seem like a safe professional workplace? That's essentially what this represents. It isn't what's happening anymore, but it is the origin.
People also used to smoke in offices. Safe and professional is a relatively new thing.
Decorum changes over time, but it isn't new. There's always a set of rules people follow no matter where or when you are.
It's both. It's artsy softcore pornography.
I certainly don't think the full version would be appropriate, but I'm ambivalent about the cropped version.
I don't think people should get their knickers in a twist about sex in the first place.
Everything about Playboy is creepy