Al Gore’s selection of Joe Lieberman as his running mate was a surprise to many. It was said to be a cause for concern in Hollywood. Lieberman had joined with Republican conservative Bill Bennett to criticize Hollywood and the TV networks for showing too much sex, violence and profanity. Whether he meant it or not, other liberals are starting to get concerned as well. A recent issue of Entertainment Weekly magazine has a cover story headlined, “Are there no limits?”, with a subhead line that reads: “Filth, raunch, violence & hate rule pop culture – has showbiz finally gone too far?”

The answer is clearly “yes,” although we didn’t expect the question to be posed by Entertainment Weekly, a publication that exists to promote the entertainment industry. But the coverage indicates that there is concern from within the industry about the amount of sleaze being pumped out of Hollywood.

Some of what is in the article is new to us, and we can’t go into as much detail as the article about what is on television and in films these days. The article says there is a prime-time television commercial for Reebok athletic shoes suggesting oral sex as a hiker who has been bitten by a poisonous snake gets venom sucked from his leg. Entertainment Weekly says, “Even leading purveyors of bad taste have been blown away by its suggestiveness.” One observer was quoted as saying, “How are they getting away with that…?” The answer: “Because CBS is letting them.” The commercial has been airing during the CBS “Survivor” show, which is said to be “a nightly stew of bleeped dialogue and bubbling sexual tension.”

You may be happy to know that even CBS has standards, however. A Reebok spokesman is quoted as saying that the network wouldn’t air a commercial showing two people drinking their own urine. Reebok has put the commercial on its own web site, highlighted as the “ad CBS refused to run.” It’s not clear what any of this has to do with selling shoes, but that is what Reebok thought was necessary to get the public’s attention.

The sex theme is undoubtedly part of the Bill Clinton legacy. Because of his affair with White House intern Monica Lewinsky, he has brought discussion of unorthodox sexual practices into our family rooms through the television. It is now popular and funny to talk about such things. Entertainment Weekly says the same theme is surfacing in several recent films, including Scary Movie and the Klumps, a film starring Eddie Murphy.

Asked for comment on all of this, Jack Valenti of the Motion Picture Association says he has “no opinions about what constitutes crossing the line…” It is interesting that there has been speculation in the press that Valenti may step down from his post next year to make way for—Bill Clinton. Yes, Clinton could take over the Motion Picture Association. As we are recording this commentary, Clinton has just attended a major fundraiser in Hollywood, where he was hoping to raise $10 million for his presidential library. Some say his library should be an adult book store.

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