Emily Broadmore: Editor and Founder of Folly Journal accuses Whitcoulls of censorship after risque journal removed from shelves

Whitcoulls is being accused of censorship and moral panic - because it's hiding a literary journal with risqué content. 

Copies of Folly Journal have been pulled off Whitcoulls shelves around the country and are now only offered when customers ask for it.

Editor and Founder of Folly Journal Emily Broadmore told Heather duPlessis-Allan that Whitcoulls hasn't explained specifically why their books have been removed from stores. 

'We have no idea. We've just been told that it's offensive, but we can't figure it out.'

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
We have a weird case of a bookstore pulling something
off its shelves. Whitkells has hidden copies of Folly Journal
around the country and are now only offering Folly Journal
when customers ask for it. Emily Broadmore is the editor
and is with us now. Hey, Emily, Hi, thanks having
me on, Thank you for joining us. Do you know
what you've done that's offended Whitkills.

Speaker 2 (00:21):
We're really perplexed. We're going through the journal and trying
to figure that out. Yes, there is a lot of
sexy stories, risque content, but there's also an interview with
the Reserve Bank chief economist that's really there's a couple
of sea bombs. Yeah, it's pretty hard to tell when
you think of other things that are stocked at Whitkeles,
like Fifty Shades of Gray, for instance. We have no whips.

(00:44):
We've got a lot, there's a lot of sex, but
there's no whips.

Speaker 1 (00:47):
Okay, So is it just this edition or is it
all Follies.

Speaker 2 (00:52):
Well, we've sold out of all the other ones, so
right now it's just this edition. But they have told
the distributor that they don't want our any more copies
in the future either. It goes against their family values.

Speaker 1 (01:04):
Oh, the family values that have them stocking fifty shades
of Gray.

Speaker 2 (01:09):
Yeah, and all that romanticy where wolf romance stuff.

Speaker 1 (01:11):
Oh yeah, that's pretty weird. Okay, And like genuinely, Emily,
they haven't explained to you what exactly it is that's
caused them to get so squeamish.

Speaker 2 (01:23):
No, we have no idea. We've just been told that
it's offensive. We can't figure it out. First of all,
we were told, look, they're just going to be under
the counter, you know, a bit like SIGI's and contraband,
and people can ask over the counter for it. And
we thought, okay, we can work with that. That's kind
of fun. But then we found out actually, no, they've
just been entirely removed and are in some backstock rooms somewhere,

(01:43):
and it's very difficult to get hold of one.

Speaker 1 (01:45):
Is it possible that it's because your journal looks like
quite a bit of fun and maybe kids look at it,
and but it doesn't really like it actually looks quite
grown up, doesn't it. It's got a very boring picture
on the front.

Speaker 2 (01:57):
It's a lady holding a spade and a ball gown.
You know, it's a classy product here.

Speaker 1 (02:01):
It looks like what I'm trying to say is it
does it's not appealing to kids. It's it's quite clearly
adult content.

Speaker 2 (02:08):
Yeah, it's absolutely not something that's going to be given
to a child. No, I mean, it is adult content,
but it's no more adult content than any other riscuale
or sexy story.

Speaker 1 (02:19):
What I mean was sorry, it did sound like I
was implying it like it's sexy adult content. I just
mean it is not intended for kids. It's intended for adults.
So it's not as if it's going to be picked
up and then they're going to come across sea bombs Accidentally, Emily,
is are you appealing to Witkills to restock you?

Speaker 2 (02:36):
I would love them just to put it back out
on display because we are very The Christmas season is
a big deal for us. Our product sells really well
over Christmas. It's really popular with the men in their fifties, sixties,
seventies love Folly. People buy it to give to their cousins,
their nieces, sisters, dads. It's got really wide gifting appear.

(03:00):
We usually sell out right over Christmas. So the fact
that the stock they've got most of our stock right now,
it's just sitting and I don't know stock rooms nice,
So people are being told they can't get it.

Speaker 1 (03:11):
So it's not even a case of them sort of
not helping you. It is literally a case of them
holding your stock hostage. At the minute.

Speaker 2 (03:18):
Well, we don't know where it is, but we went
into two stores in Wellington yesterday and one said it's
completely not even on their database, and the other stores
said that they've got a few copies but they're upstairs
in the back of the stock room, and it kind
of gave us this look like and I really don't
want to go up there and get them.

Speaker 1 (03:36):
Yeah, dirty people.

Speaker 2 (03:38):
All right.

Speaker 1 (03:38):
Listen, Emily, good luck with this because this is actually
quite a shit situation and I feel bad for you
about this. Emily Broadmore, editor and founder of Folly Journal.
On the bright side, Now all of you ladies with
boring lives know what to go and read. It looks
innocuous but sounds racy on the inside. No one will
suspect anything. Happy Christmas.

Speaker 2 (03:57):
For more from Heather duplessy Ellen, drive to News Talks.
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