PornTribe Magazine

Marin Activists Plan Global Orgasm For World Peace

2006-11-30T08:03:00.000-07:00

Marin, CA--A pair of California peace activists are calling for a different kind of protest this Solstice season.

Donna Sheehan and Paul Reffell want everyone on the planet to have an orgasm on Dec. 22 while focusing all that feel good energy on world peace.

"The orgasm gives out an incredible feeling of peace during and after it," Reffell said on Sunday. "Your mind is like a blank. It's like a meditative state. And mass meditations have been shown to make a change."

(See the study done in 1993, where mass meditations were linked to a dramatic drop in violent crime in Washington, D.C.)

The event, The Global Orgasm for Peace, is attracting world-wide attention. The couple claim their website is receiving more than 25,000 visitors a day.

"Religion, science, art, medicine-you name any great accomplishment that the human race has made and none of it has stopped war and aggression," Sheehan said. "We thought, 'What's the next unbelievable, untested biological gift that we've all been given?' The orgasm."

Sounds good to me.

The truth is, we choose our beliefs; rarely are they based upon facts. If people can choose to believe that their pastors are heterosexual, or that George Bush and the stock market are real, then why can't we believe that a whole bunch of earth shattering orgasms can change the world?

"The dream is to have everyone in the world (take part)," Reffell said. "And if that means laying down your gun for a few minutes, then hey, all the better."

Extreme Associates To Launch Publishing Venture

2006-11-20T11:15:00.000-07:00

Extreme Associates owner Rob Black is joining forces with iconoclast publisher Shane Bugbee to release The Extreme Times, a free periodical focusing on the adult industry, extreme art, music and entertainment.

"The Extreme Times will basically have everything, with a focus on Extreme and all the whacky bullshit that goes on with us," Black said in a report from AVN.

"This is just another step for us to expand and get back out into the world, as well as get back to basics."

Bugbee, a twenty year veteran in the war against censorship, said he jumped at the chance to work with Extreme "because the company's owners Rob Black and Lizzy Borden facing 10 charges of obscenity for their films."

Bugbee has been promoting extreme free speech since he was a teenager, and has worked with such artists as Jello Biafra, cartoonist Mike Diana, filmmaker Ryan McPherson and author Jim Goad.

Black plans to rollout the premier issue at this year's Adult Entertainment Expo in January. The magazine will be published 4-6 times per year and will be distributed through events, tattoo shops, independent music and bookstores, and anywhere Extreme Associates' films are sold.

Texas Porn Stores Raided

2006-10-31T09:03:00.000-07:00

Beaumont, TX--Police in southeast Texas raided three adult novelty shops last week resulting in the arrests of several employees and one store manager.

Sunrise Records, Krazy Kat and Bare Necessities came under police scrutiny after an anonymous citizen complained that the shops were selling obscene material.

According to a report in the Examiner, an undercover agent purchased several items from the stores and presented the materials to a local judge. The judge found the items to be in violation of Texas' strict obscenity laws and issued a warrant to search the shops.

During the raids police arrested several store clerks and one store manager who was just returning to work from lunch. According to one report they may find themselves facing fines of $4000 and up to one year in jail or both.

In the meantime, police have been busy confiscating the inventory of all three businesses.

"Officers are gathering items within the stores, both videos and devices," said Lt. Jim Clay of the Beaumont Police Department. "Each will go under judicial review based on obscenity laws."

Under Texas obscenity law an "obscene device" is "a device, including a dildo or artificial vagina, designed or marketed as useful primarily for the stimulation of human genital organs."

Eon McKai & Company Kick Off Vivid-Alt Website

2006-08-04T06:19:00.000-07:00

Cyberspace (and beyond)--Director, producer and alt-porn darling Eon McKai wants to put the punk back into porn. And with his recent partnership with Vivid Video to create Vivid-Alt, he and his deviant buddies plan to do just that.

"There's tons of kids who listen to emo, punk rock, goth or drum and bass and there's no smut for us," McKai says.

McKai launched a promotional website for the new Vivid brand last week. The site features info on upcoming releases, Vivid-Alt starlets and directors Dave Naz and Octavio Winkitiki.

"This website sells you nothing," says their mission statement. "We just want you to know who we are and what we are doing."

Check it out.

No End In Sight For 2257 Inspections

2006-08-02T05:51:00.000-07:00

Chatsworth, CA--According to a report by Mark Kerns in Adult Video News, Robert Hill Releasing has become the third company in 10 days subjected to the FBI's ongoing 2257 record keeping investigation.

Robert Hill Releasing owner Lynton told AVN that agents showed up at his office and began verifying the ages of performers from apparently random titles in their extensive specialty catalog. The agents did not show Lynton a warrant.

"They just showed their badges and indicated what they were here for," Lynton said.

Preliminary reports have suggested that the FBI has compiled a list of up to 23 adult video companies who they intend to investigate over the next several weeks or even months. Lynton told AVN that agents said they expect established adult companies to be in compliance with the federal record keeping laws.

"Ours are in order, as far as we can tell," Lynton said. "Everything seems to be going as smooth as possible right now. The gentlemen weren't coming in here busting doors down. They were very pleasant. They brought their copy machines and they're copying IDs and all of the paperwork."

Graphic shamelessly stolen from Adult Video News.

FBI Continues 2257 Inspections

2006-07-28T12:50:00.000-07:00

Bethlehem, PA--The FBI conducted it's second 2257 inspection this morning in what now appears to be a methodical nationwide investigation of U.S. porn producers.

JJ Ruch, sole proprietor of Sebastian Sloane Productions, was visited by a squad of four Federal agents earlier this morning at his home office in Bethlehem, PA.

According to Ruch, agents inspected all of his model release forms, copies of model IDs, computers, cameras and even searched his kitchen and living room.

"They arrived in a big black SUV with government license plates, got out of the car and knocked on the door," Ruch told X-Biz online. "Once I opened the door, they moved forward inside and said, 'We'll do the search ourselves.'"

There has been no mention in any reports that the agents showed Ruch a warrant.

"I was a complete nervous wreck," Ruch told Adult Video News. "They were just taking pictures of my model contracts and model IDs. They had a machine that they put the model information in and it tells them whether the model is 18 or not."

During the four and a half hour inspection, agents told Ruch that the FBI has 16 inspection squads who will be investigating adult content producers throughout the nation for the next several months.

"The agents said they've compiled two years worth of research on the adult industry, using Whois and reviewing video-on-demand sites to see whose producing what," Ruch said.

Ruch told both AVN and X-Biz that he passed the inspections.

"I've always kept the books in line just because of the possibility of an investigation like this," Ruch said.

The Universal Declaration Of Human Rights

2006-07-27T08:02:00.000-07:00

PREAMBLE

Whereas recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world,

Whereas disregard and contempt for human rights have resulted in barbarous acts which have outraged the conscience of mankind, and the advent of a world in which human beings shall enjoy freedom of speech and belief and freedom from fear and want has been proclaimed as the highest aspiration of the common people,

Whereas it is essential, if man is not to be compelled to have recourse, as a last resort, to rebellion against tyranny and oppression, that human rights should be protected by the rule of law,

Whereas it is essential to promote the development of friendly relations between nations,

Whereas the peoples of the United Nations have in the Charter reaffirmed their faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person and in the equal rights of men and women and have determined to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom,

Whereas Member States have pledged themselves to achieve, in co-operation with the United Nations, the promotion of universal respect for and observance of human rights and fundamental freedoms,

Whereas a common understanding of these rights and freedoms is of the greatest importance for the full realization of this pledge,

Now, Therefore THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY proclaims THIS UNIVERSAL DECLARATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS as a common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations, to the end that every individual and every organ of society, keeping this Declaration constantly in mind, shall strive by teaching and education to promote respect for these rights and freedoms and by progressive measures, national and international, to secure their universal and effective recognition and observance, both among the peoples of Member States themselves and among the peoples of territories under their jurisdiction.

For the full text of the document that Eleanor Roosevelt called the "Magna Carta for all mankind," click here.

FBI Begins 2257 Harassment Campaign

2006-07-25T19:21:00.000-07:00

Chatsworth, CA--According to a report by Adult Video News, FBI agents visited the offices of Diabolic Video on Monday to check their compliance with the record keeping regulations of Title 18, U.S.C. 2257.

During the first 2257 inspection of an adult company in 11 years, five agents used their own equipment to copy Diabolic records and reportedly took half the day to complete the inspection.

"[One] agent said there are 10 companies on their list and we were the first," Diabolic owner Greg Allen told AVN.

Various sources have been speculating on the reasons for the surprise inspections. Rumors that the new performer "Seduction" began her adult career while she was under age may have prompted authorities to send a message of zero tolerance to adult filmakers.

Others suggest that the sweeps are a reaction to the Free Speech Coalition's lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the recordkeeping regulations.

The Free Speech Coalition issued a press release today warning all primary producers of adult content to be prepared for inspections of their own. Their underlying message was decidedly ominous and to the point: "Prepare for an ass-fucking and call your lawyer."

Section 2257 is the regulatory code that requires producers of adult content to keep careful records of the ages of all models and actors. Although it is touted as a necessary tool for preventing child pornography, many in the adult industry claim the rules are far too restrictive.

According to a summary of 2257 on the FSC website the regulations impose "burdensome record keeping requirements on expression that is not even imaginably child pornography. Identification information must be gathered and recorded, then cross-indexed four different ways and stored in ways that are in some cases impossible."

Despite the difficulties posed by the code, initial reports indicate that Diabolic passed the inspection without any trouble.

"I'm passing with flying colors," Allan told AVN while the inspection was taking place. "I've dedicated a lot of time and money to this so I think I've taken it more seriously than a lot of people."

And what would you expect? Only a legitimate adult business would even attempt to comply with such Draconian regulations. Child pornographers don't set up shop in suburban neighborhoods, attend industry conventions and advertise their web sites in nationally distributed magazines.

Of course, strict age verification regulations will always be needed, but 2257 is nothing more than government hypocricy at its worst. Authorities are using Title 18 to discriminate against adult businesses in the name of stopping child pornography. But what they really want to do is stamp out sexual expression altogether.

We'll keep you posted as this story develops.

Porn Star Runs For Governor

2006-07-24T06:51:00.000-07:00

Nevada--In case you haven't heard, ex-porn star Melody "Mimi Miyagi" Damayo is running for governor of Nevada.

Damayo filed as a Republican candidate in May and despite being excluded from the major opinion polls, she has grabbed her fair share of headlines in the Nevada press.

Whether you want to laugh it off as a juvenile media stunt or dismiss it as a footnote in bubble-gum pop culture, the fact remains that Mimi is running this thing as a legitimate campaign.

"I want everyone to know that I'm here to bring back the roots of the Republican Party: freedom, freedom of speech, freedom to party, free enterprise," Damayo said at a recent campaign funraiser.

Now, wouldn't the world be a better place is we had a porn star or two in public office?

The British are cumming, the British are cumming!

2006-07-20T05:57:00.000-07:00

London--Wankers and Tossers unite! On August 5, the San Francisco based Center for Sex and Culture will host the First International Masturbate-a-Thon at Drop Studios in London.

Part fundraiser, part sex education media event, the annual circle jerk has been going strong in the U.S. since 2000. This year's event gathered hundreds of participants to enjoy some communal stroking in San Francisco's SOMA district and boasted the participation of sex-positive porn goddess Nina Hartley.

Participants can compete for prizes by demonstrating their solo-sex athleticism in the categories of "most orgasms" and "longest session." The coveted U.S. record stands at a crotch numbing 8 hours and 30 minutes.

U.K. independent production company Zig Zag is currently filming a documentary of the event scheduled to air on late night British television later this year.

According to the Zig Zag promo blurb "this year it's time to bring the event across the pond to see if the great British public can embrace public masturbation. It's time to find out if the only things allowed to be stiff in Britain are upper lips."

Ah, British humor.

The Center for Sex and Culture is a non-profit sex education organization and refuses to accept any state or federal grant money.

McCowen Enters Not Guilty Plea

2006-07-17T07:14:00.000-07:00

Pensacola, Fla--Clinton Raymond McCowen, aka Ray Guhn, has entered of plea of not guilty to obscenity charges filed against he and his associates late last June.

McCowen, Kevin Patrick Stevens and Andrew Craft were arrested by Escambia County sheriffs on charges of obscenity, racketeering and prostitution.

The three men allegedly produced content for the popular hardcore bukkake site CumOnHerFace.com in and around the Pensacola area, paying over 100 local men and women to act as performers. That content has been defined as "obscene" according to Florida community standards.

"This case raises significant constitutional questions regarding application of the obscenity law to the material intended for Internet distribution," said Lawenrce G. Walters, Esq. of Weston, Garrou, DeWitt & Walters, the firm representing McCowen.

One of the most disturbing aspects of the allegations is the prostitution charge. Authorities are claiming that paying people to perform sexual acts for the camera constitutes "prostitution."

"This is a particularly disturbing allegation, and perverts the use of the prostitution statute in a way that allows the government to engage in the censorship of erotic materials," said John H. Weston, senior partner in Weston, Garrou, Dewitt & Walters. "This case represents nothing less than an attempt to eliminate production of sexually explicit materials in the state of Florida."

A similar attempt was made by the state of California in the late 80's when authorities tried to pin prostitution charges on hardcore porn maker Harold Freeman.

In The People v. Freeman, the California Supreme Court called the state's actions "a somewhat transparent attempt to an 'end run' around the First Amendment and the state obscenity laws."

It was found that the California pandering statute did not criminalize the hiring of actors for non-obscene films and the court's judgment effectively legalized hardcore porn in the state.

In any case, it looks like McCowen and his attorneys will have to fight that battle all over again.

"We intend to contest these charges against our client vigorously on every front, constitutional, statutory and factual," said Walters. "We think it clear that this case stems more from hostility toward erotic expression than from any legitimate law enforcement interest."

Inmates Sue For Porno Rights

2006-07-14T06:24:00.000-07:00

Indianapolis--Two inmates are suing the Indiana Department of Corrections for instituting a new policy that bars prisoners from receiving or possessing material that contains sexual content.

The policy, which went into affect on July 1, seeks to regulate prisoners access to magazines such as Playboy, Hustler and Easy Rider as well as personal mail and book selections in prison libraries.

Ernest Tope, 53 and Wade Meisberger, 34 who are serving hefty sentences for murder and auto theft respectively, are the leading defendants in the lawsuit which is seeking class action status for over 20,000 inmates.

"The policy is written so broadly that it includes within its prohibitions such things as personal letters between prisoners and loved ones and much of the world's great literature and art," said the complaint filed by the American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana.

Authorities from the Indiana Department of Corrections claim they haven't reviewed the complaint and have not yet offered any public comment.

For more information about how the US prison system well, sucks, check out www.prisonsucks.com.

Phil Harvey Receives Humanitarian Award

2006-07-09T13:13:00.000-07:00

St. Louis--Phil Harvey, founder and president of Adam & Eve, was honored with the American Association of Sexuality Educators, Counselors and Therapists annual Humanitarian Award last week.

Lloyd Sinclair, AASECT member and long time colleague of Harvey's, presented the award, citing a long list of his philanthropic contributions that have "promoted reproductive health, family planning and AIDS prevention in some of the world's poorest countries."

"I am proud to be recognized by such a fine and compassionate group of professionals," Harvey said. "It is an honor to be part of your organization."

Harvey founded Adam and Eve in 1970 as mail order condom retailer at a time when shipping contraceptives through the mail was still illegal. The company has since become the world's largest mail order purveyor of adult's only merchandise, and a plentiful source of funds for Harvey's ambitious humanitarian projects.

"I was very taken with the idea that I could sell sexual accoutrements to relatively wealthy American's and use the proceeds to support family planning in developing countries," Harvey said in an article in Mother Jones. "I've taken a great deal of pleasure from the sort of Robin Hood effect that's resulted."

Harvey's non-profit organization, Population Services International, has had notable effects on sexual health in poor countries. In a partnership with the Ethiopian Army, Harvey's group distributes millions of condoms for no more that a penny a piece. In addition, soldiers are required to carry a condom off base which has resulted in an HIV infection rate of only 5%. Other African military forces suffer a rate of up to 40%.

At home, Adam & Eve has made a positive impact by being one of the few adult companies to institute a "sex positive" screening process for all its videos. The company refuses to sell videos and DVDs that depict forced sex or violence towards men or women.

Ralph Ginzburg, First Amendment Champion, Dies

2006-07-07T11:37:00.000-07:00

New York--Ralph Ginzburg, publisher of the controversial 1960's erotic art quarterly Eros, died Thursday. The official cause of death was multiple myeloma, a cancer of the bones. He was 76.

The iconoclastic editor and publisher became infamous after being indicted on obscenity charges in 1963.

New York Catholic Priest Morton Hill, a modern-day Anthony Comstock, persuaded then Attorney General Robert Kennedy to have Ginzburg indicted for "sending obscene matter through the mail" and using allegedly "salacious" promotional methods.

The original indictment called for fines of $280,000 and a prison term of 280 years.

Tame by today's standards, Eros was an expensive hardbound quarterly magazine that bravely explored sexuality in history, politics, art and literature. Unable to keep the publication out of the red, Ginzburg abandoned the project after only four issues were published.

Still, Ginzburg was convicted and eventually served eight months of a five year sentence in federal prison.

During his Supreme Court appeal in 1966, it was found that "abundant evidence was introduced that each of the of the publications was originated or sold as stock in trade of the business of pandering, i.e., the purveying of publications openly advertised to appeal to the customers' erotic interest."

Although he felt that the conviction irreparably damaged his subsequent career, Ginzburg never stopped speaking out for the freedom of expression.

"The government cannot stamp out sexual expression," Ginzburg said. "It's like trying to stamp out the instinct for life itself."

EFF Turns Sweet Sixteen

2006-07-07T10:06:00.000-07:00

San Francisco--In March 1990, when the Internet was just a whisper on the lips of geeks and dungeon masters, the Secret Service raided the offices of Texas game board maker Steve Jackson. Searching for copies of an illegal document authorities feared could cripple the nation's 911 emergency system, agents seized all of Jackson's electronic equipment and files containing a book he was about to publish. They had no idea who they were fucking with.

After finding no trace of what was called the E911 document, the agency returned Jackson's property. To his dismay, Jackson discovered that Secret Service agents had accessed, read and deleted all of his computer files including private employee and customer e-mails.

Steve Jackson Games was all but in ruins. He had had to lay off many of his employees and the deadline for his book publishing deal had come and gone.

Certain that his civil rights had been violated, Jackson turned to Mitch Kapor, John Barlow and John Gilmore, online pioneers who were already keeping a close watch on civil liberties and new technologies.

And so, sixteen years ago this Monday, the Electronic Frontier Foundation was born.

The group filed a lawsuit against the Secret Service and eventually won. The court determined that the government had no business reading private e-mails and gave e-mails the same privacy protection as telephone calls.

For the past sixteen years, the EFF has continued to tirelessly defend our civil rights in the sphere of online technology.

Their latest lawsuit accuses AT&T of cooperating with the National Security Agency in providing access to American's telephone and Internet communications without legal authority. Last month the EFF filed an amicus brief arguing that the government needs a warrant to collect the content of a telephone call.

"We have shown that AT&T is diverting traffic wholesale to the NSA," said EFF staff attorney Kurt Opsahl. "It is not a secret, and [there] is no reason to deny AT&T customers the opportunity to show the court that this dragnet surveillance program violates the law and their privacy rights."

"It is quite possibly the most important privacy and free speech issue in the 21st century," said EFF attorney Kevin Bankston. "We are trying to force the government to follow the law. We are trying to force the phone company to follow the law."

The EFF & Pornography

As I said in the very first PornTribe post back in March, the reason for treating pornography as protected speech is not just because it's so damn great to watch, but because it keeps the censors at bay when it comes to more "important" forms of political and social dissent.

The folks at the Electronic Frontier Foundation appear to agree.

In the mid-nineties a barrage of censorious legislation made its way through congress.

The Communications Decency Act (CDA) of 1996 instituted severe criminal penalties for publishing obscene content online; content that the government had no legal authority to prohibit offline.

The EFF, along with the American Civil Liberties Union and other civil rights groups, sued to block the enforcement of the CDA which led to the Supreme Court ruling the law unconstitutional in 1997.

In 1998 Congress passed the Child Online Protection Act (COPA) which provided severe criminal penalties for the "commercial" distribution of "material harmful to minors."

Again, the EFF and the ACLU rallied together, this time filing a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the law. According to their website, the EFF focused their case on the vague language of the law. They also claimed that it attempted to force adults to give up their right to read what they chose and allow the most conservative jurisdiction in the country to set the "decency" standards for all Web content nationally.

The case went all the way to the Supreme Court (Ashcroft v. ACLU), which eventually found COPA unconstitutional.

In the Court's opinion:

"Content-based prohibitions, enforced by severe criminal penalties, have the constant potential to be a repressive force in the lives and thoughts of a free people. To guard against that threat the Constitution demands that content-based restrictions on speech be presumed invalid, and that the Government bear the burden of showing their constitutionality."

Right fucking on! Good job, guys and Happy Birthday!

The EFF is a non-profit advocacy group based in San Francisco. They rely heavily on individual donations to continue their great work. If you'd like to donate or get involved, click on the first EFF link above. Or, if that's too much to ask, then this one.

Illegal Porn Business Booming In Australia

2006-07-04T08:43:00.000-07:00

SYDNEY, Australia--According to an article in Australia's Sunday Age, the production and consumption of illegal and unclassified pornography is on the rise Down Under.

The investigative report estimated Australia's annual trade in illegal X-rated DVDs to be in the range of $300 million.

Although pornography is legal in most states, distributors are required to submit titles to official censors who classify each video and determine whether or not the item could be deemed obscene. (I don't mean to be trite, but how do I get that job?)

According to the report, criminal gangs are responsible for flooding the market with unregulated smut, some of which depicts images of rape, incest and underage sex. One catalog from a retailer in the Northern Territory promises "depraved content."

Federal Attorney General Philip Ruddock expressed concern at the relaxed attitude that many state governments were taking toward illegal and unclassified material.

"When the law specifically provides that material ought to be presented for classification, and it's not, the it is beyond doubt that people distributing that material are committing offenses," Ruddock said.

Why should we pay attention to stories like this, you ask? Well, for one thing, it illustrates the point that no matter how much a society tries to regulate sexuality it will always find a way to express itself. In fact, the more taboos we impose on sex, the uglier and more depraved that expression tends to become.

Ark. Governor Wants Gay Foster Parent Ban

2006-07-01T06:31:00.000-07:00

Little Rock, Ark.--The state Supreme Court struck down a ban on gay foster parents on Thursday but Republican Governor Mike Huckabee won't let it rest.

"I'm very disappointed that the court seems more interested in what's good for gay couples than what's good for children needing foster care," Huckabee said of the Court's decision.

The Court found that the state's testimony demonstrated that "the driving force behind the adoption of the regulations was not to promote the health, safety and welfare of foster children but rather based upon the board's views of morality and its bias against homosexuals." Also, the Court said that being raised by gays doesn't cause academic problems or gender identity issues.

Before you go all warm and fuzzy, realize that Thursday's ruling leaves open the possibility of enforcing the ban by making it law.

Making matters worse, both prospective gubanatorial candidates (Rep. Asa Hutchinson and Dem. Mike Beebe) for the 2008 Ark. Governor's race oppose allowing homosexuals to be foster parents.

For more on this story check out the AP article in the NY Times.

In the mean time: keep reading, keep writing, keep fighting.

Disabled Woman Makes Porn Debut

2006-06-30T06:16:00.000-07:00

Spain--Encarna Conde needs to use a wheelchair but that's not stopping her from making a splash with the new porn flick, Breaking Barriers.

When Conde got fed up with the lack of disabled women being featured in mainstream porn, she decided to take matters into her own hands. She wrote a letter to Antonio Marcos, the head of XCanal, Spain's largest porn company.

Marcos agreed to hold an open casting call for aspiring, disabled porn stars. When no one responded, Conde volunteered herself.

"It was very pleasant," Conde said of her first on-screen effort, "though, I was somewhat cowardly."

The film deviates from the standard porno formula by ending with a serious discussion with the producer about disabled women and their sexuality.

"Disabled women have to take steps forward and one should always be happy if one breaks a barrier," Conde said. "Everybody, whether they are disabled or not, has the right to make their own sexual choices."

Encarna Conde is the president of the Association of Andalucian Ataxia Groups.

Iowa Senator Takes Aim At Sex Workers

2006-06-29T05:54:00.000-07:00

Washington--Hookers beware. Iowa Republican Senator Charles Grassley wants to use the U.S. tax code to put you in jail.

A Senate committee approved legislation yesterday that would target criminals in the sex-slave trade as well as "run-of-the-mill pimps" using a new provision of the U.S. tax code.

"This vile crime is under our noses in the United States," Grassley said, "And it's a no-brainer to have the IRS go after sex-traffickers. Prosecuting these tax code violations can get these guys off the street and yank from their grasp the girls and women they exploit."

Using a mind-bending Catch-22, the new law will make it even more illegal to be a prostitute in this country. Pimps will now face up to ten years in prison for each person who works for them without filing a proper W-2. Also, the law will require more jail time for prostitution offenses and allows the IRS to guestimate unreported wages when assessing fines for sex workers.

(Now, as a "john", can I write off my weekly visits to the local massage parlor as a tax deduction?)

Some voices from the sex industry are expressing concern that the law will be too indiscriminate when choosing who to prosecute.

"Forced labor, kidnapping should be targeted," said Carol Leigh of the San Francisco sex worker advocacy group, BAYSWAN, "but this legislation broadly targets the sex trade in general and could target your local strip club."

Although Leigh agrees that legislation is needed, she believes this law takes us a step back when it comes to protecting women in the sex trade.

"We want laws enforced against those who abuse us, against those who are violent, and enforcement of labor regulations," Leigh said. "This is the only truly effective way to protect the welfare of the women who work in the industry."

Obscenity & The Law

2006-06-28T07:45:00.000-07:00

Arrests Piling Up In Florida Obscenity Case

Pensacola, FLA--Three men have been arrested in what looks to be another major obscenity case in the making.

Clinton Raymond McCowen, aka Ray Guhn (pictured), Kevin Patrick Stevens and Andrew Kevin Craft have been arrested and charged with producing and selling obscene material, prostitution and racketeering since last Friday.

The arrests were the culmination of a months long investigation by Escambia County and State law enforcement officials into the operation of McCowen's Global Technologies Inc. During the arrests police seized guns, drugs, computers and business records.

The company, operating under the business name Ray Guhn Productions, produces the porn sites CumOnHerFace.com, LesbianHangout.com and BustyTramps.com. (It looks to be that all of these sites are currently off-line.) Much of the content on the sites was produced in homes and hotel rooms in Escambia County using local models as talent.

The investigation was spurred on by local residents' complaints about advertisements recruiting men and women to appear in "group sex" videos. Apparently that didn't sit well with Escambia County Sheriff Ron McNesby, who claims that the arrests are a reflection of the community's "values".

"We want people to know that we don't want this kind of activity in our community," McNesby told the Pensacola News Journal.

Assistant State Attorney Russ Edgar, who led the investigation, said that more arrests are expected in "the next several days or several weeks."

No public statement has yet been made by McCowen, Stevens, Craft or their attorneys. All three men have been released on bond.

Obscenity & The Law

2006-06-25T07:29:00.000-07:00

Penis Pump Shown To Jury In Masturbation Trial

Bristol, OK--The moment of truth has finally arrived. Jurors in former district judge Donald Thompson's masturbation trial have been shown one of the penis pumps he allegedly used while presiding over a murder trial in 2003.

Allegations of Thompson's sexual misconduct led to his being charged with "repeated use of a device known as a penis pump during non-jury and jury trials in his courtroom and in the presence of court employees while serving in his capacity as a district judge" in 2004. The judge is currently facing four felony counts of indecent exposure.

Thompson and his attorney, Clark Brewster, maintain that the allegations are part of a conspiracy by local police officers to discredit the former judge by capitalizing on a gag gift he received in 2002.

"The individuals we believe are behind this attempt to embarrass the judge took that opportunity to blow it into a much more sinister set of allegations," Brewster said.

Sepulpa Police Captain Mike Reed has testified to seeing the penis pump during the August murder trial, though he admits he never saw the judge's penis. According to the officer, "Thompson was seated with his elbows on his knees, with a tube running along his robe and between his knees." Reed also testified that he had heard a suspicious "air-pressure" sound coming from then-judge Thompson's pants.

Court employees have also testified against Thompson, claiming to have seen the horny old man pulling his pecker in the court room on more than one occasion. Lisa Foster, Thompson's court reporter for more than 18 years, said she had witnessed the judge's alleged sexual behavior over a dozen times.

Although Thomson has admitted to owning two penis pumps, one of which he purchased as part of a penile dysfunction therapy program prescribed by his physician, his attorney maintains that the judge displayed bad judgment, not his member.

"I speak for the judge and his family when I say we are sad it's come to this point," Brewster said. "There has been so much speculation about this case that the only good thing about charges being filed is that the truth will finally come out."

That may be true but there are some things that are better left a mystery.

Child Porn

2006-06-23T06:22:00.000-07:00

Google Off The Hook In Child Porn Suit

Long Island, NY--A lawsuit filed against Google Inc. claiming they were profiting from child pornography was dropped on Wednesday. Nassau County legislator Jeff Toback filed the suit in May, claiming the search engine giant had "paid links" to sites containing child porn and was receiving ad revenue from some of those sites.

Toback dropped the suit because "Google has offered to sit down and discuss the issues. They didn't want to do that while litigation was pending, so we're taking them up on their offer"

Google has denied the allegations from the beginning. Company spokesperson Steve Langdon said the Google was "pleased that the suit has been dismissed and believe it was completely without merit."

"If Mr. Toback would like to talk with us about something, he should consider approaching it with a phone call, letter or other common form of communication, not an irresponsible lawsuit."

Langdon went on to say that the lawsuit contained "some of the most far-fetched accusations we've ever heard."

Toback stated that he looks forward to talking with Google representatives "at their earliest convenience."

Art

2006-06-21T06:52:00.000-07:00

Porn Is Art: Photos By Pierre Radisic

Check out more work by Belgian photaographer Pierre Radisic. Photos via Fleshbot.

(I love the peek-a-boo shot between the legs.)

Porno Events

2006-06-20T06:43:00.000-07:00

Porn Industry Sponsors Charity Poker Event

Los Angeles--B.a.b.e. (Breast Awareness Benefits Everyone), a non-profit organization dedicated to eliminating breast cancer, will host the Babes and Aces Charity Poker Tournament this Thursday at the Hollywood Park Casino in Los Angeles.

Sponsors of the event include Adam & Eve, Vivid, Wicked Pictures, Genesis, Erotica LA and AVN.

According to b.a.b.e. founder Marcia Hrichison, adult star Taylor Wayne will be hosting the event and porn celebrities Mary Cary, Tera Patrick, Niki Benz, Seymour Butts, Cousin Stevie and many others will all be making appearances.

Proceeds from the event will be distributed by b.a.b.e to various charities including the Eileen Stein Jacoby Fund at the Fox Chase Cancer Center and the Westside Family Health Center.

Ya see everybody. Porn is on the side of good.

For more information check out Ms. Hrichison's web site at www.babe-a-rella.org.

2006-06-17T07:16:00.000-07:00

Anti-Porn Ads Air This Weekend

Colorado Springs, CO--They call themselves The Defenders and to hear it from them, if you "use" pornography you are destined to descend into the dark depths of wickedness and child molestation.

Did you hear that? You, who just stumbled across this site while searching for blowjob pics, will one day (maybe soon) join the ranks of pedophiles, sexual deviants and dirtbags. You are a pervert. There is no hope for you.

No hope, of course, unless you join The Defenders, a grassroots Christian organization recently founded in Colorado Springs.

According to Chaplain Henry Rodgers, one of the group's founders, The Defenders are "calling men to defend themselves, each other and our homes and children from the harms of the commercial sex industry."

The group cites statistics that show that the consumption of child porn and the sexual exploitation of children has reached epidemic proportions in this country. They also claim that child abuse is the inevitable result of viewing pornography.

In response to this crisis, the group will be launching a national television and radio ad campaign over this Father's Day weekend called "She has a Name". The ads will tell the stories of several teenage girls who were sexually exploited by the commercial sex industry.

One network, MSNBC, has refused to run the ads, claiming they are too one-sided.

"The ads say outright that pornography is not a victimless crime," said campaign creator former Rep. Linda Smith. "The network said it was a debatable issue whether pornography is never victimless-and they do not air ads on debatable issues."

CNN, Fox and ESPN are airing the ads this weekend.

2006-06-15T19:32:00.000-07:00

Senate Considers Mandatory Web Labeling Bill

Washington, D.C.--A new bill put forward by Sen. Jon Kyl (R-AZ) would require commercial web-site operators who feature sexually explicit material to place government mandated warning labels on their sites. Non-compliance would result in prison terms of up to 15 years.

Called the Stop Adults' Facilitation of the Exploitation of Youth Act, or Internet SAFETY Act, the bill is being touted as a new weapon in the war on child pornography.

"The increase in Internet use has given sexual predators new ways to prey on children," Kyl said. "This bill, among other things, is intended to shut down these opportunities, and severely punish the degraded individuals who are involved in the sexual exploitation of our youth."

In a nutshell, the bill would force commercial web operators to place "clearly identifiable marks and notices" on their web pages to alert viewers of "sexually explicit" content. The bill would also make a new crime out of "using misleading domain names to direct children to harmful material on the Internet."

Under current federal law "sexually explicit" material includes any depiction of sexual intercourse, bestiality, masturbation, sadistic or masochistic abuse, or lascivious exhibition of the genitals or pubic area.

The Supreme Court has ruled (U.S. v. Knox) that the "lascivious exhibition" of the crotch could include someone wearing a bikini, leotards or underwear. According to Anne Broache of News.com, that would mean "that photos of people in leotards and bathing suits would have to be rated as sexually explicit if the commercial web site owner wanted to avoid going to prison."

Well, there goes my hopes for starting TotallyInnocentLeotardShots.com.

I jest, but critics of the bill say the vague language of the Act and its harsh penalties would be a serious danger to free speech.

"Whether artistic works or political commentary or any type of images that may arguably come close to this category, people may not publish them for fear of being sent to jail for 15 years," said David Greene, director of The First Amendment Project.

If you would like to contact Sen. Kyl, go to his link above. He only answers emails from Arizona constituents, but we should all send him a nasty note anyway.

2006-06-14T10:04:00.000-07:00

Annie Sprinkle Debuts Performance Art Show In San Francisco

San Francisco--Sex goddess Annie Sprinkle and her life partner Elizabeth Stephens have put together a new "multi-media performance-art-theater extravaganza" which debuts this weekend at the CounterPULSE art space in San Francisco.

Exposed: Experiments in Love, Sex, Death and Art is described by Sprinkle as "a unique love story, a genuine celebration of the deepest realms of romantic, sexual and familial love, in order to bring about positive social change."

The show "explores lesbian courtship, artificial insemination, queer weddings, breast cancer, art experiments and communion with community." Sprinkle added that the piece is "an artistic response to the violence of war and the anti-gay marriage movement."

Annie Sprinkle has been described as a post-modern sex goddess and, for the past thirty years, has been a porn star, sex educator, writer, actress and performance artist.

Exposed is scheduled for four performances this Friday through Sunday at CounterPULSE located at 1310 Mission St. in San Francisco.

2006-06-12T10:28:00.000-07:00

"Love Thy Enemy... Then Kill Them": Christian Video Game Chock Full Of Violence

Cyberspace--Killing for Christ has never been so exciting. Left Behind: Eternal Forces, a new real-time stradegy video game, is scheduled for release in October, 2006, just in time for the Savior's B-Day.

The game, based upon the immensely popular Left Behind book series, is set in a modern-day New York City just after the apocalyptic event called the Rapture. Gamers will be able to lead the Tribulation Force against the dark armies of Nicolae Carpathia- the AntiChrist, in an attempt to save those who have been: dun, dun, dah...left behind.

According to the game's web site, players will "conduct physical and spiritual warfare" against non-believers. The use of extreme prejudice is sanctioned against the infidels, and when a player snuffs a Muslim, Jew, gay or a Christian of questionable faith, soldiers cry out an exuberant "Praise the Lord!" (I am not kidding.)

Don't get too excited, kids. This is not a wanton, free-for-all killing spree. Your soldiers lose Spirit Points (which are necessary to win the game) even when they make a clean, justified kill. Soldiers must then be rejuvenated by prayer or risk being recruited by the evil Global Community Peace Keepers.

Troy A. Lyndon, one of the game's creators, says the game "will be a new tool to get the two-minute generation to think about matters of eternal importance in a way that isn't religious."

Left Behind co-author and Southern Baptist minister, Tim LaHaye has high hopes for the game's success. "We hope teenagers like the game," LaHaye said. "Our real goal is to have no one left behind."

Well, that's a relief.

2006-06-11T17:10:00.000-07:00

Utah Congressman Sets Sights On Obscenity Jurisdiction

Washington, DC--Utah Representative Chris Cannon has introduced legislation that would take away the Supreme Court's ability to hear state obscenity cases and, in essence, uphold the U.S. Constitution.

HR 5528, a.k.a. the Pornography Jurisdiction Act, intends to limit the ability of federal courts to reverse state court decisions as to what is obscene material.

The Act states that "no court created by an Act of Congress shall have jurisdiction, and, the Supreme Court shall have no appellate jurisdiction, to hear or decide whether a State pornography law imposes a constitutionally invalid restriction of the freedom of expression."

In other words, Mr. Cannon envisions a world where States can pass whatever ass-backwards obscenity laws they see fit and face no challenge from the Supreme Court.

"It is not the job of the courts to legislate," said Cannon. "My legislation puts the power to protect families back in the hands of the states, where it rightfully belongs. If there are those who believe a state's anti-pornography laws are too strict, they can find another state in which to live."

Whoa, C-dog. You mean that even if I was born in your state (Ah, Utah) , went to your schools, got Jesus and abstinence education shoved down my throat, knocked some Mormon cheerleader up because I didn't know what a condom was, then, because I couldn't afford to go to college, had to take a job for $5.15 an hour at a donut factory, and I thought my states laws governing pornography were in violation of the Constitution of the United States of America and the First Amendment, you'd tell me to move to fucking Arizona?

Well, fuck you.

Fortunately for our hypothetical porn lover, most believe the Act has little chance of passing.

According to First Amendment attorney Reed Lee, "the United States Supreme Court and the state courts set up long ago that there are limits to state's rights in the federal system. One of those limits is that on federal law issues, including what the United States Constitution reads, the United States government, and particularly the judiciary, has the final word... and state judges shall be bound by oath to support that constitution as the supreme law of the land."

Sounds like Rep. Cannon is just fishing for conservative votes, but we shouldn't let our elected officials waste our resources on their petty personal agendas. Leave Mr. Cannon a comment on The Hills Congress Blog or email him at cannon.ut03@mail.house.gov.

2006-06-10T06:56:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to share some cool, creepy, delightfully erotic shots I found via Fleshbot. (That's a great site by the way and if you didn't already know about it, I highly recommend it.) Photos by Thomas Buchta, www.herrbuchta.com.

Got my giggle on this morning with an article in The Toilet Paper. "Have you ever fucked a girl so hard that her wheelchair caught on fire?" Some of the funniest low-brow I've read in awhile.

Patience, dear readers... the Lady J cometh.

2006-06-06T13:33:00.000-07:00

JM Productions Slapped With Obscenity Indictment

In a desperate attempt to legitimize the Federal Government's "war on obscenity", porn maker JM Productions and retailer/online distributor Five Star Video were indicted on 18 counts of interstate trafficking of obscene material last week.

The June 1 indictment states that the two companies and their principal owners "knowingly used an interactive computer service and other facilities and means of interstate and foreign commerce to sell and distribute, to a location in Northern Virginia, obscene DVDs...in violation of Title 18, United States Code, sections 1465 ['Transportation of obscene matters for sale or distribution'] and (2)(a).

The DVD titles in question, Gag Factor 15 & 18, American Bukkake 13 and Filthy Things 6, were allegedly shipped through the USPS on February 6 and 10 of 2006. It has so far not been explained why Gag Factor 16 and 17 were not deemed obscene.

If convicted, Jeff Steward and Mike Norton of JM Productions, and Christopher Ankeney and Kenneth Graham of Five Star could face maximum penalties of five years in prison for each count.

What may be more troubling for the defendants is the 18th count, which invokes the Criminal Forfeiture statute (U.S.C. section 1467). The statute allows for the seizure of "any property, real or personal, constituting or traceable to gross profits or other proceeds or other proceeds obtained from such offense;" as well as "any property, real or personal, used or intended to be used to commit or promote the commission of such offense," at the court's discretion. That means that the defendants stand to not only serve prison sentences as sex offenders, but to loose much of their personal property as well.

(We're talking about some dirty videos here, right? I mean, were the DVD cases made out of cocaine, or something?)

Attorneys for the defendants, Jeff Douglas, Louis Sirkin, Richard Hertzberg and Allan B. Gelbard, Esq. released a prepared statement yesterday expressing their confidence in securing an acquittal and condemning the government's actions.

They called the indictment a "misallocation of scarce resources to try to galvanize its extremist voting base" and said that "all those charged and their lawyers are confidant of an acquittal and a complete repudiation of this abuse of Federal power."

The statement goes on to say that "somehow President Bush believes that it should be a crime to distribute photographs of sexual acts which are perfectly lawful to engage in."

"How much safer do you feel," they ask, "knowing that this is where F.B.I. agents, Justice Department lawyers, Assistant U.S. Attorneys and Federal Court resources are being expended? Do you think bank robbers, embezzlers, drug dealers and terrorists feel more or less vulnerable?"

U.S. District Magistrate Edward C. Voss is pushing to fast track the case, probably to drum up conservative support for the November elections. He has set a date of motion deadline for July 15, 2006.

The JM Productions website, www.jerkzone.com, was temporarily off line over the weekend but is back up, with all titles in question available for purchase. The FiveStarDVD.com site is no longer offering JM Productions products.

2006-06-05T05:52:00.000-07:00

You Can't Keep A Bad Girl Down

The Evil Treads hard rock clothing company has signed the infamous Lizzy Borden as their latest spokesmodel. The new ad campaign is scheduled to kick of in the September issue of the rock n' roll mag, Revolver.

"Rock stars are really into my pornography," Borden told Adult Video News, "and I'm really into rock, so it was a good match, and I'm stoked as hell."

Ongoing legal troubles at Extreme Associates have kept Borden out of the spotlight for the past few years.

"After the indictment I really laid low," she said. "I didn't do a photo layout for three years...but now I figure it's about time to get back out there and whore myself out to companies."

Borden will also be shooting her first sex scene in almost five years. "It's going to be with Gina Lynn for a title called Gina Hates Lizzy," she said.

Whatever you may think about Lizzy, her husband Rob Black and the products Extreme puts out (they're material has dealt with simulated rape, murder and a woman licking up her own vomit after giving oral sex), you have to admit, they're honest. You might even be able to argue (and, oh yes dear readers, I certainly am) that what they do serves a higher social purpose.

According to Joseph Slade, pornography researcher and former director of Ohio University's School of Telecommunications, pornography has little to do with morality.

"Moral judgments are not applicable," he recently told the Athens News. "Porn tries to be marginal and ends up refreshing our culture. Real porn offends someone."

If that's the case, then Lizzy, you are for real. Welcome back to the spotlight.

2006-06-03T06:48:00.000-07:00

Battle Over .XXX Domain Continues

The Florida based company, ICM Registry Inc., is appealing the May 10 decision by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) to shoot down the proposed creation of an internet "red-light district".

The proposal seeks to create a new .xxx top-level domain (like .com or .org) for adult oriented websites. Registration with .xxx would be voluntary.

ICM Registry, who stands to profit handsomely from managing the new TLD, has filed a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit against ICANN, claiming the independent oversight organization has been unduly influenced by the U.S. government.

Opinions are like assholes and everyone is puckering up on this issue.

ICM maintains that their proposed .xxx top-level domain will benefit adult content providers as well as protect Internet users from offensive content. According to their website "the .xxx top-level domain will create a clearly identifiable area of the Internet so that Internet users can be more informed when choosing to select or avoid adult entertainment sites."

ICANN's position is suspiciously vague, claiming that "public policy concerns" were not adequately addressed in the proposed ICM contract. However, dissent within the organization suggests the Bush Administration has been holding a gun to ICANN's head.

"We should not run the risk of turning ICANN into a convenient choke-point for the content related limitations desired by governments around the world," said ICANN board member Susan Crawford after the decision.

Critics of the decision claim that the U.S. government pressure on ICANN is coming from right-wing conservative Christian groups. Indeed, the Christian Coalition of America has been extremely vocal on the issue, claiming .xxx will make pornography even more accessible on the Internet.

On the other, other hand, members of the adult entertainment community are also opposed to the .xxx TLD due to fears that it will ghettoize the Internet porn industry, making it even easier for government to censor what it deems obscene.

Opinions aside, this issue is not going away any time soon.

According to ICM chairman Stuart Lawley, "We've got deep pockets. We're very determined."

2006-06-02T13:37:00.000-07:00

Goalie Entertainment Owner Begins 13 Month Sentence

Denver, CO. Goalie Entertainment owner, Eddie Wedelstedt, began his 13 month prison sentence in a southern Colorado minimum security correctional facility yesterday.

According to the terms of a plea bargain agreement, Wedelstedt plead guilty to one count of interstate transportation of obscene materials for sale or distribution and one conspiracy charge. The plea bargain resulted in over a dozen charges being dismissed as well as the dismissal of charges against his wife and employees.

The original indictment was based largely on the confiscation of just six DVD titles found in his retail stores that were deemed obscene.

On May 13, Wedelstedt hosted a benefit for his children's charity, Eddie's Kids. That night he gave a speech to a gathering of friends, attorneys and employees, detailing all the bullshit he has gone through over the past two years including endless surveillance on he and his family.

"I think the thing that hurts me the most," Wedelstedt said, "was that, for two years, the federal government had gag orders on the banks that we deal with, and was forcing them to investigate all the lawyers that worked with us, because they [the government] were convinced that these lawyers were taking millions of dollars out of the country. And the sad part was, they [the attorneys] had to go through checkpoints when they traveled. They were treated like criminals...It was really unfortunate that that happened."

Wedelstedt went on to rally everyone present to take action against the absurd laws regarding sexuality that this country is currently enforcing.

"I mean, when you stop to think of all the horror stories in America today-think about it now- in South Carolina (see PornTribe, May 5, 2006), Texas, Georgia...it is illegal to buy a vibrator!" he shouted. "You can go to prison for buying a vibrator or a dildo. That's what this country is starting to come to, and it's very, very sad."

"What we've got to do now is, we've got to jump on top of things. We've got to jump in and we've got to stop these laws that are being passed. We can't wait for the ACLU."

In hero fashion, Wedelstedt assured the audience that he would survive prison.

"I've done a lot of time in a lot of places," he said. "All I can say is this: one year's not going to kill me. I can do one year and it's not gonna bother me. I think things are gonna be okay."

2006-05-31T06:55:00.000-07:00

Marie Osmond Shocked By Teen Daughters' Desire For Sex

70's pop sensation Marie Osmond has embarked on a crusade to clean up the Internet after discovering her teenaged daughters' racy posts on MySpace.com.

Adopted daughter Jessica, aka F-Off, recently revealed to the world that she is bisexual and that she craves sex "as many times as possible" every day. Her younger sister, Rachael, described herself as a "slut" and a "whore" before giving a detailed account of her fantasy of having sex with pop legend David Bowie.

"I am saddened by some of the choices that two of our children have made," said Osmond, a devout Mormon.

"If my being a celebrity figure is good for anything, let it be as a voice of warning to other parents that no matter how protective we think we may have been with our children in the past, we need to become more knowlegable and even more vigilant now in order to protect them."

Horny teenagers? No way. Marie, my heart goes out to you.

2006-05-30T06:05:00.000-07:00

Homegrown Sponsors amateur Video Contest

The folks at Homegrown Video are putting up a $1000 cash prize for the best homemade porn at next week's Exxotica Miami. The trade show runs from Friday, June 9th to Sunday, June 11th.

"The Homegrown Select Prize will be awarded to the video we feel is the most representative of the spirit of Homegrown Video-which is all about having fun and not necessarily about who has the best lighting," said Homegrown president Farrell Timlake.

Homegrown Video has been described as porn for the people and by the people, and has been producing "grassroots porn" since 1982.

2006-05-27T06:43:00.000-07:00

Porn Stars Causing Trouble For MySpace

Already under intense public scrutiny, the folks at MySpace.com are in trouble again. According to the website Hollywood Wiretap, MySpace advertisers were less than pleased to discover that their ads were being featured on a few porn mega-star's personal pages.

When Weight Watchers found out their name was showing up on Jenna Jameson's MySpace page they pulled all their advertising from the site. T-Mobile is considering doing the same after their banner ads popped up on Tera Patrick's page. Both pages feature links to the girls' homepages which are chock-full of hardcore porn pics and videos.

The majority of MySpace users are under the age of eighteen and some of Jameson's "friends" are as young as fourteen. At this time, MySpace doesn't have an adequate age-sensitive filtering system.

Truth be told MySpace is kind of lame, Jenna and Tera are already filthy rich, and Weight Watchers should examine the ethics of marketing their self-image wrecking product to vulnerable teenagers.

The real interest of this story is the potential free speech and ethical issues that may be addressed as this unfolds. Will MySpace cave and demonstrate that the First Amendment doesn't apply when it comes to holding on to advertising dollars? And just as important, is it ok for porn stars to promote themselves in a market place that everyone knows is dominated by underage users?

If you have any thoughts on this, please, let me hear them. Thanks for reading and have a super day.

2006-05-26T06:24:00.000-07:00

Cannes Film Directors Take The Porn Out Of Sex

I read an interesting article from Reuters yesterday. Apparently a few artsie film directors are challenging the value of mainstream porn by using graphic (antiseptic?) sexual images in their cinematic efforts. Let's just let them speak for themselves.

"There are kids who have seen pornography from a very early age, before they are gonna ever have sex," says Larry Clark, director of a compilation of explicit sex stories called 'Destricted'. "(Many people) are looking at pornography and they are thinking that this is the way to have sex."

John Cameron Mitchell believes pornography is the manifestation of repressed sexuality in our society. His film, 'Shortbus', depicts untrained actors fucking and masturbating in front of the camera in order to demystify the sex act. One scene features three gay men getting it on while singing 'The Star Spangled Banner'.

"I really believe our country needs to take a look at that stuff," Mitchell said. "You crush something, it pops up somewhere else, it comes back to haunt you."

Danish director Anders Morgenthaler uses the medium of animation to express his dark view of pornography. 'Princess' is the story of a priest who vows to destroy his dead porn star sister's movie collection while raising her disturbed 5 year old daughter.

"I decided to make a film about porn influence in society because I saw porn seeking its way into everything, into clothes or toys," Morgenthaler told Reuters. "There is a 'porn way' of selling things because it sells very well. I got very angry at the role of porn."

Valid points to be sure.

We do not choose our passions, we can only choose how we act on the things that move us deeply. I don't believe that pornography is necessarily a negative influence. In fact, a lot of pornography, in the form of books, films, poetry and photographs, can enrich and give depth to the human sexual experience. That's the whole point of PornTribe.

Still, there's no question that this country's fascination with porn and sex has all the qualities of obsession. But doesn't obsession have something valuable to teach us about ourselves?

In his book, The Soul of Sex, Thomas Moore illustrates this point beautifully.

"We display outrageously and obsessively that which we do not fully possess or have deeply at our disposal. If we are displaying sex with unseemly exaggeration and preoccupation, then we have not found the heart of sex and made it a fully integrated part of individual and social life."

I believe that pornography can be a part of that process of integration. If we look at porn as a tool, or even as just a wonderful plaything, we might be able to better understand ourselves as sexual beings. I wonder if the Cannes directors used their talents to excite and inspire the whole human sexual imagination, rather than attempt to sterilize it, we wouldn't be much better off.

Free your sex, free yourself.

2006-05-24T06:21:00.000-07:00

Playboy Spearheads Parental Control Campaign

Playboy Enterprises Inc. has announced its intention to begin a nation wide campaign educating American parents on how to shield their children from adult programming. The campaign includes a resource web site, www.takeparentalcontrol.org, and cable TV spots beginning in the next few months.

"What's important to us is that people understand that we are supporting our programming, but also supporting a person's right to choose not to see our programming," said Playboy Entertainment Group president Jim Griffiths.

The web site offers parents information on how to control content on TV's, cable set-up boxes, internet connections, cell phones and satellite radio programs, as well as how to better utilize current rating systems.

"You have to give them credit because they recognize that their programming isn't meant for people of all ages, and so, to their credit, they are stepping up and engaging in this type of campaign," an anonymous cable-industry lobbyist told Multichannel News. "They're assuming a lot of responsibility on their behalf."

Playboy Chairman and CEO, Christie Hefner, is calling upon Comcast Corp., Time Warner Inc., Microsoft Corp., Verizon Communications Inc., Sony Pictures Entertainment and Viacom Inc to partner with them in their efforts.

2006-05-23T13:10:00.000-07:00

Wisconsin Opting For 'No-Sex' Sex Ed

Madison, Wis. A bill that received Senate approval last year passed through the Wisconsin state House earlier this month. Senate Bill 286 mandates that schools that provide sex education must promote abstinence as the best (we know they really mean only) option for preventing unwanted teen pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases.

The bill is currently awaiting approval from Democratic Governor Jim Doyle.

"I think it's very , very important that young people hear that message and hear it loud and clear: if you want to be healthy and you want to be 100 percent healthy, the only way is abstinence," Republican Sen. Mary Lazich told the Wisconsin Badger Herald newspaper.

That's a dangerously naive position for a United States Senator to take.

According to the Centers For Disease Control, 70% of boys and 60% of girls have had sexual intercourse by age 16. What Ms. Lazich fails to realize is that even though the Bush Administration has already spent millions of dollars on abstinence "education" programs, teenagers are always going to have sex.

In fact, one controversial study has even suggested that the "abstinence only" message may even contribute to higher levels of sexual activity among teenagers. Although those results were inconclusive, the Texas study revealed no indication that abstinence education prevented kids from acting on their sexual curiosity.

There's no question that teen pregnancy and the spread of STDs are real issues that need to be addressed. Abstinence might even be a really good idea for young people to consider. Still, the fact remains that for sexually active teens there is only one safe choice: Always, always, always use a condom.

So, like it or not Sen. Lazich and company, teenagers fuck. And if we don't keep open a real life dialog about sex with our kids, then they might just end up becoming sex obsessed sex maniacs who spend the better part of their lives thinking and writing about sex.

2006-05-22T06:11:00.000-07:00

Senate Passes Decency Bill

The Senate passed the Broadcast Decency Enforcement Act of 2005 last Thursday. The bill will raise fines for broadcasting indecent material from $32,500 to $325,000. The ten-fold increase was applauded by Republican Senator Sam Brownback (R-Kan), who introduced the bill last January.

"I am glad the Senate took action and increased fines for broadcasters who show indecent material," Brownback said in a press release. "Radio and television waves are public property, and the companies who profit from using the public airwaves should face meaningful fines for broadcasting indecent material."

"I urge the House to take action on increasing fines so we can send a bill to the White House," Brownback continued. "It's time that broadcast indecency fines represent a real economic penalty and not just a slap on the wrist."

The new bill only raises fines for indecency infractions. It does not address the definitions of indencency or give the Federal Communications Commission new powers to revoke licenses.

2006-05-21T08:08:00.000-07:00

Thousands Rally Against Porn In Indonesia

Thousands of conservative Muslims rallied to demand the passage of a strict anti-pornography bill in Indonesia's capital of Jakarta on Sunday. Protesters waived signs with slogans such as "Ban Pornography and the Sex Industry" and "Down With Liberalism and Secularism".

The bill, originally drafted in 1999, would ban kissing in public, erotic poetry, dancing, drawing writing, photos and film. In essence, it would make all forms of sexual expression a crime.

Organized in part by the ultra-conservative Islamic Defenders Front, the rallies are an indicator that the moderate Muslim country's hard-line fringe is growing.

Still, opposition to the bill is widespread with members of minority religions, liberal Muslims and artists expressing concern that it will wipe out many of the country's secular traditions. Critics also claim that the bill is a thinly veiled attempt to impose Shariah, fundamentalist Islamic law, on a culture that comprises over 400 ethnic groups with many diverse traditions.

Now just imagine for a moment that this kind of thing was going on in your neighborhood, community, country, wherever. (Oh, silly me, I forgot to look outside my door this morning). Wouldn't it piss you off to have to worry that a few fucked up conservative nut jobs were threatening to put you in jail for kissing your sweetie in the produce department? Or wearing a mini-skirt? Or buying a dildo? Or renting a porn?

Well that's just what's happening all around the world, from Jakarta to Colorado Springs to South Carolina. It makes me wonder which human impulse is stronger: the desire for freedom or the need to be enslaved. I'm hoping it's the former.

If you hope so too then do something about it. Tell someone about what's going on with our brothers and sisters in Indonesia then give them a big sloppy kiss. Who knows, maybe they'll kiss back.

2006-05-18T06:47:00.000-07:00

Supreme Court Snubs Extreme Associates

The Supreme Court has refused to review a US Third Circuit Court's decision to reinstate obscenity charges against Extreme Associates owners Rob Black and Lizzy Borden. The couple's attorneys filed a writ of certiorari last month in hopes of challenging the constitutionality of the charges of interstate trafficking of obscenity they are currently facing.

Although the Court's decision came as no surprise, most people close to the case believe a criminal trial is still a long ways off.

"There are some unresolved pretrial issues including the issue that's percolating in the COPA (Child Online Protection Act) case about community standards," said Extreme co-council Jennifer M. Kinsley. "That's something that still needs to be taken care of before any sort of trial proceeding would occur, because we need to understand what standard we are talking about."

The COPA case involves the sticky issue of dealing with 'community standards' when placed in the context of the World Wide Web. In other words, is the community in question to be determined as the one where the online site originated or the one where the prude who was so offended by the site's content first viewed the material.

"I would imagine, if this case goes as I think it will go, we're not looking at a having a trial until maybe early next year," said Kinsely. "And depending on what happens with COPA, possibly not until after that."

Despite rumors that Rob and Lizzie are nearly tapped out financially from constant legal battles, the couple has vowed to see this one through. And despite mixed feelings about the duo's productions, this case has important ramifications for not only the adult entertainment industry, but for freedom of expression in general.

2006-05-15T07:06:00.000-07:00

The Future, Today: Porn Downloads For Your TV

Exciting news for the porn industry. Yesterday, Vivid Entertainment, in conjunction with the online movie site Cinema Now, announced that they will begin selling burnable versions of their movies that can be played on any screen.

"Leave it to the porn industry once again to take the lead on this stuff," said Michael Greeson, founder of the consumer electronics think tank the Diffusion Group. "The rest of Hollywood stands back and lets the pornography industry work out all the bugs."

Right now, when you burn a DVD on your computer you can't watch it on your DVD player. The reason is something called CSS or 'content scrambling system'. Cinema Now and Vivid have bagged CSS and are instead using a 'one-time burn' proprietary software. Click, buy, burn, watch. It's pretty cool when you think about it.

Now, Vivid Entertainment already makes enough money, so this is definitely not meant to be a free plug for them. They've all but cornered the market on couples porn, and I just read that they can afford to sink hundreds of thousands of dollars into a production and still turn a profit. So, fuck them.

What's really great about all this is what it means for small time, aspiring pornographers (you and yours truly) who want to reach as wide an audience as possible with a user-friendly product. Now we have the means to make our little 50 or 60 minute features and sell the finished product (special features, cover art and all) directly to the consumer. Eco-friendly production, marketing and distribution all from your living room. Wow.

It's not that the DIY potential wasn't there before, it's just going to be that much easier now. This is technology allowing us to, as Robert Rodriguez puts it, create at the speed of thought.

2006-05-14T14:02:00.000-07:00

Playboy Foundation Recognizes Champions of Free Speech

The Playboy Foundation named the winners of the Hugh M. Hefner First Amendment Awards 2006 last Thursday. The annual awards are given to those in the fields of journalism, entertainment, law, book publishing and education who have demonstrated exceptional dedication to protecting our right to free speech.

"A principle guarantee of freedom is the First Amendment," Mr. Hefner said in his speech at the awards ceremony. "Now more than ever, it is important that we honor the men and women who are on the front line protecting that freedom."

This years awards winners include:

Paisley Dodds who wrote about the Guantanamo Bay, Cuba military detention centers. He sued the U.S. government under the Freedom of Information Act, releasing thousands of documents regarding prisoner abuse.
Patricia Waterhouse, PhD. and head of Ohio Citizens for Science who organized a coalition to resist religious organizers pushing to teach creationism in schools.
Geoffrey R. Stone, author of "Perilous Times: Free Speech in Wartime from the Sedition Act of 1798 to the War on Terrorism."
Shelby Knox, subject of the documentary film "The Education of Shelby Knox". Ms. Knox challenged abstinence only sex education and medical misinformation at her Lubbox, TX high school.
Marion Lipschutz & Rose Rosenblatt, directors and producers of "The Education of Shelby Knox".
Rhett Jackson, former president of the American Booksellers Association for his lifetime commitment to fighting for the First Amendment and social Justice.

The Playboy Foundation, established in 1965, has awarded over 15 million dollars in grants to organizations concerned with First Amendment freedoms, civil liberties and social justice.

2006-05-12T12:33:00.000-07:00

Judge Rules U.S. Aids Policy Violates Free Speech

A United States District Judge has ruled that the government's international AIDS funding policy violates the First Amendment. District Judge Victor Marrero stated in his preliminary injunction that the Supreme Court "has repeatedly found that speech, or an agreement not to speak, cannot be compelled or coerced as a condition of participation in a government program."

The current policy, legislated by Congress in 2003, denies federal funds to organizations who refuse to sign an anti-prostitution loyalty oath. The document assures the government that the organization has a policy that denounces sex work and other high risk behaviors.

According to the government, the policy was created to prevent prostitution and protect women from being exploited. But upon closer examination, the moral motivations become clear. The rules also require government agencies to give equal funding consideration to groups that have a "religious or moral objection" to AIDS treatment methods such as condoms or needle exchange programs. Smells like 'bush' to me.

The Alliance for Open Society International Inc., the Open Society Institute and Pathfinder International all signed the loyalty oath last September, then turned around and filed a lawsuit challenging the law. The organizations spend tens of millions of dollars a year for international AIDS prevention programs.

Rebeka Diller, the groups' attorney, summarized their legal strategy in an interview with Voice of America.

"We argued that it (the policy) violated the First Amendment for two reasons. One was that it extended so far as to restrict what organizations could do with their private funds. And second, it forced organizations to adopt the government's point of view on a contested social issue in order to be eligible to receive government funding."

Diller called the decision "a tremendous victory for public health" and that it "will enable these organizations to serve very vulnerable women."

2006-05-11T06:23:00.000-07:00

ICANN Rejects Creation Of Online 'Red-Light' District

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, or ICANN, voted against the creation of a .xxx top-level domain name yesterday. The decision ends a six year-old debate over the ramifications of creating a specific TDL name for Internet porn sites.

The domain name was originally proposed by a Jupiter, Fla. company, ICM Registry Inc. to help the online porn industry clean up its act. Opposition to .xxx has come from both sides of the fence. Free speech and adult industry advocates have feared a strangle hold on free expression, while anti-porn activists claim the domain name would give online porn sites yet another avenue to navigate their way onto your computer.

The Free Speech Coalition, an adult industry advocacy group, has proposed an alternative '.kids' TDL which would allow concerned parents to identify child-friendly web content. On the flip side, legislation has been proposed by Democratic Senators Max Baucus and Mark Pryor that would make .xxx registration mandatory, and would provide stiff federal penalties for non-compliance.

ICANN is an international, non-profit organization responsible for IP address allocation and TDL name system management.

2006-05-10T06:00:00.000-07:00

Oh My Goodness, Boobies: USC Professor Defends Nude Web Photos

USC Women's Studies professor Diana York Blaine has outraged a few students by posting semi-nude photos of herself on her personal web page. The 45-year old feminist professor claims that the students simply dislike her and are only calling attention to the photos in an attempt to discredit her.

"The couple of conservative USC students who have dedicated themselves to attacking me clearly grew frustrated at my refusal to react to them, so they upped the ante and contacted the media about my nudie pics. One station bit, and voila, we have a scandal," Dr. Blaine wrote on her web site.

One station that bit was KNBC-TV in Los Angeles. Their report earlier this week was hardly damning. In fact, it bolstered Blaine's position by reporting that university policy guarantees that "the content of individual web pages is primarily a matter of free speech and academic freedom that must be protected in a university environment."

"No doubt this will have the opposite reaction that the tattlers hoped, causing many people to move further away from what looks to them like what it is, an attempt by conservative idealogues to shut down free speech by using sex as the shaming mechanism," Blaine said.

Dr. Blaine's web site, The Adventures of Dr. Diana, is by no means a porn site. There are only three photos that are causing all the ruckus. The rest of the content discusses personal and academic issues: an inside peek into the life and thoughts of a feminist theorist.

"(The photos) in and of themselves, they are not scandalous, for they have been there for months and nobody cared," Blaine said. "All of my friends and family know of them, colleagues and yes some students have as well. These kids were hoping to capitalize on our fundamental sense that we should be ashamed of something as banal as our own bodies."

2006-05-09T14:18:00.000-07:00

City Officials Censor Brooklyn College Art Students

An art exhibit containing works by 18 Brooklyn College graduate students was closed down last Thursday by New York City officials. Brooklyn Parks Commissioner, Julias Speigel, ordered the show closed the day after it opened on the grounds that the exhibit contained works that were deemed inappropriate for families. The exhibit was scheduled to run through May 25th.

"Nobody communicated to the students that any of the art was going to be removed this morning," said exhibit artist Zoe Cohen. "We don't consent to any of this."

Officials claim that the college violated a verbal agreement that stated that art shown at the WWII Memorial Hall, located near the Brooklyn Bridge, would be appropriate for families. Some of the art that was deemed offensive included a sculpture of a human hand holding a penis, a watercolor of a man's torso which included a narrative of a gay sex encounter and a piece that incorporated a live rat.

New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, who has had a long record of supporting public art, is backing Speigel's decision to remove the exhibit.

"Nobody's suggesting that anybody shouldn't be allowed to exhibit art," Mr. Bloomberg told the New York Times. "The issue here is that this is not a museum. This is a war memorial. There has been an understanding ever since art was put here that the art would be appropriate for families and respectful of and appropriate for a war memorial and this time it was not."

Norman Siegel, an attorney now working for the students, is adamant that the student's free speech rights have been violated.

"I think what's happening here illustrates a serious misunderstanding of the First Amendment of the Constitution," Siegel said. "The government cannot excise certain artistic visions simply because a public official dislikes them or finds them inappropriate. It's censorship plain and simple."

Siegel plans to file suit later this week in federal court. In the meantime, the students are maintaining a blog with updates on the situation. Check it out at www.plancensored.blogspot.com.

2006-05-08T06:35:00.000-07:00

Chris Redd Takes A Day Off

Got to spend the next 13 or so hours at my straight world job. I'll be back tomorrow with more news and insightful commentary.

For now here's a couple of tidbits (some of them more than a mouthful) to satisfy your hunger:

Check out www.carolqueen.com for some thought provoking reading.
Ynot.com is one of my on-line news sources. Happy belated B-day, Darklady!
www.videobox.com has over 900 downloadable adult videos for $10 a month.
And, as always, Violet Blue at www.tinynibbles.com is entertaining and informative.

Thanks for reading. See you tomorrow.

2006-05-06T07:10:00.000-07:00

Porn In The Mainstream

A new reality show in the works at Fox Cable will give real-life porn stars the opportunity to show off their acting skills. 'My Bare Lady' will train four starlets in the art of classical acting and set them loose on a British theater stage. I imagine there will be an array of snobby judges poking fun at the girls, but hey, sounds like fun.

In the running for a slot on the show is porno super-star and gubernatorial candidate, Mary Carey. Check out her interview with Keith Olberman right here.

Wicked Pictures has teamed up with Virgin Megastores in a nation-wide video ad campaign scheduled to run through May 18. The ads, being shown both in-store and outdoors at all 17 megastore locations, will plug current Wicked releases including 'Watching Samantha', 'Curse Eternal', 'Country Style', and 'Rendezvous'.

"It's a great opportunity to advertise at the Virgin locations, and we're very happy to be the first adult company to do so," said Wicked president Steve Orenstein.

Genesis Magazine's 'Porn's Hot 100' hits newstands May 18. Screen goddess and porn mogul, Jenna Jameson nabbed the #1 spot, bumping last year's Tera Patrick.

"It's awesome to be recognized as number one in Genesis' 'Porn's Hot 100' especially because the magazine has been so supportive of so many of the girls in the industry," Jameson said.

In addition to joining the list of NY Times bestselling authors, Jenna has been voted into the AVN Hall of Fame and was voted #33 in FHM's '100 Sexiest Women In The World 2006'. Yesterday, she appeared on the widely syndicated 'Tyra Banks Show'.

2006-05-05T12:29:00.000-07:00

South Carolina Considers Sex Toy Ban

Republican Rep. Ralph Davenport is proposing a bill that would make it a felony to possess or sell sex toys in South Carolina. According to the Columbia, S.C. newspaper, The State, the law would empower police to close sex shops and confiscate offensive merchandise. Violators of the proposed law could face a $10,000 fine and a 'stiff' five years in prison.

Pat Irons, owner of the Sugar N' Spice sex shop, believes the proposed law is a thinly veiled attempt to close down adult bookstores in the state altogether.

"Even pastors shop in here," Irons said in her defense. "They send couples in here they counsel for marriage problems."

Don't laugh. Although a similar law was rejected by Alabama courts in 1998, other southern states enforce these kinds of barbaric statutes. In Mississippi, "a person [found committing] the offense of distributing unlawful sexual devices when he knowingly sells, advertises, publishes, or exhibits to any person any three dimensional device designed or marketed as useful primarily for the stimulation of human genital organs or offers to do so or possesses such devices with the intent to do so," can be fined up to $500 and sentenced to six months in jail.

Whew. Ain't the law a mouthful?

The really interesting thing about this whole situation is that the proposed bill is based upon the Supreme Court ruling on the 1973 Miller v. California case. In that case, the Court found that obscenity is determined by "contemporary community standards" and qualified by whether or not it possesses any "serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value." As a result, we now have dedicated public servants pushing legislation that makes facsimiles of human genitals obscene and the normal, healthy act of sexual stimulation a crime.

This is why we all need to stay on top of this kind of stuff. Remember, our day to day freedoms are not guaranteed, we've got to defend them diligently.

In my research, Mr. Davenport had not made himself available for any comment to the media regarding this issue. If you'd like to ask him a question about his proposed bill, you can e-mail him at GRD@schouse.org. In the meantime say hello to the folks at Good Vibrations in San Francisco or buy an expensive strap-on for your favorite fuck-buddy at www.somethingsexyboutique.com.

2006-05-05T09:58:00.000-07:00

Google Inc. Named in Child Porn Suit

A Nassau, NY legislator has filed civil charges against Google Inc. for promoting child pornography. Nassau County legislator, Jeffrey Toback claims the search engine giant receives income from links to child porn sites.

"This case is about a multi-billion dollar company that promotes and profits from child pornography," said the complaint filed with the State Supreme Court in Mineola.

Google maintains that they take proactive steps to prevent access to illegal sites.

"When we find or are made aware of child pornography, we remove it from our products, including our search engine," Google spokesman Steve Langdon told the Associated Press. "We also report it to the appropriate law enforcement officials and fully cooperate with the law enforcement community to combat child pornography."

More to come as this case unfolds.

2006-05-04T06:29:00.000-07:00

Senate Majority Leader Hotlines Indecency Bill

Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) is seeking to fast-track a broadcast indecency bill for a Senate vote this week. The new bill, approved by a House vote in January, would increase fines for indecency violations by TV and radio stations to $500,000 for each offense. Under current laws, companies face maximum fines of $32,000.

At least one US senator has the power to postpone the vote. The Parent's Television Council and the Christian Coalition of America, both supporters of the federal legislation, are accusing Senate Commerce Committee Chairman, Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) of blocking the bill.

"The Senate needs to pass this bill today," said PTC president L. Brent Bozell. "We're calling on Senator Stevens to be the leader who makes this happen by the end of the congressional year. By using his authority, he can go from zero to hero in a matter of minutes."

Stevens has expressed concern that imposing indecency standards on the Cable TV and Radio industry will cave under Supreme Court scrutiny. Instead, he has spearheaded an effort that encourages the industry to address the issues of indecency on its own. Such self-regulation is already being explored by the industry such as major cable companies providing family tiers devoid of indecent content and the promotion of channel-blocking equipment.

Many media companies are opposed to the bill because it excludes cable and pay TV providers.

Under current Federal Communications Commission guidelines, "Material is indecent if, in context, it depicts or describes sexual or excretory organs or activities in terms patently offensive as measured by contemporary community standards for the broadcast medium."

2006-05-03T06:27:00.000-07:00

F.A.M.E. Awards Announces 2006 Finalists

The 2006 Fans of Adult Media and Entertainment, or FAME, awards have announced this years finalists. The winners will be announced at Erotica LA, on June 24 at the L.A. Convention Center. The event will be hosted by comedian Rev. Bob Levy, Adam and Eve contract star Carmen Luvana and adult performer Tommy Gunn.

The awards event gives fans the opportunity to vote for their favorite performers, directors and movies. This years finalists include Favorite Feature: The New Devil In Miss Jones, Vivid; Favorite Director: Andrew Blake; Dirtiest Girl: Ariana Jollee; and, my personal favorite, Favorite Butt: Belladonna.

If you'd like to vote (Go ahead, try it. It'll be like practice for the mid-term elections) go to www.thefameawards.com.

2006-05-02T14:46:00.000-07:00

Porn Industry Sets Business Practices Standards

For decades, members of the adult entertainment industry have been vilified and scapegoated, cast in the putrid light of society's festering underbelly as boogeymen and perverts. Pornographers are perceived as lecherous old men who prey on innocent runaway girls, the vulnerable daughters of Kansas corn farmers or neglected urban street urchins, then force them into moral depravity all to make a sleazy buck.

Times have changed. Take a quick look across the American landscape and you'll find porn stars running for public office, sex-positive artists and activists, politicized porn producers and all manner of intelligent and erudite champions of sleaze.

Enter Alec Helmey, Xbiz publisher and creator of the new XXX industry organization, Best Practices In Adult Video, a group dedicated to improving the image of the adult industry and improving current business practices.

"The priciples of BPAV are the topics that we regularly think about as members of the adult entertainment industry operating in an increasingly uncertain environment," Helmey said. "BPAV's mission is simple: To encourage proactive responsibility and to spread a positive message."

The organization will provide a voluntary seal which is available to members of the adult entertainment industry who support these principles:

Discloser of Acts Stipulation: asks producers to notify performers in advance what kind of sex acts they will be asked to perform.
Encourage producers to keep performers away from physical harm.
Encourage the respect of performers on and off the set.
Support efforts to make performers more responsible to protect themselves from sexually trasmitted diseases.
Require producers to be diligent in ensuring all performers are of legal age.

The seal can be displayed on any website, box cover, print material or video.

Paul Fishbein, president of AVN Publications, was one of the first to publicly praise the organization and offer his endorsement of BPAV principles.

"Considering the amount of scrutiny the adult industry receives from the government and the media, it behooves video producers and content providers to run their businesses ethically," Fishbein said. "At AVN, we always felt that protecting the working conditions of the performers was of paramount importance, but difficult to monitor. So the creation of BPAV is a good thing that I hope will encourage people to ensure better working conditions for performers. Because many of the performers are young, the industry needs to set an example and send the message that working in the adult business can be a positive experience."

Lecherous boogeymen, indeed.

That's all the news for now. Thanks for reading and happy jackin'.

2006-05-01T05:55:00.000-07:00

Mary Carey Runs For Governor, Again

Fuck it. I'm moving back to California just for the elections.

Adult film star, Mary Carey, is making her 2nd bid for Governor of California this year. She will kick off her campaign with the release of "Mary Carey for Governor" from Legend Video on May 15th. The video features Carey taking her first on-screen load in the mouth from actor Nick Manning and a hot all blonde girl/girl scene with Lexie Marie.

"My scene with Nick Manning is only the eighth or ninth boy/girl scene I've done in three years," Carey told Adult Video News. "I haven't taken penises very much on camera so it's a very unique experience."

Carey received national attention when she earned over 10,000 votes in the California Recall Election in 2003. She placed tenth in a field of 135 candidates,running on a tongue-in-cheek platform of porn and politics. Along with making same-sex marriages legal, Carey called for the creation of a "Porn For Pistols" program and advocated making lap dances tax deductible.

This time around, Carey is running as a Republican candidate with an expanded platform which includes making alcohol legal in all nude strip clubs.

"I also want to stress how much money the adult industry brings into the state of California," Carey said. "Without the adult industry, there would be a lot more poverty, and the state would be losing billions of dollars."

Don't laugh. We all know who resides in the California governor's mansion today. And don't forget, in 1987 porn star Cicciolina made a successful bid for Italian Parliament. Stranger things ahve happened, so don't be surprised when Carey sweeps the election.

2006-04-29T06:48:00.000-07:00

Goth Girls Looks Kind Of Lame: A Review Based On Conjecture And Innuendo

Honesty, integrity, tireless research and meticulous fact-checking. These are the credos of PornTribe News and Entertainment. But not today.

I have not actually seen Goth Girls, a new softcore/horror release from Doorway Productions. I have, however, visited their website and can say without a doubt, it's kind of lame. The still shots of the videos of their various productions are the epitome of low-budget doo-doo. This doesn't mean that I will never watch the video. Who knows? It might be so bad it's good.

I will give Doorway owner, Josh Maldonado, props though. He's doing what he wants to do and he's making money doing it.

"These are all softcore and bondage stories that have a 'Twilight Zone' feel to them," Maldonado said. "Some of the stories we do are a little cheesy, but they're usually creepy and erotic."

Goth Girls features Lynn Marz, Jessika del Monte, Cassie Zonbar and Nikki C.. I promise I'll check it out.

For more info about independent guerilla film-making, check out Robert Rodriguez's 10-minute Film School.

2006-04-28T07:00:00.000-07:00

Military Guys Need Hot Gay Sex Too

A Fort Bragg paratrooper was caught performing on a gay porn site with a military theme this week. Unfortunately for Pfc. Richard T. Ashley, the U.S. Army didn't see the website's potential as a powerful marketing tool.

The paratrooper has plead guilty to sodomy, drug use and conduct detrimental to the military. He has been sentenced to 90 days in prison, demoted to private and received a bad conduct discharge.

"I've embarrassed the entire Army, my country and, most of all, dishonored God," Ashley said.

Oh, come on Dick. It's not that bad. You could have decided to join the French Foreign Legion.

2006-04-27T05:59:00.000-07:00

Free Speech Lobbying Days A Hit In Sacramento

The Free Speech Coalition's ninth annual Celebrate Free Speech Lobbying Days went off without a hitch earlier this week. Lobbyists representing all aspects of the adult entertainment industry met with legislators in Sacramento, CA to discuss a wide range of issues. The FSC agenda did not include any specific legislation affecting the adult industry.

"I'm happy to say there are [no particular bills we are opposed to] this year," said FSC Legislative Affairs Director, Kat Sunlove. "We have found that in forging this kind of communication between our industry and lawmakers that there are fewer and fewer terrible bills that come out of this house, because they have a better understanding of the industry."

As a result, FSC junior lobbyists were able to provide legislators a welcome break from the usual whining of other special interest groups. Instead, the focus was on education and dissemination of information.

Sunlove organized industry representatives into three person teams and scheduled each team to meet with at least nine legislative offices throughout the day. Issues covered included the .xxx top level domain debate, the proposed bill for a federal tax on adult products and services, and the FSC's lawsuit against the new USC 2257, the federal recordkeeping and labeling law.

Lobbyists also handed out copies of the Free Speech Coalition's State of the Industry Report, 2006. The report details the industry's benefits to California including the number of jobs provided, worker salaries, income from product sales and services and taxes paid to the state by workers and companies.

"The FSC is the trade association of the adult entertainment industry," executive director Michelle Freridge summarized to reporters. "We represent more than 3,500 members, and the adult entertainment industry provides more than a quarter million jobs for Californians, generates more than $32 million in taxes in California, and was a multi-billion dollar industry across the country in 2005."

(Thanks to Mark Kernes, Senior Editor at AVN, whose article I just summarized)

2006-04-26T14:31:00.000-07:00

Witches Are In Season At The Justice Department

A Michigan couple charged with distributing obscene materials was arrested Monday. John and Deborah Messer of Brutus, Michigan are facing up to 30 years in prison for selling obscene material through the mail and possession of child pornography.

"The indictment and arrests reflect the Justice Department's commitment to the vigorous enforcement of obscenity laws," said the DOJ's Obscenity Prosecution Task Force director Brent D. Ward. "Which is absolutely necessary if we are going to protect citizens from unlawful exposure of [sic] obscene materials."

I feel safer already.

Now, I'm just speculating here, but I think the child porn charges are probably bullshit. (If they're not, then now is a good time to announce that Porntribe is 100% for the castration of anyone who sexually exploits children.) It's been my observation that whenever the DOJ has a weak obscenity case, they tack on some child porn charges to vilify and humiliate the accused.

I don't know all the details of this case, yet. But the question begs to be asked: Who did the Messers hurt? Did they engage in a direct mail campaign, sending a barrage of unwrapped pornography to pre-schools across the nation? It seems to me that if they are being charged with selling pornography, then somebody out there made the grown-up decision to buy it.

This may all be elementary, but these are the absurdities that Porntribe will continue to challenge and expose. We will call out the hypocrites, warn you of the witch hunts and expose the real villains so, hopefully, one day, we can all jerk off in peace. So, FUCK YOU, Mr. Brent D. Ward, if for nothing else than forcing me to have to think about this crap.

2006-04-25T07:05:00.000-07:00

Pro-Porn Lobbying Event Going On Right Now

Representatives from all areas of the adult entertainment world are gathered on the Capitol steps in Sacramento this morning, hoping to educate government officials and the general public about our often misunderstood industry. Now in its 9th year, the Celebrate Free Speech Lobbying Days, is a two day event where adult industry professionals get to visit with members of the California Legislature and make themselves available for interviews with the press.

This year's luminaries include long time activist and adult film star Nina Hartley, porn queen and former gubernatorial candidate, Mary Carey, retired Army Lt. Colonel and "the Oldest man in porn", Dave Cummings, and renowned AVN journalist, Mark Kernes.

Also attending are First amendment attorneys and Free Speech Coalition staff members Michelle Freridge and Jeffrey J. Douglas who will be available to discuss such issues as the proposed .xxx top level domain and the new USC 2257 currently being challenged by the FSC.

More to come as news flows in. Thanks for reading.

2006-04-23T18:04:00.000-07:00

Porntribe Says Boink Magazine is Way Cool

It all started in 1999, when Vassar College began publishing Squirm Magazine, a campus news zine featuring nude photos of the student body and articles on sex. Other classy institutions soon followed suit, including Yale, Harvard and, most recently, the University of Chicago.

Although most of the other Ivy League sex mags operate with the approval of their school's administrations, Boston University's Boink Magazine just doesn't give a fuck. As a result, censorship issues are non-existent and the magazine is free to do what ever it pleases. This doesn't sit well with BU administrators but it seems there is little they can do about it.

"The university does not endorse, nor welcome, the prospective publication of Boink," said Dean of Students, Kenneth Elmore before the first printing in 2005. "Nor [do we] view its publication as a positive for the university community, because of the treatment of serious sexual health, relationship and related issues."

Now, if I was Ken's speech writer, I would have slipped the word "boink" in there at least three more times. Still, that probably wouldn't have helped much. The most damage the administration has been able to do to Boink is to not recognize them as an official student group, bar them from receiving any student funds and get them blacklisted at a nearby campus bookstore.

None of that has hurt the magazine. Sales and subscriptions are keeping Boink afloat and they're currently doing a brisk online business.

From what I've seen, Boink is a great magazine. The photos and articles are hot and professionally executed. And their mission is honest and real.

Alecia Oleyourryk, editor and publisher says that Boink embraces all kinds of sex so they don't discriminate against what gets published.

"Sadly, there are few formal forums for people our age to share their sexual experiences and to learn from others who are on the same journey," 21 year old Oleyourryk said. "Boink was created to fill that need."

2006-04-20T06:28:00.000-07:00

Muslim Indonesia Still Going Nuts Over Playboy

Since the first press run sold out a week ago, the Indonesian edition of Playboy has been causing lots of controversy in the world's most populated Muslim nation. Last week, 300 men from the Islamic Defenders Front threw rocks and broke windows at Playboy's Jakarta headquarters forcing the magazine to close the office and move to a new location. Jakarta's chief of police is urging Playboy publisher, Ponti Carolus, to suspend publication in order to avoid further violence.

Though the majority of the nations citizens practice a moderate form of the faith, extreme Muslim groups have been gaining more and more social power over the past few years. There influence can be seen in a draft law currently being considered by the Indonesian parliament. If passed, the law would require heavy fines and jail time for anyone possessing or distributing pornography, impose strict guidelines for what kinds of clothing women can wear, and make homosexuality illegal.

Ironic sidenote: A porn site that claims to have received 46 million hits last month lists Indonesia as its #1 source of viewers.

2006-04-19T11:10:00.000-07:00

Porn Store Evokes the Wrath of Stephen Baldwin

Plans for the opening of a 24 hour adult bookstore in the Village of Nyack, New York has some community members up in arms. The opening of Fama DVD & Video was approved by the Planning Board of the Village of Nyack last November by a 5-0 vote. The original plans allowed limited hours of operation but the store's owners, apparently in retaliation to community opposition, have requested permission to stay open 24 hours a day. The Plannng Board is claiming they have no legal recourse to block the request.

Although the town has been home to strip clubs and various adult businesses over the years, some residents feel this store crosses the line into a seediness they're not willing to accept. Actor Stephen Baldwin, a resident of nearby Grand View and born again Christian, was one who spoke his mind at an April 3 Village Hall meeting. Mr. Baldwin said he doesn't have a problem with Fama doing business; his main concern is with the location of the store, which is located on a main thoroughfare near a hospital and a middle school.

In addition to speaking out publicly on the issue Baldwin took action by standing outside the store last January, taking pictures of construction workers and employees. He has vowed to continue this surveillance when the store opens, photographing patrons then identifying them and publishing their names in the local newspaper.

"If the only defense I have is to photograph the patrons, then that's what I have to do," he said at the Village Hall meeting. "I want to do what I need to do to protect my family and the citizens of Nyack."

Now, you'd probably think I would rip this guy a new asshole, but I think Mr. Baldwin has a valid point. I'll even go so far as to say that I agree with his scare tactics (sorry, couldn't resist that one).

I did some poking around and found out that Nyack is a nice little town. It really is a village. They have nice restaurants, art festivals and cutsie shops. Twenty percent of their 6,737 residents are under the age of eighteen. So I have to ask, does this town really need an all day peep-show arcade? I feel bad for the shmoes who are gonna get humilated in all of this, (in case you didn't know, the guys who are heading into a video arcade at three in the morning aren't watching porn, they're looking to suck a little something-something that their wives just don't possess) but PornTribe is about freedom of expression, not cramming porn down people's throats.

So kudos to you Mr. Baldwin for standing up for what you believe in.

2006-04-17T05:46:00.000-07:00

Extreme Associates Heads to the Supreme Court

Following in the footsteps of grandaddy Larry Flynt, Extreme Associates has filed a petition for a Writ of Centiorari with the clerk of the Supreme Court. The Court will now decide whether charges against the porn company will be dropped or they will stand trial for trafficking obscenity.

Though obscenity prosecutions have sharply increased under the current administration, there have been no major obscenity cases for almost a decade. The final outcome of U.S. v. Extreme Associates has far reaching consequences concerning free speech and personal responsibility. Indeed, the petition asks three fundamental questions:

"Whether the federal obscenity statutes as applied to the distribution of obscenity in private areas of the Internet, violate the individual right to privately access and view obscene materials."
"Whether the Court's previous determinations that the right to privately possess obscenity generates no corollary right to distribute obscenity are valid in light of the Court's emerging understanding of privacy and the advent of the Internet."
"Whether Lawrence v. Texas...eliminates Congress' ability to criminalize the distribution of obscenity in private areas of the Internet based solely on concerns for public morality."

These questions were addressed in the original trial and U.S. district Judge, Gary Lancaster dismissed all charges based on readings of the First amendment and prior Supreme Court rulings.

"The government can no longer rely on the advancement of a moral code, i.e., preventing consenting adults from entertaining lewd and lascivious thoughts as a legitimate, let alone a compelling, state interest," Lancaster said.

Last December, a three judge appeals court overturned Judge Lancaster's decision that the U.S. obscenity law was unconstitutional, forcing Extreme Associates' lawyers to appeal to the Supreme Court.

Now, it would be hard to argue that the material produced and distributed by Extreme Associates president, Rob Black, and his wife Lizzy Borden, is not truly obscene. To say they push the limits of good taste is an understatement. Much of their material depicts graphic, albeit simulated, violence towards women, including simulated rapes and killings. But the essence of their case is not about what is or is not offensive, or even psychologically harmful. It is about the boundaries of personal freedom. What can I possess, what can I view, and what can I express? The answers to these questions should be obvious-everything.

2006-04-14T06:25:00.000-07:00

The fate of the Indonesian edition of Playboy magazine hangs in the balance.

Yesterday's New York Times reported that the Jakarta police have requested the magazine stop publication. Ponti Carolus, director of Playboy's publishing company, is taking the request under serious consideration. He promised a decision by sometime today.

The magazine has been causing quite an uproar in Indonesia, the world's most populated Islamic nation, especially among conservative muslims. This week saw at least two rowdy demonstrations outside Playboy's offices in Jakarta. Although most of Indonesia's muslim population practices a moderate form of the faith, some members do take things to the extreme.

"This is all part of a conspiracy aimed at destroying Islam through the moral corruption of its younger generation," said Mohamad Jamil, a protest organizer. "Therefore, there is no other choice than to destroy Playboy."

Dun, dun, da.

2006-04-11T06:35:00.000-07:00

The first and only time I went to San Francisco's Exotic Erotic Ball, I caught my old girlfriend making out with a Persian princess. Well, at least she claimed to be Iranian royalty, but truth be told I demanded no proof of her assertion. The quintessential hottness of that situation should have turned me into a Baller for life but alas, I am not an exhibitonist at heart.

Still, it is exciting to report that the venerable event will kick off its 27th year with the first ever New York City appearence of Perry Mann's Exotic Erotic Ball and Expo. Part masquerade, part burlesque show and rock concert, the event has been drawing thousands of deviant revelers from across the country since before I knew what an erection was.

Responding to popular demand, the coordinators of the party will stage the event at Pier94NY this June 16 & 17. And you can be sure it will be a time to remember.

"We are pulling all the stops for the New York show," says event entertainment director Eric Masters. "We have performers flying in from Berlin, London and Japan."

Featured performers include The Torture King from the Jim Rose Sideshow, Rebecca from Rebecca's Rubber Room, and burlesque artists The Lollies and Kitten on the Keys.

Live music acts are still to be announced. Check out their web site at www.exoticeroticball.com for more info.

2006-04-10T06:01:00.000-07:00

Adult film star, Haley Paige, is making the trasition from acting to directing. Smash Pictures signed the 23 year old starlet to a year long directing contract last month.

Relatively new to the adult industry, Paige has already appeared in close to 200 movies since she first entered the business two years ago.

"I just wish there were more young women directing," Paige said. "Then you'd see a change in how movies look."

2006-04-08T07:31:00.000-07:00

Mark Kulkis, president of Kick Ass Pictures, will appear on "The Henry Rollins Show" tonight at 10 PM on the Independent Film Channel. Topics of discussion will include, you guessed it: pornography and free speech.

"I was honored to be asked on Henry's show since he's been such a rabid free speech advocate throughout the years," Kulkis said.

Kick Ass Pictures is based in Los Angeles and guarantees all natural breasts, no condoms and all naked sex. Excellent.

Thanks to AVN.

2006-04-07T07:00:00.000-07:00

Playboy is causing a stir in Indonesia today with the first sales of a watered down edition of the magazine. Although baring less skin than its 1950's ancestor, the first edition is inspiring exteme emotional reactions in the world's largest Muslim nation.

A hard-line militant group, the Islamic Defenders Front, has threatend force to stop distribution of the magazine.

"According to our commitment," said a spokesman for the group. "If they don't withdraw it [Playboy magazine] then we will act in our own way, the forceful way."

Fucking ominous, don't you think?

2006-04-07T06:30:00.000-07:00

The mainstream publishing world is finally taking notice of erotica written by and for women.

Avon Books and Harlequin Books have plans to launch steamier publishing houses later this spring. Avon Red and Harlequin Spice will offer such titles as "Agent Provocateur", a sordid tale of a woman trying to get away from the men who bought her at a strange auction.

Women's demand for more sexually explicit storytelling has been steadily on the rise. Tina Engler, an author of erotic fiction, started her website, Ellora's Cave, in 2000 to sell her own work and the work of other like-minded writers. By 2004, sales were hitting $1 million.

"Erotica legitimizes the female sexual experience," Engler says. "Women read these books and it makes them feel normal about their own fantasies."

2006-04-06T15:30:00.000-07:00

The Department of Homeland Security's deputy press secretary is currently facing charges in Florida for using the internet to seduce someone he thought was a 14-year-old girl.

Brian J. Doyle, 55, spent nearly a month communicating with a Polk county detective posing as a teenager. He faces 23 counts of using a computer to seduce a child and transmission of harmful material to a minor. Each third-degree felony count carries a maximum sentence of five years.

2006-04-05T06:34:00.000-07:00

A tax workshop was held last week at the New York City Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Community Center on W. 13th Street. Dozens of sex industry workers attended, seeking advice on how to file for their less than orthodox professions.

The event was organized by the Prostitutes of New York, a sex worker advocacy group and the sex industry magazine, Spread. Spread executive editor, Audacia Ray, said, "A lot of prostitutes are making enough to get by, so filling [taxes] can make them feel like a part of society."

Jane Vincent, a foot fetish model, said she believed the workshop would "do alot to remove the shame and illegitimate nature of the industry."

One prostitute, addressing the fears many sex workers have had for years, had this to say: "I just write down that I'm self employed and leave it at that. The form doesn't ask and I don't tell. Just because I work as a prostitute, I still want to be a tax paying member of society."

Source: NY Times online, 4/05/06

2006-04-03T05:57:00.000-07:00

The war on pornography rages on. Check out yesterday's AP article, "Activists Lament Porn's Move to Mainstream".

Apparently frustrated by that pesky First Ammendment, anti-porn crusaders are very busy developing new tactics to outlaw pornography. Their new strategy includes raising funds for brain research that proves that porn is physically harmful to humans. They hope their efforts will strengthen obscenity cases against adult industry defendants.

John Harmer, a Utah-based auto executive who has been fighting porn for forty years, summarized the game plan. "I'm convinced we'll demonstrate in the not too distant future the actual physical harm that pornography causes and hold them [the porn industry] financially accoutable. That could be the straw that breaks their back."

Whew. Fighting porn for forty years. John, you must be exhausted.

But seriously, this is the kind of devoted zealotry we've been facing in this country for two centuries. These people spend vast amounts of time, energy and resources fighting their personal demoms while under the delusion that they're working for the common good. They see porn as a manifestation of evil probably because their own secret desires are really dark and ugly.

That may be a presumptuous claim, but condsider the black and white inflammatory rhetoric the religious and moral right has been flinging around over the years. Anthony Comstock, the proto-typical anti-porn militant said in the late 1800's about obscentity, "Like a cancer it fastens itself upon the imagination, defiling the mind, corrupting the thoughts, leading to secret practices of most foul and revolting character, until the victim tires of life, and existence is scarcely endurable."

That was written over a century ago and relgio-reactionary conservatives are still operating from the same moral base. Activists like John Harmer would have us believe that porn is destroying the fabric of family values and now cite it as a reason American marriages are falling apart. What they fail to realize is that it is their own moral extremism that most contributes to sexual deviancy and is most likely responsible for the existence of modern pornography in the first place.

Paul Cambria, general council for the adult industry's advocacy group the Adult Freedom Foundation, has this to say. "The form of entertainment is no problem. There are individuals who are going to react abnormally to normal material, but it's not a problem for the average person." He goes on to say that "some people lie about it. It's their way of excusing personally unacceptable conduct-'It wasn't me-It was porn.'"

The sad and funny truth is that the villification of porn is a self defeating and futile strategy.

In 1969, Denmark became the first nation in the world to legalize pornography. Danish studies showed that although consumption of porn initially went through the roof, it has been on a long and steady decline ever since. After the porno wave had peaked a survey revealed that most Danes found porn to be "uninteresting" and even "repulsive". In fact, "the most common immediate reaction to one hour pornography stimulation was boredom," said Berl Kutchinsky of the Uninversity of Copenhagen.

So bring it on Mr Harmer, because as an aspiring pornographer the results of that research scare me a whole lot more than you do.

Sources: Associated Press 4/1/06; 'Reefer Madness', Eric Schlosser.

2006-04-01T07:27:00.000-07:00

Vivid Entertainment will launch a new Burn-to-DVD service this Monday. Thirty DVD-quality titles will be available and all will include original DVD menus, scene selection and interactive features. The cost is $25 per download, about the cost of a retail priced video.

The April issue of Marie Claire is featuring an ad for a new Doc Johnson vibrator. The "Internet Enabled Rabbit" will allow a woman's partner to control the dildo via the internet by logging on to Highjoy.com.

2006-03-31T08:20:00.000-07:00

These are sad and scarey times. I'm getting old enough now to be able to say that I've seen them before, and will certainly witness the cultural pendulum swing back and forth a few more times before I check out. But that doesn't change the fact that it pisses me off that it was even an issue for filmaker Steve Anderson to find a distributor for his new documentary, F**K.

The film, scheduled for release later this year, will explore the history and social impact of the word "fuck". Notable interviewees include Ron Jeremy, Drew Carey, Hunter S. Thompson, Bill Maher and Alainis Morrissette, along with commentary by liguists and comedians.

"This work is at the center of the ongoing debate over Free Speech in our country," Anderson said. "From the moment I began this project I knew I had to find a distributor who would embrace the ideas and conflicts this film explores."

THINKFilms, a New York based distibution company, was up to the challenge. Mark Urman, head of the company's theatrical division, said, "[we are] not only excited to be releasing it, but we are thrilled to be among the companies who can."

In addition to the theatrical release, Showtime has plans to air the documentary in 2007.

Source: Adult Video News

2006-03-29T08:02:00.000-07:00

Cell phones have been banned in schools in the German state of Bavaria. The action was spurred by the discovery of pornography and violent images that had been stored on student phones.

Analysis: I need a new cell phone.

Quote of the Day:

"Freedom gets chipped away each time we make a compromise, each time we do something contrary to what we believe."

Larry Flynt

2006-03-28T11:50:00.000-07:00

A new bill has been introduced by senators Max Baucus (D-MT) and Mark Pryor (D-AZ) that would require web sites offering adult content to operate under a special Top Level Domain. If passed, the Cyber Safety for Kids Act 2006, suggests all adult oriented web sites be coraled under a TDL such as .xxx.

Of course, the wise and benevolent senators claim that the purpose of the bill is "to facilitate the protection of minors using the Internet from material that is harmful to minors, and for other purposes." What other purposes, I wonder?

In Section 8 of the Bill, the senators define material harmful to minors as, "any communication, picture, image, graphic image file, article, recording, writing or other matter of any kind that is obscene." Besides obvious sexually explicit material they go on to define obscenity as anything that "lacks serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value for minors."

2006-03-27T07:03:00.000-07:00

Two ammendments that will severely limit the sale of adult material in Yellowstone County, Montana are coming up for a vote.

The conservative group, Citizens Against Sex Exploitation, have spearheaded the proposals despite reluctance on the part of the city and county planning department. County officials point to evidence that suggests that adult bookstores and exotic dance clubs do not create significant policing problems and the new ordinances will only put financial and legal burdens on the county's shoulders.

If passed the law will make it illegal for busineses to sell obscene material and would limit adult bookstores to the sale of softcore porn.

Sources: Adult Video News, Free Speech Coalition.

(Sorry, still need to learn how to link in my posts but please, keep reading.)

2006-03-24T06:57:00.000-07:00

Savanna Samson releases her own wine. Summary from the NY Times, March 22, 2006.

Savanna Samson, star of "The New Devil in Miss Jones", recently released her own wine label. Ah yes, the mainstreaming of porn continues.

Sogno Uno, 2004, recieved a score of 90-91 out of a hundred from wine expert Robert Parker. He characterizes a score of 90-95 as "an outstanding wine of exceptional complexity and character."

"There's spiciness," said Samson. "And yet it's an elegant wine. I love the opera and I'm a classically trained ballet dancer. And there's some chocolate undertone, which I just love.
There's a little bit of sweetness. Like ten percent of the time, I'm sweet."

Raised Catholic in upstate New York, Samson's parents were devastated when she told them she was an adult film star. She hopes that her new winemaking project is something they can be proud of.

Nevertheless, she plans to continue her film career.

"My priest said in Mass once, 'Violence or pleasures of the flesh. Which is the greater of two evils?' I think we all know the answer to that. I felt like he was saying that toward me," she said

2006-03-21T12:49:00.000-07:00

As reported in the NY Times on March 19th, 2006.

A video featuring Kid Rock and Creed singer, Scott Stapp, receiving hummers in a motor home after a 1999 concert will not be released any time soon. A federal judge recently ordered the shutdown of web sites showing trailers of the video in response to a lawsuit filed by the Kid. Stapp and an unamed woman have also filed lawsuits against Red Light District, the California based video company that is seeking to distribute the footage.

Now, I'm not holding my breath for the outcome of this story but I suspect this is just a publicity stunt. Although his attorney is pushing this as a privacy issue, Mr. Rock recently told the Associated Press, "What perfect timing. I've got a record coming up."

Who the fuck cares? I, for one, am wholly uninterested in seeing either of these shmoes (ok, maybe Kid Rock is kinda cool) getting bjs in a mobile home, and I will not voluntarily view the video if it becomes widely available. Which brings me to the point of this summary. If something offends you and the very thought of that something makes you want to wretch red hot steaming chunks of vomit onto your lap, then don't fucking expose yourself to it. Feel free to tell the world how disgusting you think it is, but please don't tell anyone else what they shouldn't be reading, viewing, saying or depicting.

And that, for the moment, is all I have to say about that.

2006-03-17T11:19:00.000-07:00

The First Ammendment of the Constitution of the United States of America:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievences.

The idea for PornTribe has been swimming around in my head for the better part of a decade now. It has mostly been, and still is, nothing but a collection of good ideas. Well, I've finaly decided, "Enough with the daydreaming, already!"

PornTribe is a collective of creative people who love porn. Our motto is, "Better Porn and More of It!" We also think it sucks that certain government agencies and moral groups feel it is necessary to tell others what is appropriate for the whole of society to view and read. Some of these people are very nasty and think people like us should rot in jail while waiting to go to hell. Well, we believe that if our rights to expose ourselves to any materials we choose are protected, even if (hopefully if) those materials are undeniably obscene, then our rights to express ourselves on more important issues will be even more secure. Yes, we aim to fight the good fight.

For the next few days, weeks, months and years we will be exploring all kinds of issues in the realm of adult entertainment. The focus will be porn and politics but we hope to include all kinds of fun stuff relating to the adult entertainment industry. What we won't be here is a porno site. Sorry, no nasty photos or videos. As a consolation prize, we promise that any profanity will be devoid of any socially redeemable qualities as determined by the Supreme Court.

Let's see what happens...