Women, Sex and Media

An afternoon seminar examining some of the ways in which women’s sexuality is produced, represented and consumed in television drama, women’s porn and girl zines.

This event is organized by the Communication and Media Studies Group, Sheffield Hallam University. All women working in media, communication and cultural studies welcome. The event is free, but please register before 16 November 2006 by emailing Feona Attwood on feona.attwood@btinternet.com.

Schedule

1pm

Welcome

1.15 – 2.30pm

Keynote Talk and Discussion

Jane Arthurs
Charitable Politics: Women’s rights as human rights in campaigns against sex trafficking
Jane Arthurs teaches Media and Cultural studies at the University of the West of England and is a member of the MECCSA executive committee.  She has published widely on women, sexuality and the media. Her most recent book is Television and Sexuality: Regulation and the Politics of Taste (2004, Open University Press) which investigates the impact of multichannel digital television on sexual portrayal. She is currently researching the media strategies used in global charitable campaigns against sex trafficking, such as UNICEF or MTV’s Exit Campaign, and the aesthetic and ethical issues these raise.

2.30 – 3pm

Coffee

3 – 4.30pm

Panel Presentation and Discussion

Clarissa Smith
Emotional Vibrations and Physical Sensations: Women Reading Porn Fictions
Clarissa Smith teaches Media & Cultural Studies at the University of Sunderland. Her research interests are the production and consumption of pornography, sex retailing, audiences and popular cultures. Her published work includes studies of softcore pornography, readers of For Women magazine, and the erotic performers, The Chippendales. Her book, One for the Girls! The Production and Readership of Pornography for Women is published by Intellect Books in 2007.

Rebecca Munford
‘If it feels good, screw it’: Girlie Feminism, the Sex Wars and Raunch Culture
Rebecca Munford teaches English at the University of Exeter. Her research interests are women’s writing, contemporary feminist theory and popular culture. She is the co-editor of Third Wave Feminism: A Critical Exploration (2004). Her latest book, Feminism and Popular Culture: Explorations in Post-feminism, co-authored with Stacy Gillis, is published by I.B.Tauris in 2007.

4.30 – 5pm

Discussion and Conclusion