LOS ANGELES—It is so typical of modern life that Morality in Media would go on a tear about lad mags on military bases, getting senators like Jeff Sessions all lathered up, only to have the base stores pull them from the shelves for poor sales after the brass had given the green light to keep selling them.
What is surprising, however, is the number of magazines that will no longer be sold. According to the American Forces Press Service, “Army and Air Force Exchange Service stores will no longer carry 891 magazines including Playboy, Penthouse, American Curves and Tattoo effective Wednesday.”
In an announcement issued yesterday by the DoD, Army Lt. Col. Antwan C. Williams, AAFES public affairs chief, commented, “The decision to no longer stock the material is a business decision driven by the time, money and energy required to facilitate buying habits, combined with decreasing demand.”
The DoD continued, “Among the 891 magazines that AAFES exchanges no longer will sell are some adult titles, including Playboy, Penthouse, American Curves, and Tattoo. Along with other magazine sales, sales of adult sophisticate titles at AAFES stores have declined 86 percent since 1998.”
Williams added that magazine sales “are on a sustained downward trajectory due to the proliferation of digital delivery, and the exchange, as a government entity, is operating in a fiscally constrained environment that requires it to shrink expenses while growing sales and earnings.”
In a sense, Morality in Media got their way, but not for the reasons they wanted. Now look for them to lobby for a U.K.-style porn ban minus the ability to opt-in.
