War On Porn
Lindsey Graham Withdraws Own Section 230 Bill After Debate
After scheduling and facilitating a lengthy, largely pointless debate on Section 230 this morning at the Committee on the Judiciary, which he chairs, Senator Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) withdrew his S. 4632 bill — the ”Online Content Policy Modernization Act” — from consideration.
Backpage: Appeals Court Validates Questions Raised by Defendants
In a procedural win for the former owners of adult classifieds website Backpage.com, a two-judge panel of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ordered federal prosecutors to address the defense’s request for the judge overseeing the criminal trial to remove herself from it.
Missouri Senator Introduces Bill Facilitating Lawsuits Against Adult Sites
Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) introduced a bill today to “enable victims of revenge porn, trafficking and sexual coercion” to sue websites posting images and videos without their consent.
Tallahassee Officials Target Adult Boutiques as 'Red Light District'
Only weeks after a Georgia county successfully put an adult boutique out of business by altering its zoning regulations for that specific purpose, politicians at another county in the South — Leon County, home of Florida state capital Tallahassee — are targeting adult businesses with a copycat argument.
Opinion: New York Times Fights Pornhub With Emotional Pornography
New York Times opinion writer Nicholas Kristof today published a sensationalistic call for state censorship and financial strangulation of Pornhub, packaged around gut-punching testimonials from young victims of sexual exploitation.
Top Biden Advisor Bruce Reed Renews Call for Section 230 Reform
The closest advisor on tech matters to presumptive President-elect Joe Biden, Bruce Reed, doubled down yesterday on weakening Section 230 protections, saying that “it’s long past time to hold the social media companies accountable for what’s published on their platforms.”
Trump Attempts to Force Section 230 'Termination' Into Defense Bill
In the latest in a series of procedurally unprecedented presidential attempts to repeal the so-called First Amendment of the internet, Donald Trump confirmed last night via Twitter that he would veto the nation’s principal defense bill unless Congress adds a section “completely terminating” Section 230 protections.
Backpage.com Trial: Defendants Ask Appeals Court to Remove Judge
Former Backpage owners Michael Lacey and Jim Larkin filed a petition with the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals yesterday seeking an order to recuse the Phoenix federal judge presiding over their criminal trial.
Senators Renew Attack on Section 230 Following Election
During a nationwide spike of COVID-19 cases and only hours after the Georgia Secretary of State accused him of tampering with the presidential election results, Senator Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) revived his ongoing crusade against Section 230 protections — the so-called First Amendment of the internet — during a highly politicized interrogation of two tech entrepreneurs at the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Indian State 'Cyber Police' Targets Platforms for Adult Content
The Cyber Police agency of the Indian state of Maharashtra — the region that includes populous Mumbai — has formally accused several platforms of “transmitting sexually explicit and obscene content online.”
Thai Minister Uses Anti-Porn Crusaders' Arguments to Justify Ban
Thailand’s Digital Economy and Society (DES) Minister Buddhipongse Punnakanta offered further explanations behind the ruling party’s ban of 190 adult content websites, including Pornhub, in language identical to that of well-funded, religiously inspired anti-porn crusading U.S. groups like Exodus Cry and NCOSE.
Thai Government: Online Porn Ban Involves 190 Sites
The Thai government’s crackdown on online adult content, noticed yesterday by users trying to access Pornhub from the Southeast Asian nation, has been confirmed by the authorities, who also said the new ban — effected as the country is reeling from street protests and calls for the military party to step down — involves 190 websites.
Thai Rulers Crack Down on Online Porn
Beleaguered by street protests and calls for their resignation, the current ruling party in Thailand — spawned from the military junta which ruled the country after a 2014 coup — has reportedly announced it is cracking down on adult content and banning access to Pornhub, one of the nation’s most visited sites.
Latest Section 230 Bill Proposal Seeks to Define Adult Content
In the middle of the COVID-19 public health crisis and only days before the 2020 national election, representative Greg Steube (R-Fla.) has just introduced yet another legislative proposal aimed at ending Section 230 protections, and his CASE-IT Act has the distinction of attempting to define adult content in explicit and broad terms.
William Barr's DOJ Pens Another Letter Targeting Section 230 Protections
An Assistant Attorney General at Willam Barr’s U.S. Department of Justice wrote a letter on Tuesday to the congressional committees currently reviewing projects to repeal or radically reform Section 230 — the so-called “First Amendment of the internet” — arguing that the legislation should be altered or else completely tossed in order to “start on fresh canvas.”
Georgia Town Succeeds in Terminating Beleaguered Adult Boutique's License
Weeks after approving unprecedented changes to its county code in order to target “sexually oriented businesses,” the Cobb County Board of Commissioners has permanently revoked the local business license for Atlanta-area adult boutique Tokyo Valentino.
Backpage.com Judge Refuses to Recuse Herself, Lacey Responds
Last Friday, the Phoenix federal judge presiding over the criminal trial against the former owners of Backpage.com issued a 14-page ruling that detailed her refusal to recuse herself from the case, following a motion by the defendants that revealed her husband’s explicit activism against them as part of a crusade alleging “human trafficking.”
Australian Customs Authorities Block Hentai Imports Amidst Calls for Censorship
Japanese pop culture retailer J-List was informed earlier this month by shipping company DHL Japan that “Australian customs have started rejecting packages containing any adult product,” among vocal calls by local politicians to crack down on hentai anime and manga and to fully enforce Australia’s vaguely worded anti-porn import rules.
Instagram Alters Nudity Policy to Allow Women to Hold Their Breasts
Instagram has announced it will be introducing a new nudity policy this week, which will now allow “pictures of women holding, cupping or wrapping their arms around their breasts.”
Local German Efforts to Enforce AV Laws Concern Privacy, Free Expression Advocates
A state-sponsored effort in Germany hardening of intrusive age verification schemes to target specific leading adult platforms — including Pornhub, YouPorn and MyDirtyHobby — has raised alarm among privacy and freedom of sexual expression advocates.