Hard to Swallow
Proving that porn is becoming as American as Pepsi, the beverage industry news source bevnet.com reports that an energy drink called “Deep Throat” was ranked number six in Internet searches. The drink sports labels with images from the 1972 porn film “Deep Throat” as well as photos of current porn performers. Deep Throat was also promoted on the 2009 Showtime reality series that featured Vivid Entertainment owner Steve Hirsh and others in the porn industry. But as the increasingly economically depressed porn industry knows, searching isn’t buying. So, while Deep Throat may inspire more googling than Red Bull, its sales could use a boost of its own.
Stag-gering
As this BBC program about destination stag parties underscores, when access to young women’s bodies is considered an entitlement there will always be those who will supply the bodies by any means necessary and those who will pay for the service. And once the money is exchanged, regard for those young women’s essential humanity is lost in the bargain. Traveling to distant countries to pay for sex with women who were possibly trafficked from even farther away seems to make the exchange even easier. As one British stag unapologetically explained about his holiday in Prague: “You can’t do anything about it. You’re just here to have fun, and do things you won’t get away with back home.”
What John Knows
A recent study titled ”Men Who Buy Sex: Who They Buy and What They Know” by Melissa Farley, Julie Bindel and Jacqueline M. Golding for Eaves, London and Prostitution Research and Education, San Francisco, puts the lie to the notion that many johns believe they are participating in a victimless crime. Among the 103 men interviewed for the study, most (55%) believed that the women involved in prostitution had been “lured, tricked or trafficked.” Another 44 percent were aware of the negative psychological effects of prostitution for the women involved.
Still, many of the men reasoned that buying sex was actually a crime-prevention tool that, on the whole, made the world safer for for non-prostituted women — 54 percent of the men subscribed to a theory that prostitution prevents rape. As one interviewee explained, “Sometimes you might rape someone: you can go to a prostitute instead.” A quarter of these men also believed it was impossible to rape a prostitute.
Where do these men get these ideas? Well, consider this possible source: these men were also frequent consumers of pornography — more than half viewed porn online or on film or video monthly.
Enough to Make You Feel a Little Sick
When considering Carl’s Jr.’s latest porn-inspired ad featuring Kim Kardashian, the Huffington Post doesn’t bother to ask why the fast food chain is selling its chicken salad with a side of female flesh — it just wants to know which piece of meat — Paris Hilton, Padma Lakshmi, Audrina Partridge or Kardashian — is hottest.
Don’t Look at Me, says Ron Jeremy. Blame Mom, Dad and Violent Video Games
Pornography icon Ron Jeremy informs Consumer Electronics Show attendees in Las Vegas that the real threat to children is violent video games and sloppy parenting. Not surprisingly, the Association of Sites Advocating Child Protection, whose Platinum members include avnonline, xbiz, and livesex.com, agrees, claiming the porn industry is doing a great job policing themselves. Do we hear the familiar chorus of buck passing and victim blaming here?
