The CBLDF Creates Its Own Ethics Committee; Bleeding Cool, March 24, 2021

 

Rich Johnston , Bleeding Cool; The CBLDF Creates Its Own Ethics Committee

"Tomorrow, the free speech activist charity, the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund (CBLDF), will be hosting a Zoom workshop, titled Ethics for All: Building Policy Together. Schedules for the 25th of March at 5-6 pm PT, 8-9 pm ET and from midnight to 1 am GMT.

The CBDLF states "The meeting will be a Zoom workshop in which we'll discuss the principles shaping the development of CBLDF's updated ethics policies and invite you to share your ideas on how these policies can best serve the comics community as a whole. We are examining all the pillars of our ethics policy, including governance, anti-harassment, inclusiveness and diversity, convention conduct, program evaluation, operational transparency, whistleblower protections, and community oversight, including the creation of an ethics committee.

The guest speakers for the meeting will be Tea Fouger, Jenn Haines and Kristina Rogers as well as CBLDF Interim Director Jeff Trexler who will moderate the discussion, including time for live Q&A and discussion."

Batman: Damned’s Digital Release Censors Bruce Wayne’s Naughty Bits; Comic Book Resources, September 19, 2018

Justin Carter, Comic Book Resources; Batman: Damned’s Digital Release Censors Bruce Wayne’s Naughty Bits

[Kip Currier: Tensions related to intellectual freedom, free expression, and censorship in comics and other media formats raise thorny questions about the nebulous distinctions sometimes made between content that is included and omitted in analog and digital formats. Case in point: the new comic, Batman: Damned. These kinds of decisions about free expression and censorship vis-a-vis analog and digital formats have implications for intellectual freedom and the historical record, as well as for diverse domains and activities involving creativity, knowledge, and research.

During a chat today with Mr. Wayne Wise, a graphic novels course instructor as well as a comics historian and creator with Pittsburgh's Oakland-based Phantom of the Attic, Mr. Wise flagged Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples' popular comic book Saga as another example where free expression and censorship have come into conflict. The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund (CBLDF) has a summary of the 2013 Saga controversy here. A thought-provoking quote from that CBLDF case study lays out the larger implications of censorship and self-censorship in the digital age:

Although the removal of Saga #12 was temporary, the circumstances surrounding the case, including Apple’s vague and subjective content policy, lend themselves to a much larger and more frightening issue: To what extent does one need to self-censor in order to make their books available on digital platforms?"]

[Excerpt from Comic Book Resources article]

"CBR has been informed that, while Black Label is an imprint for mature readers, it was decided Bruce Wayne’s nudity was not additive to the story. Thus, the digital version blacked out the scenes. Additionally, CBR has confirmed that future printings of the issue will use the altered panels."