My initial reaction to the article on the Harley Quinn Comic is not outrage at the nude female, but rather the premise of this and suicide as part of a contest.  If this had been featured in a comic in full, it probably wouldn’t have caused such a reaction. For one, because I doubt she would succeed in her death, and two the rest of the comic may have addressed the seriousness of suicide.  The way they cut it off, people may assume this is promoting suicide, even if DC did not intend that, some amateur artists may see it that way and draw it in a glorifying manner.  Whether or not DC picks these images is irrelevant, they are bound to end up on the internet and younger fans of Batman may find them.

As for the naked female character, it does seem tasteless to ask for it in a contest open to everyone, but I can’t be bothered by the fact too much.  Because of the prevalence of the internet a naked woman is no longer that unusual, frankly it would have been more shocking if they’d asked for a naked man.

About the objectification of women, while it does exist in some places, I’m more inclined to think its prevalence in comics is less because women are truly undervalued, and more because comic book superheroes (at least the mainstream ones) tend to be straight men.  The women sometimes seem objectified, but maybe it’s just because their side characters are often love interests whose sole role in the story is to make the hero feel something.  If we had more female superheroes, maybe men would be the ones who were objectified.

The only way true objectification will be avoided is if people stop buying the comics that feature it.  But as comic artists, we can try to give more characterization to women and avoid unnecessary exploitation.