Censorship
SBA Loans Expert Pens Op-Ed Against Arbitrary 'Prurient' Clause
Attorney Derek Adams, an expert on Small Business Administration (SBA) loans, has penned an op-ed arguing that the SBA “can and should refrain from applying its ineligibility rules" — including the so-called “prurient clause” that discriminates against sexually oriented businesses — at the time of loan forgiveness.
FCC Chairman to Issue Rules Regarding Websites' Content Moderation Liability
Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Ajit Pai announced today that the agency will issue rules deciding when website operators’ moderation practices over third-party content leaves them exposed to potential legal liability, following Donald Trump’s directives on his May 28 Executive Order.
Clarence Thomas Calls for High Court Review of Section 230
Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas today used a concurrent opinion about a case the court decided not to hear to issue a broader challenge on current liability protections for online platforms provided by Section 230, the so-called “First Amendment of the internet.”
This Is the 'Biblical' Investment Fund Backing Exodus Cry's Anti-Porn Crusade
An obscure investment fund which defines its mission as “investing with Biblical principles” is a leading donor and strategic partner of anti-porn organization Exodus Cry, currently receiving international attention for their single-focused campaign against Pornhub.
Texas Grand Jury Reportedly Indicts Netflix Over 'Prurient' Content
A Texas grand jury has reportedly indicted California streaming company Netflix, alleging that one of the films distributed via the service presents material “which appeals to the prurient interest in sex and has no serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value.”
Cyber Law Expert: Politicized Anti-Section 230 Proposals Target Adult Content
In a damning new op-ed, one of the nation’s foremost cyber law experts described the onslaught of legislative proposals and recommendations to abolish Section 230 — the so-called “First Amendment of the internet — recently unleashed by the White House, Attorney General William Barr, Senator Lindsey Graham and others, as “Trump-backed rules for online speech: 'no' to porn, 'yes' to election disinformation and hate speech.”
Chaotic Stream of Rival Anti-Section 230 Proposals Muddy Constructive Debate
As an unprecedentedly chaotic and fractious electoral campaign heads into its final month, a flurry of new proposals by members of both major parties targeting Section 230 — the so-called “First Amendment of the internet” — join a crowded debate about the controversial legislation.
AG Barr Joins Attack on Section 230 With Unusual Request to Congress
In an extremely unusual move by the U.S. Justice Department — part of the executive branch — AG William Barr sent to Congress today a legislative proposal to undermine Section 230, the so-called “First Amendment of the internet.”
Lindsey Graham Takes Aim at Section 230 With Yet Another Bill Proposal
Senator Lindsey Graham (R, South Carolina), Chairman of the Senate Committee on the Judiciary, quietly scheduled yesterday an item on the agenda for Thursday’s committee meeting, aiming to discuss a new bill, S. 4632, which he called the Online Content Policy Modernization Act.
Georgia Town Now Going After Adult Boutique's Business License
Weeks after approving unprecedented changes to its county code in order to target “sexually oriented businesses,” the Cobb County Board of Commissioners has now made its intentions explicit by announcing a hearing to permanently revoke the local business license for adult boutique Tokyo Valentino.
Utah Legislative Panel Stages Peculiar Anti-Porn Hearing
A Utah legislative panel last week — convened by GOP state lawmakers following a campaign of disinformation by conservative activists — culminated with misleading pronouncements about the supposed availability of “obscene material harmful to minors” in educational databases in the state, and with a call to press criminal charges against the makers of those databases.
Top Digital Rights Organization Highlights Woodhull's Anti-FOSTA Litigation
Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), the leading digital rights advocacy nonprofit, released yesterday a comprehensive report praising the Woodhull Foundation’s ongoing lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of FOSTA-SESTA legislation.
Trump, GOP Senators Renew Attacks on Section 230
President Donald Trump and Senate Republican leaders renewed their ongoing attacks on Section 230 yesterday, once again making the so-called “First Amendment of the internet" a campaign issue.
Woodhull Plaintiffs File Motion to Declare FOSTA Unconstitutional
The plaintiffs in the Woodhull Freedom Foundation case challenging FOSTA/SESTA filed on Monday a motion asking the D.C. district court for a summary judgment declaring the legislation unconstitutional.
Op-Ed: Mashable's 'Porn Week' Shows Mainstream's Struggle With Fair Adult Coverage
Mainstream entertainment and tech news site Mashable published in the last few days a series of articles centered around the adult entertainment industry under the banner “Porn Week.”
German Authorities Target Sex Workers Posting Adult Content on Twitter
German authorities have been stepping up their efforts to fine in-country sex workers for posting sexually explicit content on open online platforms like Twitter, forcing them to take down posts on the U.S.-based — and Free Speech-protected — sites.
West Coast Clubs Join Legal Battle Against SBA Over 'Prurient Clause'
A group of West Coast strip clubs have asked a California federal judge to grant them a preliminary injunction preventing the Small Business Administration (SBA) from discriminating against them by applying the “prurient clause” written into COVID-19 relief loan applications.
The Guardian Continues Stigmatizing Porn, Now in Theater Reviews
Liberal transatlantic publication The Guardian is continuing its pattern of publishing content that stigmatizes adult entertainment and sex workers, with the anti-porn messaging today making its way even into their theater review section.
Senate Commerce Committee Holds Hearing on PACT Act, Section 230
This morning, the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Communications, Technology, Innovation, and the Internet. held a lengthy hearing on Section 230, assessing the impact of what the committee calls “the law that helped create the internet” and examining proposed reforms to it, particularly the PACT Act.
New Study Debunks Myth About Men Who Watch Porn
A new study by a neuroscientist from the Kinsey Institute found no scientific basis to the persistent myth, peddled by religiously inspired War On Porn crusaders and #NoFap semen-retention cultists, claiming that watching porn can cause erectile disfunction in men.