No one wants to be Carrie Bradshaw anymore.
During the ’90s sex-positive movement, sex columns broke the boundaries of journalism by pushing what stays in the bedroom onto the front page. Sex columnists destigmatized sex by promoting open conversations about taboo topics, but in the decades since, those dialogues have disappeared.
The Journal‘s had several sex columns that have come and gone.
In collaboration with the Sexual Health Resource Centre (SHRC), “QJ Sex” emerged as an anonymous advice column with contributors using the pseudonym, “The Expert Sexpert.” From 2012-2015, one of SHRC’s sexperts anonymously answered questions submitted by Queen’s students about sex, health, and relationships.
In an effort to break boundaries in student journalism, these articles combatted misinformation on everything from birth control, to kinks, to anal sex. However, even impersonal question-and-answer sessions had to be hidden behind a pseudonym.
Only a few select articles went to print.
In 2018, ” The Tricolour Sex Diary” appeared as a sex column with an anecdotal focus featuring sensationalized anonymous entries about Clone-a-Willy’s gone wrong, dating app hookups, and sleeping with two roommates in one weekend. While these articles were no longer centered on sex education, at least they were printed in colour on full pages.
Here, anonymity protects professionalism, reputations, and comfort. However, without names, it’s easy to fabricate diary entries, harming integrity for the sake of a funny read.
Briefly in 2020 to 2021, sex ed was back in session with “The Tricolour Sex Column.” Published under the pseudonyms, “The Kinky Scholar” and “The Assistant Kinky Scholar,” these articles broadly discussed a variety of topics with some misinformed opinions slipping in.
Then, history repeated itself and this column disappeared too.
These sex columns all take inspiration from The Daily Californian‘s “Sex on Tuesday,” the oldest continued sex column at a university newspaper, but The Journal’s columns have always been anonymous. Since 1996, The Daily Cali has published countless stories with headshots and names attached, reflecting on their personal experiences while educating students.
“Although I’ve always been a very open person when it comes to discussing sex, I find myself being much more open writing about it, and have published some things I don’t think I’d ever said out loud to someone else before, which in a sense, is very liberating,” student sex columnist Khristina Holterman wrote in a statement to The Daily Californian. “But also I’ve learned the difficulty in writing about something so personal in talking about experiences very specific to myself, and trying to relate those or find a broader message that reaches everyone who reads it.”
As demonstrated by “Sex on Tuesday,” when faces and names are shown, sex columns can be one of the most honest forms of reporting. If concerns for privacy are rooted in fear, it pushes the agenda that these stories must be hidden. This risks the perpetuation of censorship towards sexual content, which disproportionately affects queerness.
“Pillow Talk” is unprecedented at The Journal. There are many stories waiting to be told, but there are few Queen’s students who are willing to participate in a sex column publicly. Turned off by its lack of privacy, “Pillow Talk” is struggling to discuss sex openly since sex is still a topic we are meant to feel ashamed about, despite the fact that these conversations are relevant to the student body.
My digital footprint is marked. When future employers search my name, I’m sure they’ll come across, “You’re right, being gay is my whole personality.” However, any professional risks I took on when publicly sharing my story were rendered void when readers expressed to me how much they related to my experiences.
Sure, I wrote the article, but it is not just “my” story. I reported on a collective experience through anecdotes and facts for readers to resonate with while also learning what classrooms will not teach us.
Although The Journal reports on sex occasionally, it’s concerning that dedicated columns to regularly discuss sexual topics are gone, but that’s exactly why we need to bring one back.
In an era where trust in the press is fading, honest reporting on human experiences can rebuild that relationship between publications and their readers — let’s begin facilitating those open exchanges in a public, published dialogue about sex, love, and relationships.
Tags
Pillow Talk, QJ Sex, Sex column, tri-colour sex diary, Tricolour Sex Column
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