COVER STORY
Decency
Kurt Andersen talks with cultural commentators Michael Medved and Rochelle Gurstein about how our culture defines decency, and how far we should go to protect freedom of expression.

The Aristocrats
In their new documentary, Penn Jillette and Paul Provenza explore the history of the filthiest joke in the world, and why every comedian has a personal version. The film features over 100 comedians telling the joke as offensively as possible. Kurt asked Jillette about how and why he put together the film, which carries the tagline: No nudity, no violence, unspeakable obscenity.
Read the interview with the editor of Aristocrats
WARNING! Explicit content in the Aristocrats websites we link to below.
Visit official site for The Aristocrats
Hear the uncensored South Park version of the Aristocrats joke

Jerry Springer--The Opera
Turning "Jerry Springer," the infamous American TV talk show, into an opera for the London stage was an artistic gamble in its own right. But it got more complicated recently when the opera aired on the BBC. A Christian group tried to take legal action against the BBC, claiming "Jerry Springer--The Opera" blasphemed the Christian faith. From religion to sex to government-funded broadcasting and art, the controversy manages to hit all the points in the ongoing debate over decency. Produced by Peter Crimmins.
Go to Jerry Springer--The Opera
Go to an article in defense of the Opera
Buy a CD of Jerry Springer--The Opera

Mr. Clean
Hollywood movies with any profanity must be cleaned up before they run on TV and on airplanes. We talked to an actor named Mark Sussman who specializes in dubbing over the smutty lines of Brad Pitt. Produced by Ben Adair and Ayala Ben-Yehuda of KPCC in Pasadena.
Visit KPCC's Pacific Drift where this piece first aired

Phoebe Gloeckner
Phoebe Gloeckner is a medical illustrator, but she also writes graphic novels. Gloeckner's stories are autobiographical, and feature disturbing content like childhood sexual abuse. She tells her stories through eyes of a girl named Minnie. One day last year, a boy checked out Gloeckner’s "A Child's Life and Other Stories" from a library in Stockton, California. He showed the book to his mother, and Gloeckner told Ann Hepperman her version of what happened next. Co-produced by Kara Oehler.
Go to Phoebe Gloeckner's website
Buy A Child's Life
Buy Diary of A Teenage Girl

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SPECIAL GUESTS
Michael Medved and Rochelle Gurstein
Michael Medved is a radio talk show host, veteran film critic, and the author of several books -- including an indictment of the entertainment industry called Hollywood Vs. America. His new book is a memoir called Right Turns: Unconventional Lessons from a Controversial Life.
Visit Michael Medved's official site
Buy books by Michael Medved


Rochelle Gurstein is the author of The Repeal of Reticence: A History of America's Cultural and Legal Struggles Over Free Speech, Obscenity, Sexual Liberation and Modern Art. She also contributes regularly to The New Republic.
Read Rochelle Gurstein's columns at the New Republic Online
Buy Rochelle's book: The Repeal of Reticence

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