Panel discusses Madonna's music video

Over 70 students attended a panel discussion last Wednesday on whether or not Madonna's music video "Justify My Love" is pornography or art. The two-hour discussion was moderated by Assistant Director for Residential Services Joe Kirk and consisted of debate, not only about the video, which was banned by MTV last year, but also about flag burning and the breakdown of the American family. The discussion began with a viewing of the entire video and was followed by debate. The panel members did not reach a consensus as to whether or not the video was pornography or art, or a combination of both. Rimmel said videos like "Justify Your Love" exploit women and desensitize men into viewing women as "a nice piece of meat." Mattern said there should be some concern about children seeing the video. "We need to regulate at some level that children don't see this," he said. Marvin said the video was not harmful and parents need to take responsibility in determining what their children view. Nearly half the audience had trickled out by the end of the discussion and those that remained said that they found it disappointing. "I think some of the individuals here came with a platform of their own . . .a lot of people got turned off," Wharton sophomore Brian King said. College senior Mee Rhan Kim said she did not feel the discussion addressed the issue of "Porn or Art." "I didn't think it would be quite as political or theoretical or broad as the discussion was," she said.

Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.