Babeland co-founder Claire asked me to post this blog�for her!�The Sexies Make History!The very first Sex Positive Journalism Awards, a.k.a. the Sexies, were given out at a star-studded ceremony recently in New York City, and Babeland was there as a proud founding sponsor! The Sexies are the brainchild of Miriam Axel-Lute, a journalist who in the course of her career became increasingly frustrated with the way newspapers and magazines routinely treat sex news differently from writing on other issues. Why is it so hard for writers and editors to maintain their journalistic standards when the topic they?re covering is sex? Obviously it?s because when it comes to sex, there is a lot of pressure in our culture to conform, which leads to bias and sensationalism in the media. Only clear-headed and courageous writers can maintain their objectivity under such pressure.�Miriam decided it was time to formally recognize journalists who covered sex objectively, without sensationalizing it and without marginalizing sexual subcultures, and who challenged sex-negativity in their sources. And so the Sexies were born!�Lolita Wolf played hostess, and welcomed judges, speakers and honorees. Judith Levine spoke about the hysterical media circus that accompanied the publication of her great book Harmful to Minors: the Perils of Protecting Children from Sex. Winners who attended the ceremony included Amanda Robb who took home an award for her opinion piece "Abstinence 1, S-CHIP O? in the New York Times which exposed abstinence-only sex education as a danger to children. Daniel Engber won for his feature about the inhumane restrictions put on the sex lives of nursing home residents ("Naughty Nursing Homes," Slate). Debbie Nathan was honored for exposing the New York Times? shoddy, irresponsible coverage of internet porn in her piece "Hysteria, Exploitation, and Witch Hunting in the Age of Internet Sex," in Counterpunch. For a complete list of winners, go to www.sexies.org�The atmosphere was a delicious combination of the serious and the sexy. Bartenders in nothing but whitey-tighties served drinks to professional writers and reporters, as well as sex culture luminaries including Tristan Taormino, Susan Wright of National Coalition for Sexual Freedom, Carol Queen from the Center for Sex Positive Culture, and Reid Mihalko, founder of Cuddle Parties.�Now that the 2008 Sexies are history, it?s time to get cracking on 2009! If you have read an article about sex that you find refreshingly balanced and honest, go to the Sexies website and let them know ? you could be nominating one of next year?s winners!�