Tuesday, 20 January 2015

No more page 3 ...

Today is a landmark day for journalism: The Sun have decided to get rid of Page 3 (which in case you didn't know, is dedicated to topless women, and has been for years). I am utterly in two minds about this news, and decided to share my thoughts on here.

Glamour modelling is a job like any other; one which young women go into by choice to follow their dream. I'm not denying that some photographers can be sleazy - Terry Richardson, for example, is clearly not a nice guy. A quick Google search will tell you that, although some of the less taboo photos he takes are actually very good pieces of photography. Feminism should, in my eyes, be about promoting gender equality and the freedom for women to do what they choose to do with their own bodies. So called "women's magazines" - by which I mean publications such as Take A Break and Heat Magazine - are literally filled with articles ripping apart other women for gaining a couple of pounds since their last red carpet appearance, or sharing candid bikini shots taken by paparazzi (and you can bet your last pennies that those paps didn't go up to these various females and ask if they could snap a shot of them on the beach, having a well deserved break).

Page 3 is full of women who have worked hard to achieve gorgeous bodies - yes, most of them have had surgery, but again THAT IS THEIR CHOICE - and have chosen to pursue a career in glamour modelling, which has been around in the way we know it for the past 60 years, although photographs of naked women have obviously been around a lot longer. If you're going to ban page 3 and cause women to lose their careers, then surely you have to also ban 'torso of the week' and, of course, the half-naked photos of men on fitness magazines? No? Wrongly, women's nipples are taboo whereas men's are not - despite the fact that they are the exact same, anatomically speaking.

In my eyes, it would be entirely more beneficial to ban The Sun newspaper completely: they are a shoddy example of journalism, spreading lies and hate in a socially irresponsible way. Perhaps I'm biased, being from Merseyside, but you only have to read their disgusting coverage of the Hillsborough disaster (1989) to see how vile their opinions are. But around 41% of their readers are women, so clearly their page 3 is not that much of a problem. Of course they're not going to get rid of The Sun any time soon, it being the second most popular newspaper in the country (which is startling, to say the least) - but banning Page 3 isn't really productive either.

This is not a victory for feminism - it will lead to more calls of "Get ya tits out" from builders on the street who are having withdrawals from their daily dose of women who have CHOSEN to get their kit off. And besides, today's page 3 of The Sun has paparazzi photos of women on the beach, like those I mentioned which are all over "women's magazines" ... Is that progress? Really?

I don't particularly think a newspaper is the place for glamour modelling to be shown; however, I obviously don't read The Sun, as I have more than 3 brain cells (no offence to anyone who does read it but it really is the worst example of British journalism I can think of. If you're wondering, the Daily Mail is second on that list) - and I can't remember the last time I saw a image of glamour modelling, other than scrolling down the #Page3 hashtag on Twitter today. So if you're not actively seeking it out, it's not exactly thrust in your face. If you don't like it, don't look.

Basically, what I'm trying to say is that you can attack The Sun and you can attack Rupert Murdoch (not physically, although he would have it coming) - but in the name of feminism, don't attack girls who are making a living by showing off their bodies by choice. Did I mention it's their choice?

I really want to hear everyone's opinions so please let me know what you think!

Want to know what happened when I went gin tasting? 'course you do


  1. 100% agree with you! If women want to go into glamour modelling, they have every right to and that's completely their decision - no one has a right to stop them doing what they want to do. But I think newspapers should have more in the way of news, and less in the way of boobs. So I don't like page 3 or the Sun, and I intensely dislike the Daily Mail and absolutely everything that Rupert Murdoch is associated with! Such a good post - things like this need to be talked about!! :) x


    1. Glad you agree! Yeah that's exactly what I think, I hate Murdoch and all of his so-called 'news', which all basically contain lies, hatred and scaremongering (and boobs!) Thank you lovely x

  2. I agree. I see this as a completely backward step because now instead of men policing what women can and can't do it's women. Where is the difference? These people who are so offended are still perpetuating the idea that women's breasts are somehow indecent and shouldn't be on display.... That is a notion that I cannot get my head around. Do people not realise that some men are aroused from people playing with their nipples? Therefore why are men's bare chests still allowed to be showed? It's a complete double standard but I doubt anyone will campaign to get topless men banned. I don't see what is wrong with women choosing this career, if they want to do it let them. I'm actually impressed because I would never be brave enough to let people take photos of me like that. And in fairness, we all know that The Sun is just a glorified magazine anyway.

    Lauren :) x

    1. Yeah I completely agree, it is a huge step in the wrong direction! Everything is about choices and if people choose to enter that career and aren't being forced into anything there shouldn't be a problem. I personally don't think a newspaper is place to show it but if people are gonna read tripe like The Sun, then they probably want to see it! x

  3. I completely agree!!! their body their choice :) x

  4. I completely agree with everything you've said! xx

  5. Good on you for writing a blog post about this - it's a difficult topic and I think most people would shy away from discussing it.

    I have to say though, I support the No More Page 3 campaign and I'm disappointed that this turned out to be nothing more than a cheap publicity trick by The Sun.

    While I agree that glamour modelling is the model's choice, I don't think their actions exist in a bubble which only affects them - Page 3 (and other soft porn, including The Star) is a wart on daily newspapers which doesn't belong in "family" newspapers which are sold in supermarkets and corner shops next to comic books and TV guides. If a woman wants to model half naked then it doesn't have to be for The Sun - a feature which normalises the sexualisation of women and the belittling of female sexuality. If you've ever seen Page 3, you'll have seen every day they feature a little news bubble over the top of the image with the woman's thoughts on the day, so "Tiffany, 19, Bournemouth" can discuss her opinion on fracking, food banks or George Osbourne's latest budget policy. This little box alone is designed to ridicule women - how often do people joke about how these opinions are clearly not those of these women, as if it's not possible to be beautiful, sexy AND intelligent. It's not only that little box - The Sun's consistent opinion on women seems to be you're either a fun bimbo, bitter minger or old maid - but by so obviously pointing the finger and laughing at undressed women with opinions on the news, it sends a pretty clear message.

    I also have to mention, because I've seen this sentiment so much, it's easy to say 'don't like it, don't buy it' but I've never, ever purchased a copy of The Sun, but I have seen Page 3 too many times to remember - when people read it on public transport, when it's left lying in cafes, bars and staff rooms, etc. I remember seeing Page 3 and feeling uncomfortable about it from a very young age - boobs at the breakfast table has always felt very alien to me.

    I'm sorry that this turned into such a big rant - it wasn't aimed at you personally, I just had to express the other side of the argument a little bit!