War On Porn
India: Supreme Court Blasts Streaming Services for Offering 'Porn'
As India’s Supreme Court continues to evaluate whether to impose content regulations on streaming services doing business in the populous Asian country, members of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) are urging the enforcement of long-standing prohibitions against obscenity and blasphemy, alleging that some streaming services “even show pornography.”
Vox Probes New 'Cancel Porn' Fad Among Gen-Z TikTokers
A new cultural trend taking place on popular Gen-Z platform TikTok complicates the idea that support for sex worker rights and freedom of sexual expression will continue steadily gaining generational ground, according to a recent article by Rebecca Jennings for online news site Vox.
Iran: Alexis Texas' Appearance in Pop Music Video Prompts Investigation
Hardline Iranian authorities have expressed concern about the teaser for a forthcoming music video by Los Angeles-based Iranian pop singer Sasy, denouncing the appearance of adult star Alexis Texas who is seen dancing fully-clothed next to the singer.
Montana: Bizarre Anti-Porn Bill Killed After Voting Scandal
A proposed anti-porn bill by Montana Republicans demanding that “internet companies” provide “hard-core pornography” only to customers who “opt-in,” and made it a crime for anyone under 18 to access adult material, was defeated on a procedural technicality after the committee chairman admitted he had deliberately prevented Democrats from participating in a previous vote.
Pornhub: Canadian MPs Welcome Anti-Porn Activists as Witnesses
The Canadian House of Commons’ Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics held its third meeting today regarding MindGeek's content moderation, with testimony by three alleged subjects of illegal videos, followed by presentations by a Canadian law enforcement expert, a Canadian domestic violence advocate and two U.S. witnesses: Manhattan liability lawyer Michael Bowe, and leading anti-porn activist Laila Mickelwait of Exodus Cry.
Utah: House Passes Controversial 'Porn Filter' Bill Overnight
On Wednesday, the Utah House of Representatives passed an amended version of a controversial bill that would mandate a default “porn filter” on any phones, computers, tablets or any other electronic devices sold in the state starting in 2022.
Senate Dems Introduce 'SAFE TECH Act' to Limit Section 230
Senator Mark R. Warner (D-Va.) and two other Democratic Senators introduced, earlier this month, a Section 230 reform bill, the Safeguarding Against Fraud, Exploitation, Threats, Extremism and Consumer Harms (SAFE TECH) Act.
Cherie DeVille's Daily Beast Article Unmasks NYT's 'War on Porn' Bias
The Daily Beast published an opinion piece today by Cherie DeVille giving her personal testimony about how the current religiously motivated War on Porn is warping the public opinion against sex workers who work in the adult industry.
Largest Indian State Begins Monitoring All Porn Searches
The police forces in Uttar Pradesh, the most populous state in India, have announced the creation of a team to monitor internet searches for “pornographic material.”
Utah: Mandatory 'Porn Filter' Bill Clears Committee, Heads to House Floor
The controversial Utah bill mandating a “porn filter” on every electronic device sold in the state finally passed out of committee by a narrow 6-5 vote and is headed to the House of Representatives' floor.
NCOSE Spearheads Another Liability Lawsuit Against Pornhub, MindGeek
A group of lawyers — including members of the legal team of religiously motivated anti-porn crusading organization NCOSE — have filed a civil class action suit in Birmingham, Alabama against Pornhub’s parent company MindGeek, on behalf of two women who alleged illegal videos of themselves were uploaded to the platform by third-party users.
Iowa: Copycat 'Porn Block' Bill Fails to Move Forward
The Iowa House of Representatives’ Commerce subcommittee declined to advance a bill that proposed blocking adult content on electronic devices by default, as well as creating a special $5 tax on adult entertainment to fund initiatives against “human trafficking.”
Utah Bills Reflect State's Contradictions About Consent
Within the space of several days recently, Utah legislators moved forward with a bill intended to explicitly criminalize the sharing of private sexually explicit photos without the consent of the people depicted, and at the same time defeated a proposal that would include the teaching of consent in the state’s sex education curriculum.
Utah: Religiously Inspired NCOSE Speaks to House Committee in Support of 'Porn Block'
A Utah House of Representatives committee meeting yesterday to discuss a lawmaker’s proposal requiring all “new electronic devices” sold in the state to have pornography filters turned on by default, featured a presentation by a representative of religiously-inspired anti-porn lobby NCOSE.
'Performance Prostitution' Ordinance Delayed in Wyoming Over OnlyFans Concerns
A City Council vote in Casper, Wyoming was delayed yesterday, after a council member pointed out that a newly phrased legislative proposal criminalizing “performance prostitution” would affect local online sex workers, particularly those with an OnlyFans account.
Pornhub Releases Statement About Content Moderation Changes
Pornhub announced today a series of safety and security policies enhancing measures for verification, moderation and detection of content with the goal of positioning the company “at the forefront of combating and eradicating illegal content.”
Canada's House of Commons Committee Holds Hearing About Pornhub
The Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics in Canada’s House of Commons held a hearing today concerning the allegations made against Pornhub’s content moderation policies by Nicholas Kristof — based on religious group Exodus Cry’s Traffickinghub campaign against the tube site and parent company MindGeek — in a December 2020 New York Times article.
Sen. Merkley: Revised SISEA Will 'Protect the Rights' of Consensual Online Performers
A spokesperson for Senator Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) confirmed to XBIZ today that the new version of the SISEA bill he co-sponsored last year will “ensure that the rights of consensual actors” in the adult industry will “continue to be protected.”
Opinion: Religious Networks Loom Behind 2 D.C. Newspapers' 'War on Porn' Editorials
The two conservative Washington D.C. newspapers, the Washington Times and the Washington Examiner, have recently ramped up their “War on Porn” articles and editorials, following a yearlong escalation of pro-censorship content that coincided with religious group Exodus Cry’s “Traffickinghub” campaign.
Utah Lawmaker Reintroduces Bill Mandating Default 'Porn Blocks' on All Devices
Utah politicians continue their periodic attempts to pass hard-to-enforce state bills — allegedly to protect the citizenry from a made-up “public health crisis” around porn — with a new bill introduced to the legislature this week requiring “new electronic devices” to have pornography filters turned on by default.