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Tag: Porn

  • Terry Crews: “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” Star Says He Had Addiction to Pornography

    Terry Crews, known for his role as Sgt. Terry Jeffords on Brooklyn Nine-Nine, admits he had an addiction to pornography. The NFL star-turned-actor also admits it nearly cost him his marriage.

    Sharing his admission in a series of three videos on Facebook, Crews candidly explains some of what he–and his family–have been through as a result of his former penchant for porn.

    “For years, years, years my dirty little secret was that I was addicted to pornography,” Terry Crews begins.

    “It really, really messed up my life in a lot of ways,” he adds. “It was my secret. Nobody knew and that allowed it to grow.”

    Explaining he was just 12 when he started viewing pornography, Terry Crews says he turned to it when he was lonely or depressed.

    “Every time you look at pornography is a desire for intimacy,” he said. “You are trying to fight your feelings of being alone.”

    Terry Crews says he has beaten his addiction, and that his reason for going public is in hopes he might help others struggling with an addiction to porn.

    “I’ve been free of this thing probably going on six seven years now, thank goodness,” he says. “But now it’s become my battle to help other people who are going through the same thing.”

    Terry Crews’ wife Rebecca worked hard alongside him to salvage their marriage.

    “Love my boo!!!!!!” she captioned a photo of herself with Terry Crews in an Instagram post about a week ago.

    Kudos to Terry Crews for reaching out in hopes of helping others who might be battling the same addiction he once fought.

    If you’re wondering where else you might have seen Terry Crews, besides on Brooklyn Nine-Nine, he starred in several rather sexy Old Spice aftershave ads on TV.

  • Penthouse Magazine Goes Digital, No More Printed Edition

    Penthouse Magazine Goes Digital, No More Printed Edition

    Penthouse Magazine is ending its print edition after more than 50 years of publication. General Media Communications, which supervises the publication of the magazine, confirmed on Friday that Penthouse will be offered in digital format.

    “Reimagined for the preferred consumption of content today by consumers, the digital version of Penthouse Magazine will combine and convert everything readers know and love about the print magazine experience to the power of a digital experience,” FriendFinder Network said in a statement.

    Penthouse decided to go digital after its rival, popular men’s magazine Playboy, announced that it would stop publishing nude photos of women as part of a redesign that will be revealed in March. Playboy’s last print issue in December featured nude women and Pamela Anderson.

    Ezra Shashoua, CFO of FriendFinder Network, the parent company of Penthouse Magazine clarified that the magazine will still publish print copies until their transition to digital format is complete. “Penthouse Magazine will continue to be published in print during the transition to digital. No specific date to stop print publication of our flagship magazine has been set.”

    As part of the changes, the publication has also closed its headquarters in New York and moved to FriendFinder’s offices in Los Angeles.

    The change is deemed to help keep the magazine competitive in the future.

    “This move will keep Penthouse competitive in the future and will seamlessly combine our unmatched pictorial features and editorial content with our video and broadcast offerings,” said Jonathan Buckheit, FriendFinder Networks CEO.

    Penthouse has reportedly had financial issues for several years now, and in 2013, its publisher filed for bankruptcy. The company – which also owns the AdultFriendFinder website – said the magazine had not turned a profit since 2008, but was cleared to exit bankruptcy court after three months.

    FriendFinder bought Penthouse Magazine in 2004 after it went bankrupt.

  • “Penthouse” Magazine Stops Publication After 50 Years, Goes to Digital Format Only

    Penthouse magazine, typically known as the raunchier rival of Playboy, is ceasing its print publication after 50 years, and will be available in digital format only. This comes just months after Playboy announced it would no longer feature nude photos within its pages, beginning with its March 2016 issue.

    The Wall Street Journal reports that adult publications like Penthouse magazine and Playboy have taken huge hits in recent years since adult content is easily found online–and often for free.

    Penthouse magazine once sold over five million copies. Business waned after founder Bob Guccione filed for bankruptcy in 2004 and eventually lost control of the company. Now operated by FriendFinder Networks, they, too, declared bankruptcy in 2013.

    Penthouse magazine will close its New York offices and move to FriendFinder Networks offices in L.A.

    The publisher issued a statement regarding these big changes for Penthouse magazine.

    “Reimagined for the preferred consumption of content today by consumers, the digital version of Penthouse Magazine will combine and convert everything readers know and love about the print magazine experience to the power of a digital experience,” the statement reads.

    “This move will keep Penthouse magazine competitive in the future and will seamlessly combine our unmatched pictorial features and editorial content with our video and broadcast offerings,” CEO Jonathan Buckheit added.

    It shouldn’t come as a big surprise that Penthouse magazine sales have fallen drastically and mandate this kind of business move. The internet makes a wealth of porn available at reader’s fingertips.

  • PornHub Is Trying to Get You to Pay for Porn

    PornHub Is Trying to Get You to Pay for Porn

    Pornhub, the internet’s most-popular site for free porn videos, wants you to pay for porn.

    Not any old porn, mind you. Premium porn.

    The company has just launched Pornhub Premium, a $9.99-per-month subscription service that gives you access to over 100,000 high-def videos, 13,000+ full DVDs, 1080p streaming, and higher quality on non-premium videos – all ad-free. Pornhub Premium also provides exclusive content from many of the biggest names in porn production, like Brazzers and Reality Kings.

    Basically, Pornhub is billing this as the Netflix of porn.

    Will Pornhub sign some people up for this? Probably – there’s sure to be demand for high-quality streams. Some people do get sick of potato-quality porn.

    But the inherent problem with a subscription porn service is that there’s so much free porn out there. Not just on Pornhub, but everywhere. Everywhere.

    And hey, as they said in the above tweet, the free stuff isn’t going anywhere. Can’t blame a site for trying to make a little bit of money – and at least they are providing a lot of content behind this paywall.

    There’s a free 7-day trial if you’re interested.

  • Google Adds Revenge Porn to Short List of Things It Removes from Search Results

    Google’s philosophy about what it surfaces in its search results has always been pretty laissez-faire. For the most part, Google prefers to “organize the world’s information” and “reflect the whole web”. To that end, Google only removes content from search on very limited occasions. Just ask Rick Santorum.

    Today, however, Google is adding another specific type of content to the small list of things it will not tolerate – revenge porn.

    “Our philosophy has always been that Search should reflect the whole web. But revenge porn images are intensely personal and emotionally damaging, and serve only to degrade the victims—predominantly women. So going forward, we’ll honor requests from people to remove nude or sexually explicit images shared without their consent from Google Search results. This is a narrow and limited policy, similar to how we treat removal requests for other highly sensitive personal information, such as bank account numbers and signatures, that may surface in our search results,” says Amit Singhal, SVP of search, in a blog post.

    Upon request, Google will remove financial and government-issued identification numbers. This includes U.S. Social Security numbers, bank accounts, credit card numbers, and images of people’s signatures. There’s a checklist that any particular piece of sensitive information must satisfy before Google will consider removing it from search results.

    Google’s policy states that it’ll only remove images or videos from results if they include personal information as described above, or if it’s child porn.

    Now we can add revenge porn to the list.

    “We know this won’t solve the problem of revenge porn—we aren’t able, of course, to remove these images from the websites themselves—but we hope that honoring people’s requests to remove such imagery from our search results can help,” says Google.

    The company says a dedicated removal request form should pop up in the coming weeks.

    In recent months, companies like Twitter and reddit have also implemented revenge porn bans.

  • Jenna Jameson Posts Picture With Rare Object [Pic]

    Jenna Jameson has been trending high for the past few days, right along with other porn stars and Playboy Bunnies.

    Eva Lovia joined Jenna on the hot list this weekend for her plans to shoot the first porn in space. Jenna was also joined by three former Playboy bunnies and Playboy Mansion dwellers: Kendra Wilkinson, Holly Madison, and Bridget Marquardt. Those three have been hot topics due to a book that Holly Madison has written, telling tales about the other two from their days sleeping with Hugh Hefner.

    Plus, Maggie Gyllenhaal said that she wants to do more nudity and sex scenes. It’s been an Incognito mode weekend.

    Jenna Jameson has caught the most attention lately for her announcement that she is converting to Judaism. Jenna is engaged to Israeli diamond merchant Lior Bitton. She has been sharing pictures of kosher meals she makes on social media. She has also posted pictures indicating that she will “Stand With Israel,” igniting debates that usually never make it to a porn star’s page.

    Speaking of things that porn stars rarely see, Jenna Jameson posted a picture to Instagram today of herself holding an object rarely seen in her or any porn star’s presence: a script.

    Jenna Jameson started shooting on a new film called Limelight, written, produced by, and starring Paul Vandervort.

    On set of #limelight #study #script @jamescullenb

    A photo posted by Jenna Jameson (@jennacantlose) on

    The Hollywood Reporter describes the film as “a gritty indie drama about fame, obsession and vapidness in Hollywood. The film follows a small-town, social media obsessed narcissist and his journey to Hollywood in pursuit of fame. Jameson plays a cold-blooded, high-powered publicist who manipulates the lead character Miles (Paul Vandervort) after he comes to Hollywood.”

    The new film also features Jonathan Lipnicki, famous for being Renée Zellweger’s kid and knowing how much a human head weighs in Jerry Maguire.

    Filmmaker Paul Vandervort also tweeted out pics from the set, including one showing himself and Jenna Jameson — without scripts — as seen by the camera monitor.

    The film’s director, James Cullen Bressack tweeted out a pic of himself and Jenna Jameson clowning around.

    Jenna Jameson has been in other “regular” films and television shows, just not very many. Perhaps her conversion, engagement, and dive into more mainstream work — with scripts — mens she is headed down a new path in life. Jenna may find it easier to transition to that “straight” career now more than ever.

    In a world where porn stars and Playboy Bunnies trend high, television stars launch empires with sex tapes, and the top shows all feature more breasts than swords, Jenna Jameson just might be able to polish that name up.

  • Jenna Jameson in New Film With Jerry Maguire Kid

    Jenna Jameson may not know what a human head weighs, but Jonathan Lipnicki does. You may remember Lipnicki as the adorable kid in Jerry Maguire who reminded folks that “a human head weighs eight pounds” at multiple points in the movie.

    You may remember Jenna Jameson from … well, you know. Jenna Jameson has had a couple of on-her-feet roles. She was in Howard Stern’s movie Private Parts, basically doing what she did best back then. She was also in one episode of Sons of Anarchy. Jameson played a character credited as “PornGirl Doctor.”

    But perhaps Jenna Jameson’s fortunes are rising. She is set to star in an honest-to-goodness drama called Limelight, written, produced by, and starring Paul Vandervort, an Abercrombie model-turned-actor.

    But Jonathan Lipnicki is in the film! The Hollywood Reporter describes the film as:

    “a gritty indie drama about fame, obsession and vapidness in Hollywood. The film follows a small-town, social media obsessed narcissist and his journey to Hollywood in pursuit of fame. Jameson plays a cold-blooded, high-powered publicist who manipulates the lead character Miles (Paul Vandervort) after he comes to Hollywood.”

    Lipnicki plays the character “Rocky, a member of Miles’ assigned entourage.”

    Jenna Jameson caught some attention recently when she became engaged to an Israeli diamond merchant and announced that she would convert to Judaism. Jenna Jameson is embracing the faith and traditions of her Israeli fiancé Lior Bitton. Jameson’s pictures of kosher meals she had prepared have gotten raves on social media, but her statements of support for Israel have embroiled her in arguments about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

    A photo posted by Jenna Jameson (@jennacantlose) on

    Jameson challenged one commenter, “Do some research then try to debate me…”

    To another, she remarked, “I’ve never allowed others narrow minds influence my beliefs.”

    Previously, Jenna Jameson had professed a Catholic background. “I’m very religious,” she told Larry King in 2013. “I think that we’ve come a long way religiously. I don’t think that you have to take the Bible literally … And I love being able to teach my children what it means to just believe and have the strength of faith … I’ve always been extremely Catholic. My father was Catholic, and he brought me up that way.”

  • Jenna Jameson Catches Hell for Israel Comments

    Jenna Jameson is joining a growing line of porn stars whose names are trending. In all cases, you still have to be careful what you click on at work or without Incognito mode engaged. In Jenna Jameson’s case, her headlines are about her conversion to Judaism.

    Jenna Jameson is embracing the faith and traditions of her Israeli fiancé Lior Bitton. She has posted items to social media that show her serving up kosher meals and discussing her plans to visit Israel.

    Her fiancé “visited” Israel when he was fleeing prosecution for insurance fraud back in 2010, but has since reportedly paid his debt to society and is living the good life as a diamond dealer.

    While Jenna Jameson has spoken of her religious upbringing in the past, she was coming from a different place on the spectrum then.

    “I’m very religious,” she told Larry King in 2013. “I think that we’ve come a long way religiously. I don’t think that you have to take the Bible literally … And I love being able to teach my children what it means to just believe and have the strength of faith … I’ve always been extremely Catholic. My father was Catholic, and he brought me up that way.”

    Now that Jenna Jameson is exploring and loving the tenets of 3,000 of tradition from Moses to Sandy Koufax, she is also catching some flak for expressing her love on social media. One such instance was an Instagram post that featured a bumper sticker-ish picture declaring “I Stand With Israel.”

    A photo posted by Jenna Jameson (@jennacantlose) on

    Commenters piled on the political and cultural hot-button topic.

    “You stand with occupation and apartheid! I see,” one commenter charged.

    “You’re speaking to one of the millions of Palestinians forcefully expelled from our homeland since 1948. I suggest that you look at all the skeletons in Israel’s closet ! The good news is that BDS is here to stay until Israel renounces apartheid especially in the occupied West Bank and quit all Arab occupied lands!”

    When you open up that box, you never know what will jump out. The topic of Middle East issues, particularly those concerning Israel, ignite deeply-held feelings from all sides. Jenna Jameson may not have known what to expect in that regard, since Catholics don’t generally promote the kind of eschatology that Evangelical Christians embrace concerning Israel.

    But Jenna Jameson herself jumped right into the fray with commenters, firing back.

    Jameson challenged one commenter, “Do some research then try to debate me…”

    To another, she remarked, “I’ve never allowed others narrow minds influence my beliefs.”

    Many Jews are welcoming Jenna Jameson to their ranks with open arms.

    But some people seem to be snickering at the idea of a former porn star wading into the political minefield of Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

  • Eva Lovia: If You Orgasm In Space, What Happens To the Money Shot? [Video]

    Eva Lovia has the current distinction of being the only legitimate trending topic that you might have to be in Incognito mode to click on. Not since Christy Mack and War Machine have news readers had to be so careful about checking out headlines at work.

    Eva Lovia is a porn star. She is specifically billed as a DP star — a topic which we won’t penetrate even once here — but her big ambition is to go into space. No, really. Eva Lovia and Pornhub want to do a porn in space.

    Don’t act like you don’t know what Pornhub is. It’s the one that does pop-ups of Ashley Madison, not LiveJasmine. (Editor note: You can’t expense this research.)

    Pornhub has recruited Eva Lovia and Johnny Sins to do a porn shoot in suborbital space with a six-person crew. Apparently they are dead serious about it. They have started a crowdfunding campaign on IndieGogo to fund it to the tune of $3.4 million.

    To entice funders to pony up the donations, PornHub produced a video with Eva Lovia (see below; it’s sorta-SFW) for the campaign. As usual, they offer perks for funders.

    $1 gets you a certificate.
    $10 gets you a day-early viewing of the video
    $20 gets a video chat with Eva Lovia and Johnny Sins
    $25 gets an HD copy of the video
    $50 gets a one-week subscription to Johnny Sins website
    $100 gets a swag bag and t-shirts
    $200 gets a hand-signed copy of the video
    $500 gets a signed photo of Eva Lovia and Johnny Sins, plus a shoutout during filming, shown in the blooper reel
    $1000 gets a phone call from Johnny Sins or Eva Lovia
    $5000 gets a private lunch date with Eva Lovia or Johnny Sins
    $10,000 gets to in to the launch party and your name in the credits
    $20,000 you get to map out a scene, including positions, dialogue, etc.
    $30,000 gets your branding on the space suits in the film
    $50,000 you get props (real props) from the spacefaring film set
    $150,000 you get one of the two spacesuits worn by Eva Lovia or Johnny Sins

    Each perk slot has a nickname. The highest three are Apollo 69, Black Hole, and Uranus, respectively.

    Mashable points to that there are many obstacles to this space tryst ever getting off the ground, particularly when it comes to getting a ride there. But that’s just a matter of time and cash. The real question is, what happens during and after sex in zero gravity?

    The Daily Mail says there are a few real considerations to having sex in space, to say nothing of shooting the scenes.

    Paul Root Wolpe — yes, that’s his middle name — a senior bioethicist at Nasa, says the release of bodily fluids could also cause some problems in microgravity.

    Then there’s the erection problem. In space, blood tends to rise to the chest and head, as opposed to riding gravity down to you-know-where.

    What if poor Johnny Sins gets up there and can’t plant the flag? Might we then see the effects of Viagra in space?

    If Eva Lovia uses lube, will it be as difficult as astronauts using toothpaste?

    Let’s hope they don’t opt for any golden shower scenes.

    Here’s that Eva Lovia video. Don’t miss the part where she asks, with a straight face, “Who else can say they were the first porn stars in space?” Perhaps the definition of “first” is fuzzy.

    Also, please excuse the crappy audio that Pornhub settled for. Maybe this is the Low Resolution version and the HD version is for subscribers only.

  • Pornhub Wants $3.4M to Make the First Porn in Space

    How does sex work in zero gravity? Pornhub wants to find out, and it’s asking for the internet’s help.

    Monetary help, that is. The massive online porn empire has just launched a crowdfunding campaign on Indiegogo for what is calls SEXPLORATION, the first sex tape in space.

    Pornhub has set a lofty goal of $3.4 million, and has two months to hit it.

    “One way or another, there are many elements about life in space that need careful consideration and research…especially sex. As such, Pornhub is teaming up with top ranking adult studio Digital Playground in joining the ranks of Armstrong and Gagarin by pioneering a one of a kind mission to defy gravity, make history, and push the boundaries of intergalactic “Sexploration” by filming the first ever sextape in space,” says the company.

    “In doing so, we will not only be changing the face of the adult industry, we will also be chronicling how a core component of human life operates while in orbit.”

    Sure. It’s also just two people (Eva Lovia and Johnny Sins) banging in space. Either way, I’m sure plenty of people can get behind it.

    According to Pornhub, 60% of the crowdfunding cash (should the goal be met) will go toward space flight costs. The “astronauts” will receive six months of training, and Pornhub hopes to launch SEXPLORATION late next year.

    “By supporting us through the purchase of one (or several!) of our amazing perks, you have the opportunity to be a part of the most epic sex adventure ever caught on tape, causing lives to change, mouths to drop, and boundaries to be broken,” says Pornhub.

    There are a lot of perks – ranging from a $1 contribution to a $150,000 contribution. That highest tier is the “Uranus” level. For that, you’ll receive on of the spacesuits used in the making of the film – so there’s that.

    So, why the crowdfunding campaign? Why not just do it themselves?

    “With a project of these intergalactic proportions it is important to us that our members have a say in how it all goes down. Pornhub is all about community, which our huge and dedicated fan base knows to be true. For this same reason, it only makes sense that we involve our members on this journey of Sexploration,” says Pornhub.

    I guess Elon Musk said no.

    Image via Pornhub, Indiegogo

  • Courtney Stodden: Proceeds from Solo Sex Tape to Benefit Charity

    Courtney Stodden, once referred to as the ‘teen bride’ for marrying Lost actor Dough Hutchison when she was just 16, is selling her solo sex tape. The proceeds from the porn flick will be donated to various charities.

    Page Six reports that Courtney Stodden was reluctant to sell the sex tape at first. She had her attorney write to Steven Hirsch, the president of Vivid Entertainment, and demand that he return the tape. She also issued her demands via a statement to Fox411 on Thursday.

    “I want my tape back and Mr. Hirsch needs to respond to my attorney’s demand letter to return it to me immediately,” Stodden said. “My private video’s not for sale. I don’t need the million dollars.”

    It seems over the weekend, Courtney Stodden realized all the good a tape of her masturbating could be for society. That’s when she decided she would go through with selling the sex tape to Vivid Entertainment, and would donate the $1 million proceeds to charity.

    So exactly which charity or charities will benefit from Courtney Stodden’s sex tape?

    TMZ reports she is leaning toward benefitting animal rights groups and “children with cancer.”

    There has never been much about Courtney Stodden that is normal. Why would the sale of her sex tape be any different? At least someone–other than just those who view the porn film–will benefit from her generosity.

    Are you scratching your head over this one, too?

  • Instagram Takes Harder Line on Nudity, Abuse

    Instagram has always asked users to be nice and respectful of each other, but now the social network is taking a harder line on a handful of issues.

    And it’s updated its community guidelines to reflect this.

    “In the old guidelines, we would say ‘don’t be mean’,” Nicky Jackson Colaco, director of public policy for Instagram, told the Wall Street Journal. “Now we’re actively saying you can’t harass people. The language is just stronger.”

    Here’s Instagram’s new, more forceful rebuke of harassment:

    We want to foster a positive, diverse community. We remove content that contains credible threats or hate speech, content that targets private individuals to degrade or shame them, personal information meant to blackmail or harass someone, and repeated unwanted messages. We do generally allow stronger conversation around people who are featured in the news or have a large public audience due to their profession or chosen activities.

    It’s never OK to encourage violence or attack anyone based on their race, ethnicity, national origin, sex, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, religious affiliation, disabilities, or diseases. When hate speech is being shared to challenge it or to raise awareness, we may allow it. In those instances, we ask that you express your intent clearly.

    Serious threats of harm to public and personal safety aren’t allowed. This includes specific threats of physical harm as well as threats of theft, vandalism, and other financial harm. We carefully review reports of threats and consider many things when determining whether a threat is credible.

    Nudity has received some focus as well.

    Instagram has always banned nudity and has been quick to remove posts that violate its policy – but now the lines are more clear. Instagram, unsurprisingly, takes the same stance on nudity as its parent company Facebook. Boobs are ok if a baby is attached, and that’s it.

    “We know that there are times when people might want to share nude images that are artistic or creative in nature, but for a variety of reasons, we don’t allow nudity on Instagram. This includes photos, videos, and some digitally-created content that show sexual intercourse, genitals, and close-ups of fully-nude buttocks. It also includes some photos of female nipples, but photos of post-mastectomy scarring and women actively breastfeeding are allowed. Nudity in photos of paintings and sculptures is OK, too,” says Instagram’s new terms.

    Sorry, Chelsea Handler. Sorry Rihanna. You’ll have to take your boobs to Twitter.

    Image via Instagram

  • Ron Jeremy Documentary to Hit Amazon Instant, Plus Video Game

    Ron Jeremy claims the title of “Hardest (Working) Man in Show Business.” The multi-decade porn star has done what few porn stars are able to do — carved out a career for himself outside of the skin industry.

    Ron Jeremy is not a pretty man. His nickname in porn is The Hedgehog. That pretty much sums up his look — well, except for the obvious feature that made him the go-to name in porn in the days before Viagra.

    But Ron Jeremy managed to generate enough goodwill and cred off the porn set to land roles in films like Boondock Saints, Ronin, and Reindeer Games.

    Ron Jeremy understood the value of networking and contacts long before he era of PDAs and cloud contact storage. He built his career with a ratty old notebook that was stuffed full of scribbled names and phone numbers, with lines connecting many of the names to show social and business relationships.

    But in 2013, Ron Jeremy almost died. It wasn’t any sort of STD that laid The Hedgehog low. It was his heart.

    In a soon-to-be-released documentary called Ron Jeremy: Life After the Buffet, the story of how Ron Jeremy used this almost-tragic and certainly-frightening event as impetus to change his life.

    Broadway World said of the documentary:

    “Ron Jeremy is a cultural icon, known as the King of Porn. Even with his eccentric features, he is a sex guru to millions of fans. Ron Jeremy: Life After the Buffet is an explosive film that exposes Ron, at age 60, in a surprising and very real way. Death came knocking at his door like a bolt of lightening when he started experiencing pains in his chest. The film follows Ron on his spiritual awakening and personal journey to discover the existence of a greater power than what is here on earth.”

    Life After the Buffet, will be released on DVD and VOD May 5th, 2015. The documentary will be available on iTunes, Amazon Instant, Vudu, Google Play, Xbox, and Vubiquity for purchase on May 5.

    Add to that the video game featuring Ron Jeremy due out in August, and it looks like The Hedgehog ain’t going anywhere soon.

  • Revenge Porn Now a Specific Offense in the UK, Punishable by Up to Two Years in Jail

    Revenge porn has been a hot topic in legislatures and courtrooms both across the US and abroad. Now, the UK is poised to pass a new law that will make the sharing of images without one’s consent a specific criminal offense.

    By changing the Criminal Justice & Courts Bill (currently making its way through Parliament), the UK will make the distribution of revenge porn a crime punishable by up to two years in prison. Previously, people had been brought up on charges relating to revenge porn, but had been prosecuted under various other laws. This is the first time there will be a specific criminal offense dealing with revenge porn.

    Here’s what the Ministry of Justice has to say:

    The change will cover the sharing of images both online and offline. It will mean that images posted to social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter will be caught by the offence, as well as those that are shared via text message. Images shared via email, on a website or the distribution of physical copies will also be caught. Those convicted will face a maximum sentence of 2 years in prison.

    “The fact that there are individuals who are cruelly distributing intimate pictures of their former partners without their consent is almost beyond belief. We want those who fall victim to this type of disgusting behaviour to know that we are on their side and will do everything we can to bring offenders to justice. That is why we will change the law and make it absolutely clear to those who act in this way that they could face prison,” said Justice Secretary Chris Grayling.

    In the US, revenge porn laws vary from state to state. There has been talk of a revenge porn barn at the federal level, but it has yet to materialize.

  • Teens Tweet Group Sex Video, Get Hit with Child Porn Charges

    Teens Tweet Group Sex Video, Get Hit with Child Porn Charges

    Four Joliet, Illinois teens could spend the next few years in a juvenile facility after posting a group sex video on Twitter.

    Three boys, aged 14, 15, and 16, and one girl, aged 15, were arrested after the girl’s mother notified police of the footage, which was circulating around Twitter. All four teens have been charged with distributing child pornography.

    Of course, it’s more complicated than that. Did the teens technically distribute child porn? Yes, it was a group sex video involving minors. But they were the minors in the video. Can teens really be charged with child porn if it’s their own body in said “porn”?

    Yes they can, and have. Over the past few years, with the rise of sexting, smartphone cameras, and social media, states have been scrambling to figure out how to deal with teens’ technological expressions of sexuality.

    Teen sexting laws vary from state to state – with some having already penned new laws to address the practice. Other states, however, can only consider the act of disseminating your own naked photos and videos as child porn.

    Illinois authorities have chosen the latter route in this case.

    “The child pornography offense that was charged is in place for a reason, because we don’t want to accept that type of behavior as a society. It’s making a strong statement, and I think it’s important to do so, to send a message to others that kids shouldn’t be involved in this type of behavior, and hopefully this will serve as a deterrent,” said Joliet Police Chief Brian Benton.

    Did you catch that? There’s a huge problem with this logic, and Benton’s statement reads like the laws are in place to legislate morality, as opposed to really protecting children. Don’t like what teens are up to? Threaten them with lifelong sex offender designation. That oughta do it.

    “It’s an incident you may not recover from,” said Benton.

    Exactly. Are we really going to put teens on sexual offender databases for the rest of their lives for being kids and making arguably dumb decisions? I’m sure we can all agree that posting a sex tape on Twitter is ill-advised – especially for a 15-year-old. But is it really a sex crime?

    Image via Thinkstock

  • Twitter: We’re Not Blocking Porn on Purpose

    Twitter: We’re Not Blocking Porn on Purpose

    Twitter, one of the last refuges for uncensored, explicit content in the realm of social media, appears to be blocking certain sexually explicit search results for certain keywords.

    Searches for words like “porn,” “boobs,” “pussy,” f*cking,” and more currently yield no “Top” results.

    If you select “All” results, however, you’ll see plenty.

    There is also a peculiar lack of photo and video results for these sexually-themed searches:

    Hm. That doesn’t seem possible.

    Not likely.

    Of course, this immediately raised concern on the site. Not only would this be very bad news for the adult industry, who promotes its content heavily on Twitter, but there’s also this angle:

    But it looks like you shouldn’t worry just yet. Twitter is saying this is all a mistake.

    “We recently made some changes to improve the algorithm that fetches the most relevant content for Top Tweets in search results.” a Twitter spokesperson told BuzzFeed. “A bug was discovered that caused us to aggressively filter some content from Top Tweets inadvertently. We’re working to correct the issue.”

    So, if that’s true, we should expect to see boobs all over the “Top” results soon. As of the writing of this article, however, there is still a shocking lack of “top” and multimedia results for many adult-themed searches.

  • Pornhub’s Wankband Is the Perfect Wearable Device, or at Least a Great Metaphor

    Pornhub’s Wankband Is the Perfect Wearable Device, or at Least a Great Metaphor

    This is an article about something Pornhub is doing, so it’s slightly NSFW

    Start jacking on.

    Thats the pitch from leading internet porn site Pornhub, who thinks they’ve solved a problem involving wasted energy.

    The site has introduced its first product, a wearable device with subtle branding called Wankband. According to Pornhub, the band creates power when moved in an up and down motion – power that can be used to charge your phone or tablet, for instance. You know, if your phone or tablet needs charging because you’ve been watching too many Sasha Grey videos.

    “Every day, millions of hours of adult content are consumed online, wasting energy in the process and hurting the environment. At Pornhub we decided to do something about it. Introducing The Wankband: The first wearable tech that allows you to love the planet by loving yourself,” says Pornhub.

    So, is this a real thing? Probably. There’s a signup form to become a beta tester, as Pornhub says the Wankband is in development. Of course something like this can create power, and surely could charge a device … slowly.

    But even if the Wankband is just a funny thing that Pornhub’s doing, that’s cool. It’s actually the perfect metaphor for wearable tech, specifically smartwatches and smartbands.

    When it comes down to it, aren’t they all Wankbands?

    Image via Pornhub

  • Google Isn’t Banning Porn on Blogger After All

    If you post your own sexually explicit content on Blogger, Google’s gonna let you do you. Just don’t use blogger as a hub for commercial porn.

    Google has reversed a decision it made earlier this week to ban adult content on its Blogger network.

    “This week, we announced a change to Blogger’s porn policy. We’ve had a ton of feedback, in particular about the introduction of a retroactive change (some people have had accounts for 10+ years), but also about the negative impact on individuals who post sexually explicit content to express their identities,” says Jessica Pelegio, Social Product Support Manager at Google.

    “So rather than implement this change, we’ve decided to step up enforcement around our existing policy prohibiting commercial porn.”

    In 2013, Google cracked down on blogs that monetized from adult ads, but allowed bloggers to continue to post adult content as long as it was marked as such. But earlier this week, Google announced that it would ban “images and video that are sexually explicit or show graphic nudity” effective March 23. It would do this by making all that content private on old accounts, and disabling new accounts that posted adult content.

    Apparently, after thinking this through (and likely receiving some unhappy feedback), Google has decided it best to let people express themselves on Blogger.

    You do, however, still need to mark your blogs as “adult” if necessary.

    Google product forums via The Verge

  • Reddit Wants No Part of the Next Fappening

    Reddit Wants No Part of the Next Fappening

    Last year, hundreds of nude images of celebrities were stolen off the cloud and passed around various internet channels including 4chan and reddit. The latter, being a much more mainstream community, faced a heavy dose of criticism for allowing multiple subreddits to continue to post the nude images, despite the protestations of many of the celebrities involved.

    Reddit eventually shut down these subreddits, but it look the company a couple of weeks – much to the chagrin of those affected, privacy activists, and yes, even many reddit users.

    “The Fappening”, as the leak was dubbed, was far from the first time reddit had come under fire for its seemingly hands-off approach to the content its users post. Over the years, reddit has found itself in the middle of many a debate regarding sexually suggestive content posted without the subject’s consent. But reddit’s role in The Fappening made the biggest splash. People pay a little more attention to Jennifer Lawrence’s naked body than some random girl a redditor upskirted on the subway.

    Now, reddit’s management has decided to make some changes to help both JLaw and random subway girl. Whether or not they will work is yet to be seen, but a new addition to the site’s privacy policy shows that reddit is trying to grow up a bit – or at least hold itself accountable for some of the creepier elements of its vast empire.

    “Last year, we missed a chance to be a leader in social media when it comes to protecting your privacy — something we’ve cared deeply about since reddit’s inception. At our recent all hands company meeting, this was something that we all, as a company, decided we needed to address,” says reddit’s founder and new Executive Chairman Alexis Ohanian and CEO Ellen Pao in an announcement made Tuesday.

    “No matter who you are, if a photograph, video, or digital image of you in a state of nudity, sexual excitement, or engaged in any act of sexual conduct, is posted or linked to on reddit without your permission, it is prohibited on reddit. We also recognize that violent personalized images are a form of harassment that we do not tolerate and we will remove them when notified.”

    This sort of outright ban, issued unequivocally, is a new thing for reddit. The new privacy policy, which will go into effect March 10, has a brand new section in it called “Involuntary Pornography”. Here’s what it says:

    reddit is committed to your privacy. If you believe that someone has submitted, without your permission, to reddit a link to a photograph, video, or digital image of you in a state of nudity or engaged in any act of sexual conduct, please contact us ([email protected]), and we will expedite its removal as quickly as possible. reddit prohibits the posting of such content without consent.

    Of course, this is all contingent upon someone (presumably the victim) seeing the unauthorized imagery on reddit and filing a complaint. It’s self-reporting. Reddit isn’t going to spend resources searching its nether regions and removing anything that looks like it could fall into the “involuntary porn” category.

    And I can think of a dozen subreddits, just off the top of my head, where any number of posts could fall into this category.

    But the key phrase here is “expedite removal”. Reddit’s been criticized in the past for being slow to act. This is reddit saying all you have to do it point it out to us, and we’ll get rid of it as fast as we can.

    If you think back to 2011, you might remember that reddit had a rather popular subreddit called r/jailbait. Over on r/jailbait, folks would post photos of young girls – minors, almost exclusively – in a sexualized context. These weren’t nude photos – the girls were always clothed – but they often appeared in bathing suits and sometimes in suggestive poses.

    Well, reddit shut it down after some pressure. For those that disagreed with that decision, the argument was usually hey, it’s not porn. It’s just pictures of girls. What we’re thinking about when we look at suggestive images of girls shouldn’t be of any concern. It’s not a crime to think.

    Of course, the flip side to that is hey, you’re stealing 14-year-olds’ beach pictures off Facebook and jerking off to them.

    But the point it, there was at least a small debate over the morality, legality, and a couple other -alities regarding r/jailbait. There probably won’t be much blowback from reddit’s latest privacy policy update. Whether it’s stolen images, a la the Fappening, or revenge porn, most people (the ones not doing the posting, at least) recognize that “involuntary pornography” is some seedy ass stuff.

    Can another Fappening happen without reddit’s help? Of course. reddit’s not the alpha and the omega of internet culture. But when it does, and it will, reddit’s higher-ups don’t want the site to be a part of it.

    Image via Blake Patterson, Flickr Creative Commons

  • Google Bans Porn on Blogger, Effective March 23

    If you like to post sexually explicit content on your Blogger blog, you might want to think about making the switch to Tumblr.

    Google has announced that it is banning “images and video that are sexually explicit or show graphic nudity” on its Blogger platform, effective March 23. According to Google, if you operate a blog with sexually explicit content, your blog will be made private on March 23. Google’s not going to remove your content, but your blog will only be viewable to you, other admins, or users you share it with specifically.

    If you want to keep your blog from going private in a few weeks, Google says you need to start cleaning it up. Any blogs created after the March 23 cutoff will be up for removal if they contain adult content.

    There is one exception to this – and it has to do with the context of the nudity.

    “We’ll still allow nudity if the content offers a substantial public benefit, for example in artistic, educational, documentary, or scientific contexts,” says Google.

    Of course, this will no doubt lead to some bickering between Google and its bloggers, as the line between pornographic and artistic is rather undefined at times.

    In 2013, Google cracked down on blogs that monetized from adult ads, but allowed bloggers to continue to post adult content as long as it was marked as such.

    This decision could drive bloggers elsewhere – most likely Tumblr. If you’re not familiar with Tumblr, it’s a porn free-for-all. As long as your Tumblr blog is properly marked as NSFW, then you can “go nuts, show nuts, whatever” (those are Tumblr’s actual words).

    At one point a couple years back, Tumblr was accused a removing adult content from blogs – but it turned out the site wasn’t really removing content, just changing search settings and making it a little harder to find.

  • New Bill Aims to Stop Feds from Looking at Porn on the Job

    Federal employees – they’re just like you!

    …In that they like to watch porn. And they get bored at work. And like to cure that boredom with porn.

    North Carolina Republican Mark Meadows is sick of all the porn watching, however, and has introduced a new bill to “prohibit federal employees from accessing pornographic or explicit material on government computers and devices.”

    It’s called the Eliminating Pornography from Agencies Act. Meadows serves on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee.

    A Washington Times report found that the number one reason that federal employees look at so much porn, besides the fact that you know, it’s porn, is pure boredom:

    “[The guy caught porning at work] stated he is aware it is against government rules and regulations, but he often does not have enough work to do and has free time,” investigators wrote of another federal employee, this one at the Treasury Department, who viewed more than 13,000 pornographic images in a six-week span.

    There have apparently been cases of excessive porn viewing at the FCC, EPA, HUD, the Commerce Department, and the General Services Administration.

    And remember that porn problem at the Pentagon?

    As The Hill points out, most federal agencies already have rules that ban employees from jacking around on the job – but Meadows’ bill would make agencies ban pornographic content.

    “It’s appalling that it requires an act of Congress to ensure that federal agencies block access to these sites,” Congressman Meadows said.

    Meadows says that feds are doing this on your tax dollar, so you should be upset. Also, porning on the job is a cybersecurity threat.

    “While there are rules in place at most agencies to ban this kind of unprofessional and potentially hostile workplace behavior, it continues to take place. There is absolutely no excuse for federal employees to be viewing and downloading pornographic materials on the taxpayers’ dime,” Meadows said.

    “Further, downloading these files, which are often ridden with viruses and malware, poses a cybersecurity threat at our federal agencies. This commonsense legislation ensures that federal workers have a comfortable, safe work environment and protects taxpayer resources from being misused.”

    This is second time Meadows has proposed this bill. It went nowhere the last time.

    Sure, anyone trying to limit your porn consumption is a killjoy. But honestly, boring job or not, can’t we all wait until we get home before we head to Pornhub?