Any nudist will tell you that having their picture snapped by a camera they own is no big deal. Look at any reputable nudist website and you will see people in their natural state doing random chores or enjoying the beach. The focus is not on their genitals (or for women, their breasts), because the photo is simply of a human, being. For a nudist, the fact that one is enjoying life with the freedom to be nude is the point of the picture. Which brings me to the conundrum of Cleveland Indians outfielder Grady Sizemore and his sexually-tinged photos now released to the web.
Sizemore claims his girlfriend’s computer was hacked and self-shot photos in front of his bathroom mirror meant solely for her have been disseminated across many portals. These photos include shots of him in various stages of undress, including one where he is covering his penis with a coffee cup. It’s the most innocent shot of the bunch, one of pure novelty and ridiculousness amid several others that are more sexually provocative.
The Associated Press release on the Sizemore photos twice mentions the lack of clothing in the photos, choosing to emphasize Sizemore’s near nakedness. Not once, though, does the story mention his numerous crotch grabs – through different types of clothing – or the hand down his pants while he ogles a photo of his Playboy model girlfriend. In other words, the press chose to trumpet the nakedness and let that represent the entirety of what is out there. For the discerning nudist, such stories make one bristle.
News reports that rely on the words “nude” or “naked” to attract eyeballs to their pages, while at the same time implicitly looking for us to disapprove, do us all a disservice. The blurring of the line between innocent nakedness and sexually charged images chips away at progress in the greater society for the nudist community. And when that blurred line confuses enough folks to create a critical mass, the freedom to be is threatened. The AP’s coverage of the Grady Sizemore photos, which were clearly taken for sexual purposes, should have been more discerning in their description.
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