Students at Christ Church have voted to add The Sun and The Daily Mirror to their JCR newspaper subscriptions.
The JCR motion, proposed by third-year history and politics student Ed Waldegrave, was adopted by an overwhelming majority on Sunday evening; only three students voted against it.
It is the second JCR this year to subscribe to the popular red-top newspaper, following Balliol’s decision in Hilary term.
Waldegrave said, “It [The Sun] is an important newspaper which three million people in the UK buy. It is not right for an Oxford college to suggest The Sun is not good enough for them.”
He added, “If it does have any effect on our reputation, it may slightly reduce the image of Christ Church as an elitist and snobbish institution which considers itself above the rest of the population,”
However, the opposition believe that this subscription will do nothing for the Christ Church name, and outsiders appear to agree.
Susannah Darby, one of the three who opposed the motion, said, “These newspapers do not promote the standard of debate expected of an Oxford college.”
Concerning the use of semi-naked women on page 3, Derby said, “I feel that it is incredibly demeaning to women, and that the nudity could be offensive to people of strong religious faith.”
Graham Dudman, managing editor of the Sun said, “We are delighted the students at Christ Church have made this decision.
“By subscribing to The Sun, they will benefit from the finest award-winning journalism combined with the most influential campaigns.
“Our news, sport and showbusiness coverage is second to none and of course we have the very best page three girls.”
OUSU’s woman’s officer, Kat Wall, supported Derby. She said, “the depiction of naked women (page 3) is a form of discreet discrimination.
Women may feel compared, in everyday situations, to these ‘sex objects’, and the repercussions on confidence and positive body image may be severe.”
Waldegrave admitted that he agreed with the feminist position, but he added, “if you are a woman and have a real problem with it from the feminist perspective, then it’s not going to do any good excluding it from the JCR when it’s everywhere in the country.”
However, Wall does not see this newfound interest in The Sun and The Daily Mirror as an example of college openness, and argues that “page 3 banter” amongst the undergraduates will exclude women from the college.
In February the traditionally left-leaning Balliol JCR voted to welcome back the Sun after a 35 year absence., earning the college a visit from the Sun Bus and two page 3 girls.
