Includes bibliographical references (p.247-272) and index.

Introduction : The 1950s : no sex, please, we're American -- The pill and the media : spawning a revolution -- Playboy magazine : taking pornography into the mainstream -- James Bond : bringing sex into the movies -- Jim Morrison of The Doors : pushing the limits of sex in music -- All in the family : bringing sex to American television -- Cosmopolitan magazine : celebrating the sexually active woman -- Donahue : taking sex on morning TV -- Three's company : adding jiggle to the small screen -- Movies of the 1980s : erasing sexual taboos -- American advertising : pitching with prurience -- Madonna : tackling sexual issues through music -- The gay nineties : Adam and Eve + Adam and Steve -- The Black nineties : showcasing African-American sexuality -- Semen on the front page : Bill Clinton's sex life redefines the news -- Youth media : shaping teenage sexual values -- Paying for sex (on cable) : Sex and the city and Queer as folk -- Cyberporn : bringing sex to the World Wide Web -- Reality television : crossing new sexual thresholds -- "Sexual literacy" : understanding the media's sexual messages.

Streitmatter (communication, American U.) considers sex as it's portrayed in popular culture as well as some of the "provocateurs" who have played starring roles over the past 50 years in shifting media consciousness from sexual prudery to sexual preoccupation. From the Pill to Playboy to Jim Morrison to reality television and the Web, Streitmatter's social history explores the evolving sexual messages conveyed to Americans in print, film, broadcast, advertising, music, and online. He concludes that the pervasiveness of sexual content actually provides a valuable service by exposing media consumers, especially young people, to topics they need to be familiar with in an era of AIDS, STDs, and the return of reckless sexual behavior. Annotation #169;2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com) Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.