ANSON-ROA WARNS VS PROLIFERATION OF PORNOGRAPHY February 9, 2004 Senatorial candidate Boots Anson-Roa warned yesterday against the continued proliferation of pornography, pointing out its harmful effects on public morals and the society in general. Anson-Roa, recipient of the Gintong Ina and the Ten Outstanding Women in the Nation’s Service awards, said there is a need to define in clearer terms the parameters of press freedom or freedom of _expression in order to dispel the view that pornography, such as the showing of nude women, is covered or protected by that right. The multi-awarded actress, who is running for the Senate under the Koalisyon ng Nagkakaisang Pilipino (KNP) headed by the Fernando Poe Jr-Loren Legarda presidential tandem, said the growth of smut is evident in many of the tabloids showing photos of nude women and even on film and videos. Anson-Roa cited two kinds of pornography—the soft core, in which the erotic material is more titillating than explicit, and the hard core, in which the content is explicit and intense. According to her people behind the showing of pornography tend to stretch the meaning of press freedom or freedom of _expression, arguing that the showing of nude women is covered by this constitutional right. Proponents of the liberal view toward pornography claim that it is a harmless diversion and could serve to relieve sex tensions. However, she stressed that pornography presents a degrading and socially harmful picture of women, which is demeaning to womanhood and has harmful effects on the values of the youth. At the same time, Anson-Roa said there should be stricter supervision of mass media against smut as well as the imposition of a higher penalty for the exhibition of smut. “Pornography, whether in film or mass media, is a form of obscenity that must be subject to some form of censorship or be summarily banned altogether to protect public morals,” Anson-Roa, who had also been named Outstanding Alumna by the University of the Philippines and Women Who Make A Difference by Soroptimist International, stated.