The LA Times has a very revealing story about Joe Francis, the founder of Girls Gone Wild (GGW). Let’s just say that the only positive thing I can say about him is that he’s rich. You can read some good analysis at ObWi and at Pandagon.

Go read it and if you’re not disturbed by the time you come back, let me know what you think of this question:

Would requiring models in films like GGW to be sober destroy Girls Gone Wild?

If you answer yes, what does that say about the series?

I’m not sure you could actually craft an enforceable law, or how exactly you’d enforce it, but the commercials for this always make me uncomfortable.

My only experience with this sort of thing was a trip down to New Orleans with a bunch of coworkers. Two things stuck out to me. One was the presence of “professional” videographers down there with fairly sophisticated gear taping the “show your tits” craziness unfold. And the sheer number of disposable cameras flashing with every lifted shirt. I also felt that the women participating were often drunk or almost desperate for attention. There was also a lot of crowd coercion. It stretched the meaning of voluntary, at least to me, and the presence of people who were clearly out there to make money changed it from hedonistic pleasure to something a bit more creepy.