Call for ‘lad mag’ Zoo Weekly to be pulled from supermarkets comes to New Zealand
Stuff co.nz 14 September 2015
Family First is calling for a lads’ mag Zoo Weekly to be banned from Countdown shelves.
But a spokesman for the supermarket says it has “no plans” to remove it and it takes responsible steps when displaying the magazine.
A petition that started in Australia, calling for supermarkets across the ditch to stop stocking men’s magazine Zoo, has been picked up in New Zealand by conservative Christian group Family First.
Australian supermarket Coles has already pulled the magazine, known for its photoshoots of scantily-clad women and racy content, from its shelves.
The petition to drop Zoo from Woolworths, which owns Countdown stores in New Zealand, soon followed, with almost 40,000 people so far calling for its chief executives to “bin Zoo magazine immediately”.
Laura Pintur, who started the campaign, said the magazine was being sold next to children’s magazines on supermarket stands.
“When I heard Zoo was regularly promoting rape culture and sexism with phrases like ‘you want to pick the “loosest/skankiest” one of the lot and fetch her a drink…separate her from the flock’. I couldn’t stand by and watch it promoted to kids at supermarkets,” she said.
In New Zealand Family First has picked up the baton, on Monday morning calling on Countdown to ban the magazine.
National director Bob McCoskrie said the magazine did not belong on supermarket shelves.
“I think if I showed you it, you see it promotes a rape culture, it objectifies women, teaches boys to be predatory, it’s the continued sexualisation of women.
“We believe it’s harmful to society,” he said.
McCoskrie said he would be calling on Family First’s support base of 27,000 to start speaking to managers in their local supermarkets about the issue.
“We want to encourage families to politely speak to managers and ask if it’s appropriate to make a profit out of these messages,” he said.
A Countdown spokesperson said it was just one of more than 1000 stockists selling the magazine around the country.
The supermarket sells less than a quarter of Zoo magazines in New Zealand, and they were appropriately positioned in store, he said.
“Given the content, the magazine is positioned in the top right tier of the magazine stand in the aisle and is not placed at check outs. At Countdown we do not stock any restricted-age publications.”
McCoskrie said ultimately the group would like Zoo pulled from all retailer’s shelves.
“It brings us back to an interesting debate: where is the line between freedom of expression and protection of society?
“We would ask whether [Zoo magazine] serves any merit in society.”
http://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/72013642/Call-for-lad-mag-Zoo-Weekly-to-be-pulled-from-supermarkets-comes-to-New-Zealand?cid=app-iPhone
Countdown refuses to pull Zoo magazine from shelves
Radio NZ News 14 September 2015
Across the Tasman, Coles has stopped selling ZOO Weekly, which campaigners say objectifies women, promotes rape culture and sends teenagers the wrong message.
Local campaigners have called for similar action in New Zealand, but Progressive Enterprises – which owns Countdown supermarkets – says it won’t be removing the magazine.
In a statement released today, Countdown supermarket said the magazine was sold at more than 1,000 outlets nationally, including service stations and book stores, and it would continue to sell it.
But it said it placed the magazine in the top tier of its stands due to the content, and it was not placed at the checkout.
Darryl Gardiner has been working with New Zealand youth for more than two decades, mentoring boys aged 11 to 25. He said it was worrying the magazine was so easy for young men to get their hands on.
“We want to raise our children and our young men and women with positive views of themselves and positive views of others and anything that’s objectifying we don’t want them to have access to, so if supermarkets are making this stuff available, particularly to children, it’s of great concern.”
Mr Gardiner said explicit content found in ZOO and similar magazines could be extremely damaging for some children.
He said ultimately, it was up to Countdown to take the responsibility and do something, such as put the magazine out of children’s reach, cover it up, or pull it entirely.
“This is where the whole issue of cooperate responsibility comes in,” he said. “There is nothing wrong with businesses themselves making a stand on certain things and saying this is not part of our values as a business, this is not the stuff we stand for so, we will voluntarily choose not have this on our shelves.”
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/284125/countdown-refuses-to-pull-men’s-mag-from-shelves
Lads’ mag Zoo to stay on Countdown shelves amid fierce petition for it to be binned
OneNews Now 14 September 2015
So far nearly 35,000 people have signed the petition launched by Australian women’s rights advocate Laura Pintur.
A Countdown spokesperson told One News Now they are not considering cutting ties with the magazine “at this stage”.
“Zoo is widely distributed by more than 1,000 retailers throughout New Zealand, including book stores, service stations and general stores,” the spokesperson said.
“Countdown supermarkets sell less than a quarter of all Zoo magazines in New Zealand.
“Given the content, the magazine is positioned in the top right tier of the magazine stand in the aisle and is not placed at check outs.
https://www.tvnz.co.nz/one-news/new-zealand/lads-mag-zoo-to-stay-on-countdown-shelves-amid-fierce-petition-for-it-be-binned-q10611
