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I still remember the first time I picked up an issue of Seventeen magazine. I was twelve years old, and it took some serious persuading on my part to convince my mom that I was old enough to read a magazine targeted to seventeen-year-old girls (My... Read the rest of this post

BTS embraces show-and-tell shopping (As we mentioned last week in our BTS roundup, JC Penney announced today that video "hauls" will be a major component of their BTS campaign The sponsored vids will go up this week on jcp.com/teen as well as... Read the rest of this post

'Toy Story 3′ storms the box office (giving Hollywood a much-needed cash infusion this summer and Pixar's biggest opening [$109 million] to date. Maybe this study will push licensing folks to package healthy snacks with cartoon characters on... Read the rest of this post

Time Warner-Viacom face-off over New Year's, the anemic ratings of MTV's two newest reality shows may not have gotten that much attention from MTV executives. But now that the dust has settled,  they will most likely be taking a second look at "The... Read the rest of this post

Confusion runs amuck concerning Maureen Johnson's The Bermudez Triangle and its banning in Barltesville. In Maureen Johnson's latest web log entry, she goes over the whole conversation with officials to try to find out whether her book has been banned, "half banned," or under no threat.

I AM A VERY DANGEROUS PERSON is the title of a recent entry on Maureen Johnson's web log.

She had received an email from Ninja Librarian Susan Hunt of the Bartlesville, Oklahoma school district, where a challenge to Maureen Johnson's The Bermudez Triangle,a Young Adult novel, was made on March 4, 2007. The committee reconsidering the novel informed Susan Hunt that the decision had been made to pull the book from the library. Apparently in 19 years, this is the first book that has raised objections.

Says Johnson,

Well, well, well. Looks like I went and got myself banned! Apparently I have written something so dangerous that it can’t be contained on the shelf of a high school library.

I’m shocked and appalled at the lack of discretion, and moral decline in the selection of books at the Mid-High library. Homosexual content, unprotected sex, underage drinking, and reckless promiscuity are not values that belong in a school library. I understand there are parents or teens who are dealing with these issues, but not all parents want their kids exposed to this material. Personally, I would not endorse any of these types of book as “14-and-15-year-old-friendly.” Giving teenagers knowledge without guidance is irresponsible and dangerous. As a parent, I screen my 15-year-old’s television, Internet, video game, magazines, and books. There are things she’s not mature enough to handle, or are simply wrong for her. Parents are a child’s best line of defense in a world that rushes to grow them up too soon. This book, “The Bermudez Triangle” has no moral fiber, and wrongly promotes a “do whomever you want to discover yourself” mentality. There’s no mention of the myriad of diseases, pregnancy, destruction of friendships and lives that are very real consequences of a “sexual free-for-all” decision. I ask that his material be removed at once. You have a responsibility to the children at school to protect them and educate them. Let’s raise the bar a little higher, respect moral values and a parent’s right to guard that which has been entrusted to their care.

No moral fiber? Really? I beg to differ. The book is entirely about what happens to friendships when relationships enter the picture. That is, in fact, the whole book. Since there is no sex in it (just some kissing), pregnancy is not really an issue.