ABSTRACT
Contemporary America is dominated by mass media and mass media are dominated by sex. Every day in every way media culture is a hothouse of sensational sexual stories and images. Sexuality, which could be a life-affirming source of intimacy, pleasure, and renewal, seems too often to have become an opportunity for personal and interpersonal anxiety. A competitive performance mentality is taking over sexual life, with people feeling they must measure up to ever-higher standards of sexual attractiveness and sexual adequacy. Every aspect of sex, gender, and reproduction is being transformed by globalization, technology, and longer life. Just look at how the new reproductive technologies are breaking down traditional ideas of father and mother and bringing babies into the world in completely new ways. But these social changes in sex, gender, and reproduction produce a lot of stress, as each of us, raised with one set of values, has to adjust to new ideas and life choices.
