Outcry over “Kinseyan” language on a government-linked website led to editorial changes within a day. (779 hits)
[WARNING: This report contains very explicit sexual terminology. Subject matter and data may be inappropriate for young children. Reader discretion advised.]
Web Editors Respond to Family Groups’ Concerns
Family-friendly organizations expressed concern today over a website linked by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) describing children as “s*xual beings.” By late afternoon, the language on the site had been changed.
HHS’s site, healthfinder.gov, contains a link in its Quick Guide to Healthy Living section called “Questions And Answers About s*x,” which takes readers directly to KidsHealth.org. On Wednesday, the site said, “Children are human beings and therefore s*xual beings,” and discussed topics, such as when children become “curious about s*x” and when parents should become concerned about masturbation. Late Thursday, the reference to kids as s*xual beings had been deleted, and the references to masturbation changed to “self-touching.”
The site is part of The Nemours Foundation’s Center for Children’s Health Media. The foundation was established in 1936 by Alfred I. DuPont to improve children’s health. KidsHealth.org has won four Webby Awards for its work in helping parents and doctors communicate better with kids about health issues. Family Research Council spokesman Peter Sprigg noted Alfred Kinsey promoted the idea of children as “s*xual beings” in the 1950s.
“(Kinsey’s) research actually included the molestation of children as young as infants,” Sprigg said. “The idea that children are s*xual from birth is the philosophical foundation for those who seek the acceptance of pedophilia.” The revisions, he said, are an improvement.” KidsHealth.org Editor-in-Chief Neil Izenberg, M.D., FAAP, told CitizenLink the term “s*xual beings” “certainly could be misinterpreted—and deflect from the article’s focus helping parents deal with an important developmental issue.
“The online discussions about the article, which we became aware of, prompted us to take another look and makes some edits,” he said. “Each year, over 250 million visitors come to the site — and we continually review and update the many thousands of articles we have. Although the vast majority of the 200,000 emails we’ve received are supportive and appreciative, we do get critical comments from time to time. When that happens, we take the opportunity to go back and look at the content through the eyes of our visitor. When we can rephrase things to make them clearer or improve their meaning, we are happy to do so.”
