PETALING JAYA, January 8 – A recent children’s TV show premiered in Denmark has sparked controversy over the appearance of a protagonist with a long pencil and “uncontrollable”.
Iain Dillermand follows a man who is thrown into humorous situations thanks to his disordered genitals, which are painted red and white to resemble an extension of his costume.
In one program, he accidentally breaks a friend’s vase with his pen and scrambles to raise money to pay it back.
Another show shows him using his genes to steal ice cream at a zoo.
“He has the longest pee-pee in the world, he can barely make it,” read the lyrics for the show’s theme song.
“Diller” is a Danish slang for penis and the title of the show translates to “John Penis-man” in English.
The stop-motion series has sparked an online debate over whether it is appropriate for a TV show to aim to include children with such content, particularly in light of the #MeToo movement against harassment. and sexual abuse.
Roskilde University associate professor and sex researcher Christian Groes told The Keeper that setting the presentation on male genitalia will only have adverse effects.
“This is a growing perception of patriarchal society and a normalization of the ‘locker room culture’ that has been used to excuse much male misconduct.
“This is going to be funny, so it’s seen as harmless.
“But no.
“And we’re teaching this to our children,” Groes said.
Other experts said John Dillermand is not as harmful as his opponents think he is.
“Iain Dillermand talking to children and sharing the way of thinking – and genitals have funny genitals.
“The show features a man who is eager and not always in control, who makes mistakes the way children do, but crucially, Dillermand always does it right.
“He is responsible for what he has done. When a woman in the show tells him that he should keep his penis in his pants, for example, he listens, ”said clinical psychologist Erla Heinesen Hojsted.
Hojsted said the show was “sexually explicit” not about sex and that critics were “shaping adult opinions” on it.
Iain Dillermand first release this month under Danish public broadcaster DR.
according to The Keeper, the network defended itself against backlash by saying that they could easily have made a show “about a woman with no control over her vagina” and that the most important thing was that the children enjoy the series.