Wal-Mart officials refused to comment to Pop Eye. However, while chain executives downplayed any connection between their move and [JIMMY SWAGGART]'s remarks, sources at Wal-Mart confirmed in a recent Washington Post article that company officials spoke with Swaggart about his speech, contending that they asked for further clarification of his remarks.

Swaggart singled out pop magazines Hit Parader and Creem, and the heavy-metal band Motley Crue, as prime offenders, citing a story in Hit Parader that chronicled the sexual escapades of the Crue. However, Swaggart was unable to pinpoint any other precise examples of allegedly pornographic material in magazines or current songs.

Creem magazine Publisher Arnold Levitt heatedly disputed Swaggart's remarks, saying: "They would be laughable if they weren't so frightening. It's a clear abuse of the First Amendment. I think the public should be able to decide for themselves rather than have any one person setting themselves up as an arbiter of public tastes. I can categorically state that we have never published anything remotely pornographic, and I've challenged Rev. Swaggart to show me just one specific example. We've even publicly offered him a free page in our magazine to state his case because we believe that if what he's saying were held up to public scrutiny, it wouldn't hold any water."