Much to do about nothing
I guess some people live in a bubble. I guess some people just haven't read other magazines, watched TV, or listened to the radio, played a video game, or have been to the beach or pool.
The old battle cry of we must have children for the hobby to continue makes me laugh. Kids soon out grown the "let's build a model with daddy stage" find out that there are other things besides building models, like God forbid boys and girls. As much as mommy's and daddy's don't like it, 6 year olds grow up and out grow the hobby, some may return after they grow up, some may not, after they finish school, get a career, and have kids. And the cycle starts over.

Instead of babbling about what you don't like, why don't you use your God given right and not buy it? There are newspapers I don't like, guess what I don't buy them. There are on line retailers I don't like, guess what I don't use them, there are TV shows I don't like, guess what I don't watch them, there are actors and actresses I don't like guess what, I don't go their movies. And the list goes on, But I don't piss on the parade of others that do like them.

Well said Dave could not have said it any better

So if you take your kids down the beach and there are hundreds of half naked ladies lying on the beach do you tell them all to cover themselves up as there are kids about.

Everyone is turning in to a Mary Whitehouse

Spoken like someone who is a) male and b) hasn't had even the slightest moment of critical thought about gender issues in our society. Just because Maxim or Playboy exist in the world, doesn't mean that that kind of content is appropriate anywhere and everywhere. Just like people wear nothing but swimsuits at a pool, but don't wear the same thing to work. Context matters.




Why?

Look, maybe YOU are fine with the hobby as it is, but I'm not. And both views are OK. Don't belittle my desire to see the hobby grow and prosper and I won't belittle your desire to focus on your own self-interests.




Not to state the obvious, but..... maybe if there were more girls in this hobby, they could have both.

More specifically, you say "kids soon outgrow", yet you then go on to talk about these "kids" finding other things like girls. So really, you've already made an incredible presumptuous and sexist assumption that only males are in the hobby or would even be interested. Do you not see the sexism problem at play??




And why are you assuming the cycle has to have a pause? I spent many years at another "kids toy company" where we worked hard to reduce the "dark ages" (that time between 12-18 or so where creating with this particular toy was thought to be "uncool") in order to drive life-long cycle of engagement with the product. The product was a positive, healthy creative medium and we believed that ongoing, life-long engagement was a good thing. I believe the same about modeling and am absolutely NOT content with the idea that this is a hobby for white, old males who spend a great deal of time away from it throughout their lives. If you are, fine. But I'm not. From a philosophical level (construction and focus of building models is good for brain development and overall happiness) to highly tactical (more buyers = healthier industry = more cool products), having wider acceptance and participation is a good thing.




Love it or leave it, eh? Accept it or shut up?

No, I won't do that. I have every right to voice my concern about MY hobby. Just like you have every right to voice your opinions about YOUR hobby. I love the Weathering Magazine. The non-sexist content is fantastic and I desire to consume it. So if I have a concern about parts of it, I'm going to voice those concerns. This is my way of attempting to solve a problem. If I have such strong feelings that I can't buy the magazine because of these faults, I won't buy it. But telling me that I have no right to voice concern and try to affect change is ludicrous.

At the end of the day, there's a difference between having a personal opinion about the objectified women in the magazine, and accepting that they're there. This is supposed to be a modeling magazine, and this SHOULD be a hobby that is accessible and comfortable for anyone who wants to participate. If you're just dying for scantily clad female photography, hit google. Or Maxim. Or Playboy. Or any number of other sources.

As I originally stated.... what *value* do these photos add to the magazine or to our hobby? Alternatively, what message does it send to a girl like my daughter who is genuinely interested in doing more with the hobby?

I challenge you to thoughtfully consider both of those questions before you tell me to love it or leave it.

Ugh. Come on man, try to think outside your male upbringing for a second. There's a difference between sending a message to a little girl that "in this context, minimal clothing is normal" and "all your are to the world is a body".

Think about my daughter or yours (if you have daughter(s)) looking at Weathering Magazine and seeing a half dressed woman with no other purpose of being there or being half dressed than to look good. The message that's sent is simply: "This male dominated hobby sees you as valueless and nothing more than a body".

Since having a daughter I'm trying to raise to be a strong, independent woman, I've started noticing these messages much, much more than I ever have. I'd challenge you to talk to a woman or two of an age less than 50 and see how they actually feel about these topics. Hell, watch the first season of Mad Men and ask yourself if you're contributing to the continuation of that mindset towards women.

Gender equality has come a long, long way since the 1950s, but we still have a long way to go. I'm raising a very smart and talented daughter who struggles to understand gender bias and inequality in daily life in a way that shocks me in 2013. I don't know your age or background, but seriously, I'd encourage you to ask around to people raising daughters today.

Well said Jake,I couldn't have put it any better.Its almost as if you are being belittled for your views,when you have not said anything disparaging about anyone or anything.While not in agreement with all your points,you have been respectful.


I go the other other way,I won't try to change anything,if I don't like it won't buy it,watch it,or go someplace I don't appreciate,including AK magazines.

So does this mean I have to stop my two oldest daughters 11 and 13 not to look through the catalogue as there are women dressed in lingerie.

Thanks, @Tojo72. I get that this is an issue with a wide range of opinions. We see this play out on a daily basis in countless news stories and conversations. I'm a strong believer that nothing changes without open debate and discussion.

I get that we're a hobby made up almost entirely of old, white males. I just wish we didn't act like it so much.

Oh, and I should also mentioned....By focusing on closing the dark ages gap, my old company now produces a vastly wider, more interesting array of products, engages better with customers, and has a much larger audience that does some truly amazing events and activities. There is a very, very tangible benefit from expanding the tent.

As a parent that is your decision

Of course not, and please don't be defensive. Think about what message they are getting when they do. Are they seeing women presented as equal players with the men in the magazine? Or are they seeing the only women for miles as eye candy and model figures with unrealistic (by real world standards) measurements? And by the way, Weather Magazine isn't the only place your girls are seeing these messages. They see it constantly on TV, in magazines, etc. But perhaps it's one place we might be able to have some amount of influence over.

I'm not telling you to do anything with your daughters one way or the other. I'm just asking that perhaps you consider the message they're getting and ask yourself whether you're happy with that message.

EXACTLY
As a parent it is your responsibility and right to decide what YOUR children do, watch, see.
But it is not anyones right to tell me what my children can watch, see or do, nor is it your right to tell me what I can watch, see or do.

Well, you are right, I am a male.
I wasn't talking about Playboy or Maxie. Check the magazine aisle next time you go shopping. Try the hotrod section, RC aircraft section first.

"hasn't had even the slightest moment of critical thought about gender issues in our society."
I was involved in more "gender issues in our society" before you were born.

I've been involved in the hobby for over 50 years and took only 4 years away while in the service. The old battle cry was back then too, still going on today. Guess what--- nothings changed-- kids come, kids go, some come back, some don't.

Do you not see the sexism problem at play
To explain it to you so you can understand it-- Girls find out that boys are more fun than daddy's models, boys find out that girls are more fun than daddy's models. It's called letting kids grow up. Letting them find out what they really like and do not like. Some return to the hobby, many don't. It's called reality. How do I know this-- again watched it happen over and over for the past 50 years. I'm not trying to belittle your noble goal. But I deal with reality and past experiences in this hobby. I've seen more friends kids leave and never come back, then I've seen come back.

Love it or leave it, eh? Accept it or shut up?
Nowhere did I say shut up. Nowhere did I say accept it. I said use you God given rights. I'll say it again-- USE YOUR GOD GIVEN RIGHTS but don't use those rights to silence those that don't think or believe the same way as you do.

If you're just dying for scantily clad female photography, hit google. Or Maxim. Or Playboy. Or any number of other sources.
I personally take great offense to that statement.

As for me, I don't buy it. As there are plenty of sites on the web, with the same information for free.

So MUCH TO DO ABOUT NOTHING

I really shouldn't get into this because I am a prude with nudity in my professional past - art school and commercial art - and hobby past: nose art; a Phoenix Phollies figure; Buccaneer Miniatures figure; D&D figures. I try to 'keep my eyes on my own paper' and avoid that second glance, yet I accept that many others do not share my sense of propriety. Understand that there are movies and magazines and music and performers - individuals as well as genre - that I will not patronize because I find them lewd and promoting a world that I do think is edifying to humanity - men or women.

However, if I see a magazine with an article I want, I weigh the value of the article against the degree of offensiveness of the publication; some I will not pad their wallet regardless of the article. By and large, if I can not rest my conscience with the source, I eschew it. That's my choice.

Consider this: will you buy or not buy, say, a B-17 because it has a naked woman for nose art? Or is the nude the only reason you want the model? Or what if I really wanted a particular airplane type yet the model has decals of nude noseart; nobody can force me to build that particular plane; I can decal it as I see fit. To honor some flightcrews there are specific aircraft I intend to model even though I would not personally decorate my airplane with the particular nose art. Likewise, if I was planning to create a Vietnam diorama as authentically as possible, I might obtain and use some Playboy decals in it.

This really does not address the pros or cons of using "cheesecake" on the cover of a magazine. Simply, one must weigh one's sensibilities against one's desire to use a publication.


Or look at the cover of some women's magazines - Cosmo. Some skanky there! I have a friend who, in college, subscribed to two prominent porn magazines for her husband, and she looked through them every month "to see what men find attractive." That opens an entirely separate topic about objectifying women and body-type dysmorphia for young women of today which is beyond the scope of this thread. A debate that will (I know, never say 'never') never end.

Remarkable!
Do we see a discussion about (mis)use of women in a modeling forum?
I guess this is a " clash of cultures ", the more liberal European attitudes (yes! In general) to the more puritan American?
As a father of 3 daughters I have experienced over the years that they were very well able to put advertisements with women in the right context. Therefore, in my family no pages were removed from magazines, no complaints written to publishers and no pens used to draw black ink bra's over naked breats.

Therefore, I suggest that this discussion will be looked upon as completely out of the intention of this forum and should be held somewhere else!
And, Jim, keep on going. I bought your stuff because of its qualities and the references they got in this forum, not because of the nice girl in your publications!

Paul, Fred good points.
Especially after reading another post about another magazine, I now consider this thread as nothing more than flogging the dead horse. Consider it locked.