Sex and the Media

So I guess I'm turning into the most random blogger ever, in addition to being very unproductive at the ol' office. I was supposed to work through my lunch, however, this isn't working out quite to my satisfaction because my boss left for lunch without giving me another project. Now I must ponder the ethics of whether I am still allowed to leave an hour early...
A discussion of last night's episode of LOST led one of my co-workers to state that LOST would be an even better show if it were on HBO or Cinemax, and so could employ the plot twists of cussing and boobs. This from a man, obviously, concerned with the fact that people cuss and have sex in real life, so it should be on LOST too. He and another co-worker cited all of the HBO shows that are superb because of their lack of censorship on non-network programming. These guys love LOST already. But the argument for boobs irriated me a bit. He already loves the show, loves it, is obsessed with it, nevertheless, he wants some boobs. Boobs, he argued, would make LOST a better show.
Surprisingly (and I think to his own surprise), my other male co-worker took my side (sort of) in my claim that boobs would not make the show better nor more realistic. The creators and writers already make an excellent show without resorting to using nudity and language to entertain viewers. They craft intricate story lines and characters to lure their viewers in, and they have generated an incredibly wide and devoted audience. All without gratuitous flashes of Kate's or Claire's boobies. Sex sells, for sure, but don't confuse making the show "better" with your desire to simply see the actresses naked. It might make the show more "movie-like," but it would not make the show more realistic, which, given the willing suspension of disbelief required to watch the show, that's a ridiculous argument for sex on LOST.
I am fairly new to actually sitting down and watching LOST, but I love the conspiracy theories and the lust for the show that viewers have. Shows like Sex in the City, The Sopranos, Big Love, Deadwood, Six Feet Under, and Rome all featured "adult" language and violence and moderately graphic sex, but in some cases, the sex was an integral part of the show (i.e. Sex in the City). LOST, in my personal opinion, would be a very different show than it is now, if it were on a network like HBO, with far fewer limitations. They're obviously already doing something that appeals to much more than a little flash of skin. I guess my point is, just say that you want to see boobs, but don't argue that it makes for a better show.
In a slightly related story, I read this article on cnn.com today. Certainly, sex sells. Everyone uses it. Scantily clad women and rugged men are always getting it on, or leaving the viewer to infer that they're about to, in commercials, from ads for Uncle Ben's Rice to designer jeans. But if anyone should be able to use lingerie and sexy women to sell their products, shouldn't it be a lingerie company?