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Pornography (often shortened to porn or porno) is the portrayal of
sexual Sex is the biological distinction of an organism between male and female. Sex or SEX may also refer to: Biology and behaviour *Animal sexual behaviour **Copulation (zoology) **Human sexual activity **Non-penetrative sex, or sexual outercourse ** ...
subject matter for the exclusive purpose of sexual arousal. Primarily intended for adults,"Kids Need Porn Literacy"
Marty Klein Marty Ralph Klein (born 1950) is an American sex therapist, author, educator and public policy analyst. Klein has spent his career supporting the healthy sexual expression of men, women and couples in a wide range of ways. He is critical of cen ...
, ''Psychology Today'', 30 October 2016
pornography is presented in a variety of media, including
magazines A magazine is a periodical publication, generally published on a regular schedule (often weekly or monthly), containing a variety of content. They are generally financed by advertising, purchase price, prepaid subscriptions, or by a combination ...
,
art Art is a diverse range of human activity, and resulting product, that involves creative or imaginative talent expressive of technical proficiency, beauty, emotional power, or conceptual ideas. There is no generally agreed definition of wha ...
,
literature Literature is any collection of written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially prose fiction, drama, and poetry. In recent centuries, the definition has expanded to include ...
,
photography Photography is the art, application, and practice of creating durable images by recording light, either electronically by means of an image sensor, or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film. It is employed ...
,
audio Audio most commonly refers to sound, as it is transmitted in signal form. It may also refer to: Sound * Audio signal, an electrical representation of sound *Audio frequency, a frequency in the audio spectrum * Digital audio, representation of sou ...
,
film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...
, animation, and
video games Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, game controller, controller, computer keyboard, keyboard, or motion sensing device to gener ...
."The Evolution of Pornography"
Robert Weiss, ''Psychology Today'', 2 July 2020
A distinction is often made as to whether to classify adult content as pornography or
erotica Erotica is literature or art that deals substantively with subject matter that is erotic, sexually stimulating or sexually arousing. Some critics regard pornography as a type of erotica, but many consider it to be different. Erotic art may use ...
."What Distinguishes Erotica from Pornography?"
– Leon F Seltzer, ''Psychology Today'', 6 April 2011
Throughout the
history of erotic depictions The history of erotic depictions includes paintings, sculpture, photographs, dramatic arts, music and writings that show scenes of a sexual nature throughout time. They have been created by nearly every civilization, ancient and modern. Early ...
, various groups within society have considered them to be noxious, and made attempts to have them suppressed under obscenity laws,
censored Censorship is the suppression of speech, public communication, or other information. This may be done on the basis that such material is considered objectionable, harmful, sensitive, or "inconvenient". Censorship can be conducted by governments ...
, or made illegal. Such groundsand even the definition of pornographyhave differed in various historical, cultural, and national contexts. In the late 19th century, a film by
Thomas Edison Thomas Alva Edison (February 11, 1847October 18, 1931) was an American inventor and businessman. He developed many devices in fields such as electric power generation, mass communication, sound recording, and motion pictures. These inventio ...
which depicted a kiss was denounced as obscene in the United States, while Eugène Pirou's 1896 film '' Bedtime for the Bride'' was received very favorably in France. Starting from the mid-twentieth century, societal attitudes towards sexuality have become more lenient in the
Western world The Western world, also known as the West, primarily refers to the various nations and state (polity), states in the regions of Europe, North America, and Oceania.
, and legal definitions of obscenity made limited. In 1969, '' Blue Movie'' by
Andy Warhol Andy Warhol (; born Andrew Warhola Jr.; August 6, 1928 – February 22, 1987) was an American visual artist, film director, and producer who was a leading figure in the Art movement, visual art movement known as pop art. His works explore th ...
became the first film to depict
unsimulated sex In the film industry, unsimulated sex is the presentation of sex scenes in which actors genuinely perform the depicted sex acts, rather than simulating them. Although it is ubiquitous in films intended as pornographic, it is very uncommon in ...
and receive a wide theatrical release in the United States. This was followed by the
Golden Age of Porn https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MediaWiki_talk:Spam-whitelist/Archives/2018/01#Another_Worthy_Journal_Article_on_Wordpress ---> The term "Golden Age of Porn", or "porno chic", refers to a 15-year period (1969–1984) in commercial American porno ...
(1969–1984), a time period when many high quality pornographic films played in
theaters Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...
and became part of
popular culture Popular culture (also called mass culture or pop culture) is generally recognized by members of a society as a set of practices, beliefs, artistic output (also known as, popular art or mass art) and objects that are dominant or prevalent in a ...
. The introduction of
home video Home video is prerecorded media sold or rented for home viewing. The term originates from the VHS and Betamax era, when the predominant medium was videotapes, but has carried over to optical disc formats such as DVD, Blu-ray and streaming me ...
and the
Internet The Internet (or internet) is the global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a '' network of networks'' that consists of private, pub ...
in the late 20th century led to worldwide growth in the pornography business, generating billions of dollars annually. In 2001, commercialized
pornography in the United States Pornography in the United States has existed since the country's origins and has become more readily accessible in the 21st century. Advanced by technological development, it has gone from a hard-to-find "back alley" item, beginning in 1969 with ...
accounted for over US$2.5 billion, this included the costs for production of various
media Media may refer to: Communication * Media (communication), tools used to deliver information or data ** Advertising media, various media, content, buying and placement for advertising ** Broadcast media, communications delivered over mass e ...
, and associated
products Product may refer to: Business * Product (business), an item that serves as a solution to a specific consumer problem. * Product (project management), a deliverable or set of deliverables that contribute to a business solution Mathematics * Produ ...
and
services Service may refer to: Activities * Administrative service, a required part of the workload of university faculty * Civil service, the body of employees of a government * Community service, volunteer service for the benefit of a community or a p ...
. In 2006, the worldwide revenue from pornography was estimated at 97 billion dollars, with the U.S. estimates at around $10–$12 billion. In 2018,
pornography in Japan Pornography in Japan has unique characteristics that readily distinguish it from western pornography. Pornographic films are known as "adult videos" (AV) in Japan, so Japanese adult videos are "JAV", referring to the Japanese pornographic f ...
was estimated to be worth over $20 billion. The industry in the U.S. employs thousands of
performers The performing arts are arts such as music, dance, and drama which are performed for an audience. They are different from the visual arts, which are the use of paint, canvas or various materials to create physical or static art objects. Perfo ...
along with production and support staff. It has its own industry publication, ''AVN''; a trade association, the
Free Speech Coalition The Free Speech Coalition (FSC) is a non-profit trade association of the pornography and adult entertainment industry in the United States. Founded in 1991, it opposes the passage and enforcement of obscenity laws and many censorship laws (with t ...
; and an award show, the AVN Awards. Apart from coverage from mainstream press, the industry also receives considerable attention from private organizations, government agencies, and political organizations. In the
2020s The 2020s (pronounced "twenty-twenties" shortened to "the '20s" and referred to as the twenties) is the current decade, which began on January 1, 2020, and will end on December 31, 2029. The 2020s began with the COVID-19 pandemic — the first ...
, issues of popular pornographic sites hosting content by unscrupulous uploaders, and
cybersex trafficking Cybersex trafficking, live streaming sexual abuse, webcam sex tourism/abuse or ICTs (Information and Communication Technologies)-facilitated sexual exploitation is a cybercrime involving sex trafficking and the live streaming of coerced sexual a ...
have been reported.


Etymology

The word ''pornography'' is a conglomerate of two Ancient Greek words: ( "prostitute" originally "purchased", related to "to sell", from the
Proto-Indo-European Proto-Indo-European (PIE) is the reconstructed common ancestor of the Indo-European language family. Its proposed features have been derived by linguistic reconstruction from documented Indo-European languages. No direct record of Proto-Indo- ...
root ''per-'' "to hand over", alluding to the notion of a person sold), and ( "a writing, recording, or description"). Thus meaning depiction of prostitutes or prostitution ( ). No date is known for the first use of the word in Greek; the earliest attested, most related word one could find in Greek, is , , i.e. "someone writing about harlots", in the ''
Deipnosophists The ''Deipnosophistae'' is an early 3rd-century AD Greek work ( grc, Δειπνοσοφισταί, ''Deipnosophistaí'', lit. "The Dinner Sophists/Philosophers/Experts") by the Greek author Athenaeus of Naucratis. It is a long work of liter ...
'' of
Athenaeus Athenaeus of Naucratis (; grc, Ἀθήναιος ὁ Nαυκρατίτης or Nαυκράτιος, ''Athēnaios Naukratitēs'' or ''Naukratios''; la, Athenaeus Naucratita) was a Greek rhetorician and grammarian, flourishing about the end of th ...
. The Modern Greek word () is a
reborrowing Reborrowing is the process where a word travels from one language to another and then back to the originating language in a different form or with a different meaning. This path is indicated by A → B → A, where A is the originating language, an ...
of the French . "" was in use in the French language during the 1800s. The word did not enter the English language as the familiar word until 1857 or as a French import in
New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster.
; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...
in 1842. The word was originally introduced by
classical scholars Classics or classical studies is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, classics traditionally refers to the study of Classical Greek and Roman literature and their related original languages, Ancient Greek and Latin. Classics ...
as "a bookish, and therefore nonoffensive, term for writing about prostitutes", but its meaning was quickly expanded to include all forms of "objectionable or obscene material in art and literature". As early as 1864, ''
Webster's Dictionary ''Webster's Dictionary'' is any of the English language dictionaries edited in the early 19th century by American lexicographer Noah Webster (1758–1843), as well as numerous related or unrelated dictionaries that have adopted the Webster's ...
'' defined the word as "a licentious painting", and the Oxford English Dictionary definitions being: from obscene painting (1842), description of obscene matters, obscene publication (1977 or earlier).
- OED, 2021
The more inclusive word ''
erotica Erotica is literature or art that deals substantively with subject matter that is erotic, sexually stimulating or sexually arousing. Some critics regard pornography as a type of erotica, but many consider it to be different. Erotic art may use ...
'', sometimes used as a synonym for "pornography", is derived from the feminine form of the Ancient Greek adjective ), derived from (), which refers to lust and sexual love. In informal language, ''pornography'' is often abbreviated to ''porn'' or ''porno''.


History

Depictions of a sexual nature have existed since
prehistoric Prehistory, also known as pre-literary history, is the period of human history between the use of the first stone tools by hominins 3.3 million years ago and the beginning of recorded history with the invention of writing systems. The use of ...
times, as seen in the
Venus figurines A Venus figurine is any Upper Palaeolithic statuette portraying a woman, usually carved in the round.Fagan, Brian M., Beck, Charlotte, "Venus Figurines", ''The Oxford Companion to Archaeology'', 1996, Oxford University Press, pp. 740–741 Mos ...
and
rock art In archaeology, rock art is human-made markings placed on natural surfaces, typically vertical stone surfaces. A high proportion of surviving historic and prehistoric rock art is found in caves or partly enclosed rock shelters; this type also ...
. A vast number of artifacts have been discovered from ancient
Mesopotamia Mesopotamia ''Mesopotamíā''; ar, بِلَاد ٱلرَّافِدَيْن or ; syc, ܐܪܡ ܢܗܪ̈ܝܢ, or , ) is a historical region of Western Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the ...
depicting explicit heterosexual sex. Glyptic art from the
Sumer Sumer () is the earliest known civilization in the historical region of southern Mesopotamia (south-central Iraq), emerging during the Chalcolithic and early Bronze Ages between the sixth and fifth millennium BC. It is one of the cradles of c ...
ian Early Dynastic Period frequently shows scenes of frontal sex in the
missionary position The missionary position or man-on-top position is a sex position in which, generally, a woman lies on her back and a man lies on top of her while they face each other and engage in vaginal intercourse. The position may also be used for other ...
. In Mesopotamian votive plaques from the early second millennium BC, the man is usually shown entering the woman from behind while she bends over, drinking beer through a straw. Middle Assyrian lead votive
figurine A figurine (a diminutive form of the word ''figure'') or statuette is a small, three-dimensional sculpture that represents a human, deity or animal, or, in practice, a pair or small group of them. Figurines have been made in many media, with cl ...
s often represent the man standing and penetrating the woman as she rests on top of an altar. Scholars have traditionally interpreted all these depictions as scenes of
hieros gamos ''Hieros gamos'', hieros (ἱερός) meaning "holy" or "sacred" and gamos (γάμος) meaning marriage, or Hierogamy (Greek , "holy marriage"), is a sacred marriage that plays out between a god and a goddess, especially when enacted in a symb ...
(an ancient sacred marriage between a god and a goddess), but they are more likely to be associated with the cult of Inanna, the goddess of sex and prostitution. Many sexually explicit images were found in the temple of Inanna at
Assur Aššur (; Sumerian: AN.ŠAR2KI, Assyrian cuneiform: ''Aš-šurKI'', "City of God Aššur"; syr, ܐܫܘܪ ''Āšūr''; Old Persian ''Aθur'', fa, آشور: ''Āšūr''; he, אַשּׁוּר, ', ar, اشور), also known as Ashur and Qal ...
, which also contained models of male and female sexual organs. Depictions of sexual intercourse were not part of the general repertory of ancient Egyptian formal art, but rudimentary sketches of heterosexual intercourse have been found on pottery fragments and in graffiti. The final two thirds of the
Turin Erotic Papyrus The Turin Erotic Papyrus (Papyrus 55001, also called the Erotic Papyrus or even Turin Papyrus) is an ancient Egyptian papyrus scroll-painting that was created during the Ramesside Period, approximately in 1150 B.C.David O'Connor Eros in Egypt'' ...
(Papyrus 55001), an Egyptian papyrus scroll discovered at Deir el-Medina, consist of a series of twelve
vignette Vignette may refer to: * Vignette (entertainment), a sketch in a sketch comedy * Vignette (graphic design), decorative designs in books (originally in the form of leaves and vines) to separate sections or chapters * Vignette (literature), short, i ...
s showing men and women in various
sexual position A sex position is a position of the body that people use for sexual intercourse or other sexual activities. Sexual acts are generally described by the positions the participants adopt in order to perform those acts. Though sexual intercourse ...
s. The scroll was probably painted in the Ramesside period (1292–1075 BC) and its high artistic quality indicates that it was produced for a wealthy audience. No other similar scrolls have yet been discovered. ''
Fanny Hill ''Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure''—popularly known as ''Fanny Hill''—is an erotic novel by English novelist John Cleland first published in London in 1748. Written while the author was in debtors' prison in London,Wagner, "Introduction" ...
'' (1748) is considered "the first original English
prose Prose is a form of written or spoken language that follows the natural flow of speech, uses a language's ordinary grammatical structures, or follows the conventions of formal academic writing. It differs from most traditional poetry, where the ...
pornography, and the first pornography to use the form of the novel." It is an erotic novel by
John Cleland John Cleland (c. 1709, baptised – 23 January 1789) was an English novelist best known for his fictional '' Fanny Hill: or, the Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure'', whose eroticism led to his arrest. James Boswell called him "a sly, old malcont ...
first published in England as ''Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure''.Wagner, "Introduction", in Cleland, ''Fanny Hill'', 1985, p. 7. It is one of the most prosecuted and banned books in history. The authors were charged with "corrupting the King's subjects." When large-scale excavations of Pompeii were undertaken in the 1860s, much of the
erotic art Erotic art is a broad field of the visual arts that includes any artistic work intended to evoke erotic arousal. It usually depicts human nudity or sexual activity, and has included works in various visual mediums, including drawings, engr ...
of the
Ancient Romans In modern historiography, ancient Rome refers to Roman civilisation from the founding of the city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingdom (753–509 ...
came to light, shocking the
Victorians In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the period of Queen Victoria's reign, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. The era followed the Georgian period and preceded the Edwardian ...
who saw themselves as the intellectual heirs of the
Roman Empire The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings around the Mediterr ...
. They did not know what to do with the frank depictions of sexuality and endeavored to hide them away from everyone but upper-class scholars. The moveable objects were locked away in the Secret Museum in
Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...
and what could not be removed was covered and cordoned off as to not corrupt the sensibilities of women, children, and the working classes. After the modern invention of
photography Photography is the art, application, and practice of creating durable images by recording light, either electronically by means of an image sensor, or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film. It is employed ...
, photographic pornography was also born. The Parisian
demimonde is French for "half-world". The term derives from a play called , by Alexandre Dumas , published in 1855. The play dealt with the way that prostitution at that time threatened the institution of marriage. The was the world occupied by elite me ...
included
Napoleon III Napoleon III (Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte; 20 April 18089 January 1873) was the first President of France (as Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte) from 1848 to 1852 and the last monarch of France as Emperor of the French from 1852 to 1870. A nephew ...
's minister, Charles de Morny, who was an early patron that displayed photos at large gatherings. The world's first law criminalizing pornography was the English
Obscene Publications Act 1857 The Obscene Publications Act 1857 (20 & 21 Vict. c.83), also known as Lord Campbell's Act or Campbell's Act, was a piece of legislation in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland dealing with obscenity. For the first time, it made the sale ...
enacted at the urging of the
Society for the Suppression of Vice The Society for the Suppression of Vice, formerly the Proclamation Society Against Vice and Immorality, or simply Proclamation Society, was a 19th-century English society dedicated to promoting public morality. It was established in 1802, based o ...
. The Act, which applied to the United Kingdom and Ireland, made the sale of obscene material a statutory offence, giving the courts power to seize and destroy offending material. The American equivalent was the
Comstock Act The Comstock laws were a set of federal acts passed by the United States Congress under the Grant administration along with related state laws.Dennett p.9 The "parent" act (Sect. 211) was passed on March 3, 1873, as the Act for the Suppression of ...
of 1873''The Comstock Act'' which made it illegal to send any "obscene, lewd, and/or lascivious" materials through the mail. The English Act did not apply to
Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...
, where the
common law In law, common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body of law created by judges and similar quasi-judicial tribunals by virtue of being stated in written opinions."The common law is not a brooding omnipresen ...
continued to apply. However, neither the English nor the United States Act defined what constituted "obscene", leaving this for the courts to determine. Before the English Act, the publication of obscene material was treated as a common law misdemeanour and effectively prosecuting authors and publishers was difficult even in cases where the material was clearly intended as pornography. Although nineteenth-century legislation eventually outlawed the publication, retail, and trafficking of certain writings and images regarded as pornographic and would order the destruction of shop and warehouse stock meant for sale, the private possession of and viewing of (some forms of) pornography was not made an offence until the twentieth century. Historians have explored the role of pornography in social history and the history of morality. The Victorian attitude that pornography was for a select few can be seen in the wording of the
Hicklin test The Hicklin test is a legal test for obscenity established by the English case ''Regina v Hicklin'' (1868). At issue was the statutory interpretation of the word "obscene" in the Obscene Publications Act 1857, which authorized the destruction of ...
stemming from a court case in 1868 where it asks, "whether the tendency of the matter charged as obscenity is to deprave and corrupt those whose minds are open to such immoral influences." Although they were suppressed, depictions of erotic imagery were common throughout history. Pornographic film production commenced almost immediately after the invention of the motion picture in 1895. A pioneer of the motion picture camera,
Thomas Edison Thomas Alva Edison (February 11, 1847October 18, 1931) was an American inventor and businessman. He developed many devices in fields such as electric power generation, mass communication, sound recording, and motion pictures. These inventio ...
, released various films which were denounced as obscene in late 19th century America. Two of the earliest pioneers were Eugène Pirou and Albert Kirchner. Kirchner directed the earliest surviving pornographic film for Pirou under the trade name "Léar". The 1896 film showed Louise Willy performing a striptease. Pirou's film inspired a genre of risqué French films showing women disrobing and other filmmakers realised profits could be made from such films. Sexually explicit films opened producers and distributors to prosecution. Such films were produced illicitly by amateurs, starting in the 1920s, primarily in France and the United States. Processing the film was risky, as was their distribution. Distribution was strictly private. In 1969,
Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...
became the first country to abolish censorship, thereby decriminalizing pornography, which led to an explosion in investment and of commercially produced pornography. However, it continued to be banned in other countries, and had to be smuggled in, where it was sold "under the counter" or (sometimes) shown in "members only" cinema clubs. Nonetheless, and also in 1969, '' Blue Movie'' by
Andy Warhol Andy Warhol (; born Andrew Warhola Jr.; August 6, 1928 – February 22, 1987) was an American visual artist, film director, and producer who was a leading figure in the Art movement, visual art movement known as pop art. His works explore th ...
, was the first adult erotic film depicting explicit sexual intercourse to receive wide theatrical release in the United States. The film was a seminal film in the
Golden Age of Porn https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MediaWiki_talk:Spam-whitelist/Archives/2018/01#Another_Worthy_Journal_Article_on_Wordpress ---> The term "Golden Age of Porn", or "porno chic", refers to a 15-year period (1969–1984) in commercial American porno ...
and, according to Warhol, a major influence in the making of ''
Last Tango in Paris ''Last Tango in Paris'' ( it, Ultimo tango a Parigi; french: Le Dernier Tango à Paris) is a 1972 erotic drama film directed by Bernardo Bertolucci. The film stars Marlon Brando, Maria Schneider and Jean-Pierre Léaud, and portrays a recently wi ...
'', an internationally controversial erotic drama film, starring Marlon Brando, and released a few years after ''Blue Movie'' was made. Data from 2015 suggests an increase in pornography viewing over the past few decades, and this has been attributed to the growth of Internet pornography since widespread public access to the
World Wide Web The World Wide Web (WWW), commonly known as the Web, is an information system enabling documents and other web resources to be accessed over the Internet. Documents and downloadable media are made available to the network through web se ...
in the late 1990s. Through the 2010s, many pornographic production companies and top pornographic websites—such as
Pornhub Pornhub is a Canadian-owned internet pornography website. It is one of several pornographic video-streaming websites owned by MindGeek. , Pornhub is the 10th-most-trafficked website in the world and the second-most-trafficked adult website aft ...
,
RedTube RedTube is a pornographic video sharing site, which in September 2009 held an Alexa ranking within the world's top 100 sites. It is one of several pornographic websites owned by Mindgeek. In June 2010 it had fallen out of the top 100, but it ...
and
YouPorn YouPorn is a free pornographic video sharing website and one of the 100 most accessed websites in the world. Since launching in August 2006, it grew to become one of the most popular pornographic website on the internet, and, in November 200 ...
—were acquired by
MindGeek MindGeek (formerly Manwin) is a Luxembourg-based, privately held company with Canada as its center of operations that primarily focuses on pornography. It is owned by Feras Antoon, Bernd Bergmair (Bernard Bergemar), David Marmorstein, and — m ...
, which has been described as "a monopoly". The scholarly study of pornography, notably in cultural studies, is limited, perhaps due to the controversy about the topic in feminism. The first peer-reviewed academic journal about the study of pornography, ''
Porn Studies ''Porn Studies'' is a quarterly peer-reviewed academic journal covering the study of pornography. It is published by Routledge and was established in 2014. The editors-in-chief are Feona Attwood (Middlesex University), John Mercer (Birmingham City ...
'', was published in 2014.


Classification

Based on the content, pornography is generally classified as either softcore or
hardcore Hardcore, hard core or hard-core may refer to: Arts and media Film * ''Hardcore'' (1977 film), a British comedy film * ''Hardcore'' (1979 film), an American crime drama film starring George C Scott * ''Hardcore'' (2001 film), a British documen ...
. Both forms often contain nudity. Softcore pornography contains nudity or partial nudity in sexually suggestive situations, but without explicit sexual activity,
sexual penetration Sexual penetration is the insertion of a body part or other object into a body orifice, such as the mouth, vagina or anus, as part of human sexual activity or animal sexual behavior. The term is most commonly used in statute law in the contex ...
or "extreme"
fetishism A fetish (derived from the French , which comes from the Portuguese , and this in turn from Latin , 'artificial' and , 'to make') is an object believed to have supernatural powers, or in particular, a human-made object that has power over ot ...
, while hardcore pornography may contain graphic sexual activity and visible penetration, including
unsimulated sex In the film industry, unsimulated sex is the presentation of sex scenes in which actors genuinely perform the depicted sex acts, rather than simulating them. Although it is ubiquitous in films intended as pornographic, it is very uncommon in ...
scenes.


Subgenres

Pornography encompasses a wide variety of genres. Pornography featuring heterosexual acts composes the bulk of pornography and is "centred and invisible", marking the industry as heteronormative. However, a substantial portion of pornography is not normative, featuring more nonconventional forms of scenarios and sexual activity such as "'fat' porn, amateur porn, disabled porn, porn produced by women, queer porn,
BDSM BDSM is a variety of often erotic practices or roleplaying involving bondage, discipline, dominance and submission, sadomasochism, and other related interpersonal dynamics. Given the wide range of practices, some of which may be engaged ...
, and body modification." Pornography can be classified according to the physical characteristics of the participants, fetish, sexual orientation, etc., as well as the types of sexual activity featured. Reality and voyeur pornography, animated videos, and legally prohibited acts also influence the classification of pornography. Pornography may fall into more than one genre. Some examples of pornography genres: *
Alt porn Alternative porn (also known as alt porn, alternaporn, or simply alt in context), a shortening of "alternative pornography", is a subgenre of pornography that is centered around alternative subcultures, such as goths, punks, emos, scenes, ska ...
*
Amateur pornography Amateur pornography is a category of pornography that features models, actors or non-professionals performing without pay, or actors for whom this material is not their only paid modeling work. Reality pornography is made porn that seeks to em ...
*
Bondage pornography Bondage pornography is the depiction of sexual bondage or other BDSM activities using photographs, stories, films or drawings. Though often described as pornography, the genre involves the presentation of bondage fetishism or BDSM scenarios and d ...
*
Ethnic pornography Ethnic pornography is a genre of pornography featuring performers of specific ethnic groups, or depictions of interracial sexual activity. Though productions can feature any type of ethnic group (e.g., Caucasian, Asian, Middle Eastern, Latin ...
*
Fetish pornography Sexual fetishism or erotic fetishism is a sexual fixation (psychology), fixation on a nonliving object or nongenital body part. The object of interest is called the fetish; the person who has ''a fetish'' for that object is a fetishist. A sexua ...
* Group sex *
Reality pornography Reality pornography is a genre of pornography where staged scenes, usually shot in cinéma vérité fashion, set up and precede sexual encounters. These scenes may either have the camera operator directly engaging in sex (as in gonzo pornography) ...
*
Porn parody A pornographic parody film is a subgenre of the pornographic film industry genre where the basis for the production's story or plotline is the parody of a mainstream television show, feature film, public figure, video game or literary works. This ...
*
Sexual orientation Sexual orientation is an enduring pattern of romantic or sexual attraction (or a combination of these) to persons of the opposite sex or gender, the same sex or gender, or to both sexes or more than one gender. These attractions are generall ...
-based pornography **
Gay pornography Gay pornography is the representation of sexual activity between males. Its primary goal is sexual arousal in its audience. Softcore gay pornography also exists; it at one time constituted the genre, and may be produced as beefcake pornogra ...
**
Lesbian pornography Lesbian erotica deals with depictions in the visual arts of lesbianism, which is the expression of female-on-female sexuality. Lesbianism has been a theme in erotic art since at least the time of ancient Rome, and many regard depictions of lesb ...
**
Bisexual pornography Bisexual pornography is a genre of pornography that most typically depicts men and at least one woman who all perform sex acts on each other. A sex scene involving women and one man who all perform sex acts on each other is generally not identif ...
*
Transgender pornography Transgender pornography is a genre of pornography featuring transsexual or transgender actors. The majority of the genre features trans women, but trans men are sometimes featured. Trans women are most often featured with male partners, but they ar ...


Commercialism


Economics

Revenues of the adult industry in the United States are difficult to determine. In 1970, a Federal study estimated that the total retail value of hardcore pornography in the United States was no more than $10 million. In 1998, Forrester Research published a report on the online "adult content" industry estimating $750 million to $1 billion in annual revenue. Studies in 2001 put the total (including video, pay-per-view, Internet and magazines) between $2.6 billion and $3.9 billion. , pornography is becoming one of the biggest businesses in the United States; billions of dollars are spent annually on the industry's cable and satellite networks, theaters, in-room hotel movies, phone sex, sex magazines, and Internet sites. , the porn industry was believed to bring in more than $13 billion on a yearly basis in the United States.
CNBC CNBC (formerly Consumer News and Business Channel) is an American basic cable business news channel. It provides business news programming on weekdays from 5:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., Eastern Time, while broadcasting talk sho ...
has estimated that pornography was a $13 billion industry in the US, with $3,075 being spent on porn every second and a new porn video being produced every 39 minutes. A significant amount of pornographic video is shot in the
San Fernando Valley The San Fernando Valley, known locally as the Valley, is an urbanized valley in Los Angeles County, California. Located to the north of the Los Angeles Basin, it contains a large portion of the City of Los Angeles, as well as unincorporated ar ...
, which has been a pioneering region for producing adult films since the 1970s, and has since become home for various models, actors/actresses, production companies, and other assorted businesses involved in the production and distribution of pornography. The pornography industry has been considered influential in deciding
format war A format war is a competition between similar but mutually incompatible technical standards that compete for the same market, such as for data storage devices and recording formats for electronic media. It is often characterized by political an ...
s in media, including being a factor in the VHS vs. Betamax format war (the
videotape format war Videotape is magnetic tape used for storing video and usually sound in addition. Information stored can be in the form of either an analog or digital signal. Videotape is used in both video tape recorders (VTRs) and, more commonly, videocasset ...
) and in the
Blu-ray The Blu-ray Disc (BD), often known simply as Blu-ray, is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released on June 20, 2006 worldwide. It is designed to supersede the DVD format, and capable of sto ...
vs.
HD DVD HD DVD (short for High Definition Digital Versatile Disc) is an obsolete high-density optical disc format for storing data and playback of high-definition video. Supported principally by Toshiba, HD DVD was envisioned to be the successor to the ...
format war (the high-def format war). Ron Wagner, Director of IT at a California porn studio: "If you look at the VHS vs. Beta standards, you see the much higher-quality standard dying because of he porn industry's support of VHS.. The mass volume of tapes in the porn market at the time went out on VHS."


Technology

Pornographers have taken advantage of each technological advance in the production and distribution of visual images. Pornography is considered a driving force in the development of technologies from the
printing press A printing press is a mechanical device for applying pressure to an inked surface resting upon a print medium (such as paper or cloth), thereby transferring the ink. It marked a dramatic improvement on earlier printing methods in which the ...
, through photography (still and motion), to
satellite TV Satellite television is a service that delivers television programming to viewers by relaying it from a communications satellite orbiting the Earth directly to the viewer's location. The signals are received via an outdoor parabolic antenna commo ...
,
home video Home video is prerecorded media sold or rented for home viewing. The term originates from the VHS and Betamax era, when the predominant medium was videotapes, but has carried over to optical disc formats such as DVD, Blu-ray and streaming me ...
, other forms of video, and the Internet. With commercial availability of tiny cameras and wireless equipment, "voyeur" pornography established an audience. Mobile cameras are used to capture pornographic photos or videos, and forwarded as
MMS MMS may refer to: Science and technology Network communication protocols * Multimedia Messaging Service for mobile phones * Microsoft Media Server, a content-streaming protocol (mms://) * Manufacturing Message Specification for real time proces ...
, a practice known as
sexting Sexting is sending, receiving, or forwarding sexually explicit messages, photographs, or videos, primarily between mobile phones. It may also include the use of a computer or any digital device. The term was first popularized early in the 21st ...
.


Computer-generated images and manipulations

Digital manipulation requires the use of source photographs, but some pornography is produced without human actors at all. The idea of completely computer-generated pornography was conceived very early as one of the most obvious areas of application for computer graphics and 3D rendering. Further advances in technology have allowed increasingly photorealistic 3D figures to be used in interactive pornography. Until the late 1990s, digitally manipulated pornography could not be produced cost-effectively. In the early 2000s, it became a growing segment, as the modelling and animation software matured and the rendering capabilities of computers improved. As of 2004, computer-generated pornography depicting situations involving children and sex with fictional characters, such as
Lara Croft Lara Croft is a fictional character and the main protagonist of the video game franchise ''Tomb Raider''. She is presented as a highly intelligent and athletic British archaeologist who ventures into ancient tombs and hazardous ruins around th ...
, is already produced on a limited scale. The October 2004 issue of ''
Playboy ''Playboy'' is an American men's Lifestyle magazine, lifestyle and entertainment magazine, formerly in print and currently online. It was founded in Chicago in 1953, by Hugh Hefner and his associates, and funded in part by a $1,000 loan from H ...
'' featured topless pictures of the title character from the ''
BloodRayne ''BloodRayne'' is a media franchise that originated with an action-adventure video game series originally developed by Terminal Reality and published by Majesco Entertainment which began with the game of the same name in 2002. The franchise ...
'' video game.


3D pornography

The first pornographic film shot in 3D was '' 3D Sex and Zen: Extreme Ecstasy'', released on 14 April 2011 in Hong Kong.


Consumption

The vast majority of US men use porn. According to
The Huffington Post ''HuffPost'' (formerly ''The Huffington Post'' until 2017 and sometimes abbreviated ''HuffPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and ...
, 70% of men and 30% of women watch porn. Sources: # # # https://web.archive.org/web/20130116164054/https://www.google.com/adplanner/static/top1000/ # # Quite probably, the majority of US population between ages 18 and 35 use porn at least once a week. According to a study from 2002, the majority of
Norwegian Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe * Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway * Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including ...
population uses pornography. A survey conducted in 2008 on the use of pornography in 18- to 26-year-old American men shows that 87% of the participants view pornography at least once a month and nearly half view it at least once a week.


Production and distribution by region

The
production Production may refer to: Economics and business * Production (economics) * Production, the act of manufacturing goods * Production, in the outline of industrial organization, the act of making products (goods and services) * Production as a stati ...
and
distribution Distribution may refer to: Mathematics *Distribution (mathematics), generalized functions used to formulate solutions of partial differential equations * Probability distribution, the probability of a particular value or value range of a vari ...
of pornography are economic activities of some importance. The exact size of the economy of pornography and the influence that it has in political circles are matters of controversy. In the United States, the sex film industry is centered in the
San Fernando Valley The San Fernando Valley, known locally as the Valley, is an urbanized valley in Los Angeles County, California. Located to the north of the Los Angeles Basin, it contains a large portion of the City of Los Angeles, as well as unincorporated ar ...
of Los Angeles. An analysis by MetaCert, a company that specializes on internet safety, revealed that the United States was the country that hosted the most porn, accounting for 60 percent of all websites containing pornographic content. In Europe,
Budapest Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...
is regarded as the industry center. Piracy, the illegal copying and distribution of material, is of great concern to the porn industry. The industry is the subject of litigation and formalized anti-piracy efforts.


Effects

Research concerning the effects of pornography is concerned with multiple outcomes. Such research includes potential influences on rape, domestic violence,
sexual dysfunction Sexual dysfunction is difficulty experienced by an individual or partners during any stage of normal sexual activity, including physical pleasure, desire, preference, arousal, or orgasm. The World Health Organization defines sexual dysfunction a ...
, difficulties with
sexual relationship An intimate relationship is an interpersonal relationship that involves physical or emotional intimacy. Although an intimate relationship is commonly a sexual relationship, it may also be a non-sexual relationship involving family, friends, or ...
s, and
child sexual abuse Child sexual abuse (CSA), also called child molestation, is a form of child abuse in which an adult or older adolescent uses a child for sexual stimulation. Forms of child sexual abuse include engaging in sexual activities with a child (whet ...
. While some
literature reviews A literature review is an overview of the previously published works on a topic. The term can refer to a full scholarly paper or a section of a scholarly work such as a book, or an article. Either way, a literature review is supposed to provid ...
suggest that pornographic images and films can be addictive, insufficient evidence exists to draw conclusions. While it has not been proven that either porn or masturbation addiction exist, porn or masturbation compulsion probably exist. Several studies conclude the liberalization of porn in society may be associated with decreased rape and sexual violence rates, while others suggest no effect, or are inconclusive.Online.
Pdf.
/ref>


Laws and regulations

The legal status of pornography varies widely from country to country. Regulating hardcore pornography is more common than regulating
softcore pornography Softcore pornography or softcore porn, is commercial still photography or film that has a pornographic or erotic component but is less sexually graphic and intrusive than hardcore pornography, defined by a lack of visual sexual penetration. So ...
.
Child pornography Child pornography (also called CP, child sexual abuse material, CSAM, child porn, or kiddie porn) is pornography that unlawfully exploits children for sexual stimulation. It may be produced with the direct involvement or sexual assault of a ...
is illegal in almost all countries, and some countries have restrictions on
rape pornography Rape pornography is a subgenre of pornography involving the description or depiction of rape. Such pornography either involves simulated rape, wherein sexually consenting adults feign rape, or it involves actual rape. Victims of actual rape may ...
or
animal pornography Zoophilia is a paraphilia involving a sexual fixation on non-human animals. Bestiality is cross-species sexual activity between humans and non-human animals. The terms are often used interchangeably, but some researchers make a distinction b ...
. Disseminating pornography to a minor is generally illegal. There are various attempts to restrict minors' access to pornography, including protocols for pornographic magazines or stores. One way this may be bypassed by minors is that many online sites only require the user to tell the website they are a certain age, and no other age verification is required. The
Child Online Protection Act The Child Online Protection Act (COPA) was a law in the United States of America, passed in 1998 with the declared purpose of restricting access by minors to any material defined as harmful to such minors on the Internet. The law, however, never ...
would have restricted access by minors to any material on the Internet defined as harmful to them, but it did not take effect. The adult film industry regulations in California require that all actors and actresses practice safe sex using condoms. It is rare to see condom use in pornography. Since porn does better financially when actors are unprotected, many companies film in other states. Miami is a major area for amateur porn. Twitter plays a big part in an actor's success: because Twitter does not censor content, actors can post freely without having to self-censor, unlike on Instagram and on Facebook. In the United States, a person receiving unwanted commercial mail he or she deems pornographic (or otherwise offensive) may obtain a Prohibitory Order, either against all mail from a particular sender, or against all sexually explicit mail, by applying to the United States Postal Service. Some people, including pornography producer
Larry Flynt Larry Claxton Flynt Jr. (; November 1, 1942 – February 10, 2021) was an American publisher and the president of Larry Flynt Publications (LFP). LFP mainly produces pornographic magazines, such as ''Hustler'', pornographic videos, and three por ...
and the writer
Salman Rushdie Sir Ahmed Salman Rushdie (; born 19 June 1947) is an Indian-born British-American novelist. His work often combines magic realism with historical fiction and primarily deals with connections, disruptions, and migrations between Eastern and We ...
, have argued that pornography is vital to freedom and that a free and civilized society should be judged by its willingness to accept pornography. The UK government has criminalized possession of what it terms "
extreme pornography Section 63 of the Criminal Justice and Immigration Act 2008 is a law in the United Kingdom criminalising possession of what it refers to as "extreme pornographic images". The law came into force on 26 January 2009. The legislation was brought in ...
", following the highly publicized murder of Jane Longhurst. Pornography can infringe into basic human rights of those involved, especially when
sexual consent Sexual consent is consent to engage in sexual activity. In many jurisdictions, sexual activity without consent is considered rape or other sexual assault. Academic discussion of consent In the late 1980s, academic Lois Pineau argued that societ ...
was not obtained. For example, revenge porn is a phenomenon where disgruntled sexual partners release images or video footage of intimate sexual activity, usually on the internet, without authorization from the other person. Lawmakers have also raised concerns about "upskirt" photos taken of women without their consent. In many countries there has been a demand to make such activities specifically illegal carrying higher punishments than mere breach of privacy or image rights, or circulation of prurient material. As a result, some jurisdictions have enacted specific laws against " revenge porn".


What is not pornography

In the U.S., a July 2014 criminal case decision in
Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...
, Commonwealth v. Rex, 469 Mass. 36 (2014), made a legal determination of what was not to be considered "pornography" and in this particular case "child pornography". It was determined that photographs of naked children that were from sources such as
National Geographic ''National Geographic'' (formerly the ''National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as NAT GEO) is a popular American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. Known for its photojournalism, it is one of the most widely ...
magazine, a sociology textbook, and a
nudist Naturism is a lifestyle of practising non-sexual social nudity in private and in public; the word also refers to the cultural movement which advocates and defends that lifestyle. Both may alternatively be called nudism. Though the two terms ar ...
catalog were not considered pornography in Massachusetts even while in the possession of a convicted and (at the time) incarcerated
sex offender A sex offender (sexual offender, sex abuser, or sexual abuser) is a person who has committed a sex crime. What constitutes a sex crime differs by culture and legal jurisdiction. The majority of convicted sex offenders have convictions for crim ...
. Drawing the line depends on time and place; Occidental mainstream culture got increasingly "pornified" (i.e. tainted by pornographic themes and mainstream films got to include
unsimulated sex In the film industry, unsimulated sex is the presentation of sex scenes in which actors genuinely perform the depicted sex acts, rather than simulating them. Although it is ubiquitous in films intended as pornographic, it is very uncommon in ...
ual acts).


Copyright status

In the United States, some courts have applied US
copyright A copyright is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the exclusive right to copy, distribute, adapt, display, and perform a creative work, usually for a limited time. The creative work may be in a literary, artistic, educatio ...
protection to pornographic materials.Goussé, Caroline (16 February 2012)
"No Copyright Protection for Pornography: A Daring Response to File-Sharing Litigation"
Intellectual Property Brief. Retrieved 1 March 2012.
Some courts have held that copyright protection effectively applies to works, whether they are obscene or not, but not all courts have ruled the same way. The copyright protection rights of pornography in the United States has again been challenged as late as February 2012.


STIs prevention and safer sex practices

Performers working in
pornographic film studios The following is a list of pornographic film studios. A * Abbywinters.com (AUS) * Active Duty (includes gay content) * Adam & Eve (USA) * Anabolic Video (USA) * Athletic Model Guild (includes gay content) B * Bang Bros * Beate Uhse A ...
undergo regular testing for
STIs The Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (STIS) is a spectrograph, also with a camera mode, installed on the Hubble Space Telescope. Aerospace engineer Bruce Woodgate of the Goddard Space Flight Center was the principal investigator and crea ...
every two weeks. They have to test negative for
HIV The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of ''Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of the immune ...
, syphilis,
chlamydia Chlamydia, or more specifically a chlamydia infection, is a sexually transmitted infection caused by the bacterium '' Chlamydia trachomatis''. Most people who are infected have no symptoms. When symptoms do appear they may occur only several we ...
,
gonorrhea Gonorrhea, colloquially known as the clap, is a sexually transmitted infection (STI) caused by the bacterium ''Neisseria gonorrhoeae''. Infection may involve the genitals, mouth, or rectum. Infected men may experience pain or burning with u ...
,
trichomoniasis Trichomoniasis (trich) is an infectious disease caused by the parasite ''Trichomonas vaginalis''. About 70% of affected people do not have symptoms when infected. When symptoms occur, they typically begin 5 to 28 days after exposure. Symptoms ca ...
, and
hepatitis B Hepatitis B is an infectious disease caused by the '' Hepatitis B virus'' (HBV) that affects the liver; it is a type of viral hepatitis. It can cause both acute and chronic infection. Many people have no symptoms during an initial infection. ...
and C before showing up on a set, who are then inspected for sores on their mouths, hands and genitals before commencing work. The industry believes this method of testing to be a viable practice for safer sex, as its medical consultants claim: that since 2004, about 350,000 pornographic scenes have been filmed without
condoms A condom is a sheath-shaped barrier device used during sexual intercourse to reduce the probability of pregnancy or a sexually transmitted infection (STI). There are both male and female condoms. With proper use—and use at every act of inte ...
, and HIV has not been transmitted even once because of performance on a set. Dr.
Allan Ronald Allan R. Ronald (born August 24, 1938) is a Canadian doctor and microbiologist. He has been instrumental in the investigation into sexually transmitted infections in Africa, particularly in the fields of HIV/ AIDS. Ronald is the recipient of mu ...
, a Canadian doctor and
HIV/AIDS Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual ...
specialist who did groundbreaking studies on transmission of STIs among prostitutes in Africa, said there's no doubt about the efficiency of the testing method, but he felt little uncomfortable: "because it’s giving the wrong message — that you can have multiple sex partners without condoms — but I can’t say it doesn’t work.” Pornographic actress
Nina Hartley Marie Louise Hartman (born March 11, 1959), known professionally as Nina Hartley, is an American pornographic film actress described by CNBC as "a legend in the adult world". Early life and education Hartley was born on March 11, 1959 in Ber ...
, who has a degree in
nursing Nursing is a profession within the health care sector focused on the care of individuals, families, and communities so they may attain, maintain, or recover optimal health and quality of life. Nurses may be differentiated from other health ...
, stated that the amount of time involved in shooting a scene can be very long, and with condoms in place it becomes a painful proposition; as their usage is uncomfortable despite the use of lube, causes
friction burn A friction burn is a form of abrasion caused by the friction of skin rubbing against a surface. A friction burn may also be referred to as skinning, chafing, or a term named for the surface causing the burn such as rope burn, carpet burn or ...
, and opens up
lesions A lesion is any damage or abnormal change in the tissue of an organism, usually caused by disease or trauma. ''Lesion'' is derived from the Latin "injury". Lesions may occur in plants as well as animals. Types There is no designated classifi ...
in the genital mucosa. Advocating the testing method for performers in the industry, Hartley said, "Testing works for us, and condoms work for outsiders." Emphasizing that performers in the industry take necessary precautions like
PrEP PowerPC Reference Platform (PReP) was a standard system architecture for PowerPC-based computer systems (as well as a reference implementation) developed at the same time as the PowerPC processor architecture. Published by IBM in 1994, it allo ...
and are at lower risk to contract HIV than most sexually active persons outside the industry, many prominent female performers have vehemently opposed regulatory measures like
Measure B Measure B, also known as the ''County of Los Angeles Safer Sex In the Adult Film Industry Act,'' is the law that requires the use of condoms in all vaginal and anal sex scenes in pornography productions filmed in Los Angeles County, Californi ...
, which sought to make the use of condoms mandatory in pornographic films. The usage of condoms at work has been called an occupational hazard as they cause micro-tears, friction burn, swelling, and yeast infections; which altogether makes one more susceptible to contract STIs.


Views

Views and opinions of people on pornography are various; and differ according to the demography of the people concerned.


Feminist views

Many
feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...
s, including
Andrea Dworkin Andrea Rita Dworkin (September 26, 1946 – April 9, 2005) was an American radical feminist writer and activist best known for her analysis of pornography. Her feminist writings, beginning in 1974, span 30 years. They are found in a dozen solo ...
and
Catharine MacKinnon Catharine Alice MacKinnon (born October 7, 1946) is an American radical feminist legal scholar, activist, and author. She is the Elizabeth A. Long Professor of Law at the University of Michigan Law School, where she has been tenured since 1990, ...
, argue that all pornography is demeaning to women or that it contributes to
violence against women Violence against women (VAW), also known as gender-based violence and sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV), are violent acts primarily or exclusively committed against women or girls, usually by men or boys. Such violence is often con ...
, both in its production and in its consumption. The production of pornography, they argue, entails the physical, psychological, or economic coercion of the women who perform in it, and where they argue that the abuse and exploitation of women is rampant; in its consumption, they charge that pornography eroticizes the domination, humiliation and coercion of women, and reinforces sexual and cultural attitudes that are complicit in rape and
sexual harassment Sexual harassment is a type of harassment involving the use of explicit or implicit sexual overtones, including the unwelcome and inappropriate promises of rewards in exchange for sexual favors. Sexual harassment includes a range of actions fro ...
. Shrage, Laurie (Fall 2015),
Feminist perspectives on sex markets: pornography
,
Sexual exclusionary feminists charge that pornography presents a severely distorted image of sexual relations, and reinforces sex myths; that it always shows women as readily available and desiring to engage in sex at any time, with any man, on men's terms, always responding positively to any advances men make. They argue that because pornography often shows women enjoying and desiring to be violently attacked by men, saying "no" when they actually want sex, fighting back but then ending up enjoying the act—this can affect the public understanding of legal issues such as
consent Consent occurs when one person voluntarily agrees to the proposal or desires of another. It is a term of common speech, with specific definitions as used in such fields as the law, medicine, research, and sexual relationships. Consent as und ...
to sexual relations. In contrast to these objections, other
feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...
scholars argue that the
lesbian A lesbian is a Homosexuality, homosexual woman.Zimmerman, p. 453. The word is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate n ...
feminist movement in the 1980s was good for women in the porn industry. As more women entered the developmental side of the industry, this allowed women to gear porn more towards women because they knew what women wanted, both for actresses and the audience. This is believed to be a good thing because for such a long time, the porn industry has been directed by men for men. This also sparked the arrival of making lesbian porn for lesbians instead of men. Furthermore, many feminists argue that the advent of
VCR A videocassette recorder (VCR) or video recorder is an electromechanical device that records analog audio and analog video from broadcast television or other source on a removable, magnetic tape videocassette, and can play back the recording. ...
,
home video Home video is prerecorded media sold or rented for home viewing. The term originates from the VHS and Betamax era, when the predominant medium was videotapes, but has carried over to optical disc formats such as DVD, Blu-ray and streaming me ...
, and affordable consumer video cameras allowed for the possibility of
feminist pornography Feminist pornography is a genre of film developed by or for those within the sex-positive feminist movement. It was created for the purpose of promoting gender equality by portraying more bodily movements and sexual fantasies of women and member ...
. Consumer video made it possible for the distribution and consumption of video pornography to locate women as legitimate consumers of pornography.
Tristan Taormino Tristan Taormino (born May 9, 1971) is an American feminist author, columnist, sex educator, activist, editor, speaker, radio host, and pornographic film director. She is most recently known for her book ''Opening Up: A Guide to Creating and Susta ...
says that feminist porn is "all about creating a fair working environment and empowering everyone involved." Feminists "ranging from
Betty Friedan Betty Friedan ( February 4, 1921 – February 4, 2006) was an American feminist writer and activist. A leading figure in the women's movement in the United States, her 1963 book ''The Feminine Mystique'' is often credited with sparking the se ...
and
Kate Millett Katherine Murray Millett (September 14, 1934 – September 6, 2017) was an American feminist writer, educator, artist, and activist. She attended Oxford University and was the first American woman to be awarded a degree with first-class honors ...
to
Karen DeCrow Karen DeCrow ( Lipschultz; December 18, 1937 – June 6, 2014) was an American attorney, author, activist and feminist. She served as the fourth national president of the National Organization for Women (NOW) from 1974 to 1977. She was also a str ...
,
Wendy Kaminer Wendy Kaminer (born December 28, 1949) is an American lawyer and writer. She has written several books on contemporary social issues, including ''A Fearful Freedom: Women's Flight From Equality'', about the conflict between egalitarian and protect ...
and
Jamaica Kincaid Jamaica Kincaid (; born May 25, 1949) is an Antiguan-American novelist, essayist, gardener, and gardening writer. She was born in St. John's, Antigua (part of the twin-island nation of Antigua and Barbuda). She lives in North Bennington, Vermo ...
" supported the right to consume pornography. Feminist porn directors are interested in challenging representations of men and women, as well as providing sexually-empowering imagery that features many kinds of bodies. In a 1995 essay for ''
The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American weekly magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. Founded as a weekly in 1925, the magazine is published 47 times annually, with five of these issues ...
'', writer Susan Faludi argued that porn was one of the few industries where women enjoy a power advantage in the workplace. "'Actresses have the power,' Alec Metro, one of the men in line, ruefully noted of the X-rated industry. A former firefighter who claimed to have lost a bid for a job to affirmative action, Metro was already divining that porn might not be the ideal career choice for escaping the forces of what he called 'reverse discrimination.' Female performers can often dictate which male actors they will and will not work with. They'' make more money than ''us''.' Porn—at least, porn produced for a heterosexual audience—is one of the few contemporary occupations where the pay gap operates in women's favor; the average actress makes fifty to a hundred per cent more money than her male counterpart. But then she is the object of desire; he is merely her appendage, the object of the object."


Religious views

Religious organizations have been important in bringing about political action against pornography. In the United States, religious beliefs affect the formation of political beliefs that concern pornography. According to
Christianity Today ''Christianity Today'' is an evangelical Christian media magazine founded in 1956 by Billy Graham. It is published by Christianity Today International based in Carol Stream, Illinois. ''The Washington Post'' calls ''Christianity Today'' "evange ...
, " ..Protestant men today who attend church regularly are basically the only men in America still resisting the cultural norm of regularized pornography use." However, a study by The Austin Institute for the Study of Family and Culture in the US found that of Christians that attend church, Protestants had a higher rate of viewing pornography in the last week than Catholics.


See also

*
Adult animation Adult animation, also known as mature animation, and infrequently as adult-oriented animation, is any type of animated motion work that is catered specifically to adult interests, and is mainly targeted and marketed towards adults and adolescent ...
* ASMR erotica *
Cartoon pornography Cartoon pornography, or animated pornography, is the portrayal of illustrated or animated fictional cartoon characters in erotic or sexual situations. Animated cartoon pornography or erotic animation, is a subset of the larger field of adult an ...
*
Effects of pornography The effects of pornography on individuals or their intimate relationships depend on the type of pornography used and differ from person to person. Consumption of pornographic material is associated with negative and positive impacts. It has been ...
*
Erotic comics Erotic comics are adult comics which focus substantially on nudity and sexual activity, either for their own sake or as a major story element. As such they are usually not permitted to be sold to legal minors. Like other genres of comics, they ca ...
*
Erotic hypnosis Erotic hypnosis is a broad term for a variety of erotic activities involving hypnosis. Some erotic hypnosis is practiced in the context of BDSM relationships and communities. In addition, for some people hypnosis is inherently erotic, making it a ...
*
Erotic literature Erotic literature comprises fictional and factual stories and accounts of eros (passionate, romantic or sexual relationships) intended to arouse similar feelings in readers. This contrasts erotica, which focuses more specifically on sexual feel ...
*
Erotic photography Erotic photography is a style of art photography of an erotic, sexually suggestive or sexually provocative nature. Erotic photography is often distinguished from nude photography, which contains nude subjects not necessarily in an erotic situatio ...
*
Eroticism Eroticism () is a quality that causes sexual feelings, as well as a philosophical contemplation concerning the aesthetics of sexual desire, sensuality, and romantic love. That quality may be found in any form of artwork, including painting, sc ...
*
History of erotic depictions The history of erotic depictions includes paintings, sculpture, photographs, dramatic arts, music and writings that show scenes of a sexual nature throughout time. They have been created by nearly every civilization, ancient and modern. Early ...
*
History of human sexuality The social construction of human sexuality and sexual behavior—along with its taboos, regulation, and social and political impact—has had a profound effect on the various cultures of the world since prehistoric times. The study of the his ...
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Literotica Literotica (a portmanteau of literature and erotica) is a free erotic fiction website. It allows any user to register as an author and submit stories and has over a million registered users . Amateur authors contribute stories, poems, essays, illu ...
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Mobile porn Mobile porn, also known as mobile adult content, mobile erotica or cellphone adult content, is pornography transmitted over mobile telecommunications networks for consumption on mobile devices (mainly mobile phones, tablets and smartphones). His ...
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Right to sexuality The right to sexuality incorporates the right to express one's sexuality and to be free from discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation. Specifically, it relates to the human rights of people of diverse sexual orientations, including les ...
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Sex in advertising Sex appeal is often used in advertising to help sell a particular product or service. According to research, sexually appealing content, such as imagery, used for marketing does not need to pertain to the product or service in question. Rath ...
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Sex worker A sex worker is a person who provides sex work, either on a regular or occasional basis. The term is used in reference to those who work in all areas of the sex industry.Oxford English Dictionary, "sex worker" According to one view, sex work i ...
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Sex-positive feminism Sex-positive feminism, also known as pro-sex feminism, sex-radical feminism, or sexually liberal feminism, is a feminist movement centering on the idea that sexual freedom is an essential component of women's freedom. Sex-positive feminism cen ...
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Sex-positive movement The sex-positive movement is a social movement, social and philosophical movement that seeks to change cultural attitudes and norms around sexuality, promoting the recognition of sexuality (in the countless forms of expression) as a natural and he ...
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Sexual and reproductive health and rights Sexual and reproductive health and rights or ''SRHR'' is the concept of human rights applied to sexuality and reproduction. It is a combination of four fields that in some contexts are more or less distinct from each other, but less so or not at ...
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Sexual Freedom Awards The Sexual Freedom Awards is an annual British event that honours achievement in the sexuality and erotica industries worldwide. Founded in 1994 by campaigner Tuppy Owens, the awards were first called the "Erotic Oscars", until the name had to b ...
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Sexual revolution The sexual revolution, also known as the sexual liberation, was a social movement that challenged traditional codes of behavior related to sexuality and interpersonal relationships throughout the United States and the developed world from the 1 ...
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Webcam model A webcam model (colloquially, camgirl, camboy, or cammodel) is a video performer who streams on the Internet with a live webcam broadcast. A webcam model often performs erotic acts online, such as stripping, masturbation, or sex acts in exchan ...
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Women's pornography Porn for women, women's porn or women's pornography, is pornography aimed specifically at the female market, and often produced by women. It rejects the view that pornography is only for men, and seeks to make porn that women enjoy watching instea ...


References


Further reading


Advocacy

* * Both of Bright's books challenge any equations between feminism and anti-pornography positions. * * * * Student run newspaper. * * Performance artists and literary theorists who challenge Dworkin and MacKinnon. * Defends the availability of pornography, and condemns feminist anti-pornography campaigns. * * * * * ::''Review of Strossen's book'': * Critique of Stoltenberg and Dworkin's positions on pornography and power. * ::''Also as'': *


Opposition

* Assiter advocates seeing pornography as epitomizing a wider problem of oppression, exploitation and inequality which needs to be better understood. * An argument for approaches to end harm to women caused by pornography. * (Online version before inclusion in an issue.) An illustration of Catharine Mackinnon's theory that pornography silence's women's speech, this illustration differs from one given by
Rae Langton Rae Helen Langton, FBA (born 14 February 1961) is an Australian-British professor of philosophy. She is currently the Knightbridge Professor of Philosophy at the University of Cambridge. She has published widely on Immanuel Kant's philosophy, ...
(below). * A critique of the pornographic industry within a
Kantian Kantianism is the philosophy of Immanuel Kant, a German philosopher born in Königsberg, Prussia (now Kaliningrad, Russia). The term ''Kantianism'' or ''Kantian'' is sometimes also used to describe contemporary positions in philosophy of mind, ...
ethical framework. * A variety of essays that try to assess ways that pornography may take advantage of men. * Pdf. A description of Catharine Mackinnon's theory that pornography silence's women's speech, this description differs from the one given by Alex Davies (above). * * Pdf. An argument that pornography is one element of an unjust institution of the subordination of women to men. * Preview. An argument that pornography silences women therefore acting as an infringement of free speech (see Davies above, and Langton, also above). * * A defence of the Dworkin-MacKinnon definition and condemnation of pornography employing putatively relatively rigorous analysis. ::''See also'': A criticism of Vadas' paper. * An argument that pornography increases women's vulnerability to rape. * A representation of the causal connections between pornography and violence towards women. *


Neutral or mixed

* Collection of papers from 1982 conference; visible and divisive split between anti-pornography activists and lesbian S&M theorists.
Real Your Brain on Porn
Retrieved 2019-04-14. *


External links

Commentary * Interactive web site companion to a ''
Frontline Front line refers to the forward-most forces on a battlefield. Front line, front lines or variants may also refer to: Books and publications * ''Front Lines'' (novel), young adult historical novel by American author Michael Grant * ''Frontlines ...
'' documentary exploring the pornography industry within the United States. Economics * Government * Kutchinsky, Berl, Professor of Criminology
The first law that legalized pornography
(Denmark) History * Law
American judge orders parents to pay $30,441 for disposing adult son's porn collection
(27 August 2021).
Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...
. Sociology * * Technology
From teledildonics to interactive porn: the future of sex in a digital age
(2014-06-06), ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' {{portal bar, Art, Books, Erotica and pornography, Film, Human sexuality, Internet, Literature, Sex work, Television Sexuality