Censorship
Georgia Town Succeeds in Terminating Beleaguered Adult Boutique's License
Weeks after approving unprecedented changes to its county code in order to target “sexually oriented businesses,” the Cobb County Board of Commissioners has permanently revoked the local business license for Atlanta-area adult boutique Tokyo Valentino.
Backpage.com Judge Refuses to Recuse Herself, Lacey Responds
Last Friday, the Phoenix federal judge presiding over the criminal trial against the former owners of Backpage.com issued a 14-page ruling that detailed her refusal to recuse herself from the case, following a motion by the defendants that revealed her husband’s explicit activism against them as part of a crusade alleging “human trafficking.”
Australian Customs Authorities Block Hentai Imports Amidst Calls for Censorship
Japanese pop culture retailer J-List was informed earlier this month by shipping company DHL Japan that “Australian customs have started rejecting packages containing any adult product,” among vocal calls by local politicians to crack down on hentai anime and manga and to fully enforce Australia’s vaguely worded anti-porn import rules.
Instagram Alters Nudity Policy to Allow Women to Hold Their Breasts
Instagram has announced it will be introducing a new nudity policy this week, which will now allow “pictures of women holding, cupping or wrapping their arms around their breasts.”
Local German Efforts to Enforce AV Laws Concern Privacy, Free Expression Advocates
A state-sponsored effort in Germany hardening of intrusive age verification schemes to target specific leading adult platforms — including Pornhub, YouPorn and MyDirtyHobby — has raised alarm among privacy and freedom of sexual expression advocates.
Instagram, Facebook's 'Oversight Board' Now Reviewing Deletions
Five months after Facebook announced it had established an international entity named the "Oversight Board" to make decisions about free speech and content moderation on its platforms — which include Instagram — the board has finally started accepting cases submitted by users for review.
Biird Launches Petition to End Sexual Wellness Censorship on Social Media
New pleasure product brand Biird has launched a Change.org petition calling for the end of sexual wellness censorship and gender inequality on social media and has drawn the support of Cindy Gallop of MakeLoveNotPorn.com and The Center for Intimacy Justice.
Latest Censorship Proposal by Utah Politician Fails to Pass Committee Hearing
A proposal that would require smartphones and computers to have pre-installed porn-blocking software, and to have it activated as the default option when sold to Utahns, was quashed yesterday during a committee hearing at the state's Business and Labor Interim Committee.
SBA Loans Expert Pens Op-Ed Against Arbitrary 'Prurient' Clause
Attorney Derek Adams, an expert on Small Business Administration (SBA) loans, has penned an op-ed arguing that the SBA “can and should refrain from applying its ineligibility rules" — including the so-called “prurient clause” that discriminates against sexually oriented businesses — at the time of loan forgiveness.
FCC Chairman to Issue Rules Regarding Websites' Content Moderation Liability
Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Ajit Pai announced today that the agency will issue rules deciding when website operators’ moderation practices over third-party content leaves them exposed to potential legal liability, following Donald Trump’s directives on his May 28 Executive Order.
Clarence Thomas Calls for High Court Review of Section 230
Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas today used a concurrent opinion about a case the court decided not to hear to issue a broader challenge on current liability protections for online platforms provided by Section 230, the so-called “First Amendment of the internet.”
This Is the 'Biblical' Investment Fund Backing Exodus Cry's Anti-Porn Crusade
An obscure investment fund which defines its mission as “investing with Biblical principles” is a leading donor and strategic partner of anti-porn organization Exodus Cry, currently receiving international attention for their single-focused campaign against Pornhub.
Texas Grand Jury Reportedly Indicts Netflix Over 'Prurient' Content
A Texas grand jury has reportedly indicted California streaming company Netflix, alleging that one of the films distributed via the service presents material “which appeals to the prurient interest in sex and has no serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value.”
Cyber Law Expert: Politicized Anti-Section 230 Proposals Target Adult Content
In a damning new op-ed, one of the nation’s foremost cyber law experts described the onslaught of legislative proposals and recommendations to abolish Section 230 — the so-called “First Amendment of the internet — recently unleashed by the White House, Attorney General William Barr, Senator Lindsey Graham and others, as “Trump-backed rules for online speech: 'no' to porn, 'yes' to election disinformation and hate speech.”
Chaotic Stream of Rival Anti-Section 230 Proposals Muddy Constructive Debate
As an unprecedentedly chaotic and fractious electoral campaign heads into its final month, a flurry of new proposals by members of both major parties targeting Section 230 — the so-called “First Amendment of the internet” — join a crowded debate about the controversial legislation.
AG Barr Joins Attack on Section 230 With Unusual Request to Congress
In an extremely unusual move by the U.S. Justice Department — part of the executive branch — AG William Barr sent to Congress today a legislative proposal to undermine Section 230, the so-called “First Amendment of the internet.”
Lindsey Graham Takes Aim at Section 230 With Yet Another Bill Proposal
Senator Lindsey Graham (R, South Carolina), Chairman of the Senate Committee on the Judiciary, quietly scheduled yesterday an item on the agenda for Thursday’s committee meeting, aiming to discuss a new bill, S. 4632, which he called the Online Content Policy Modernization Act.
Georgia Town Now Going After Adult Boutique's Business License
Weeks after approving unprecedented changes to its county code in order to target “sexually oriented businesses,” the Cobb County Board of Commissioners has now made its intentions explicit by announcing a hearing to permanently revoke the local business license for adult boutique Tokyo Valentino.
Utah Legislative Panel Stages Peculiar Anti-Porn Hearing
A Utah legislative panel last week — convened by GOP state lawmakers following a campaign of disinformation by conservative activists — culminated with misleading pronouncements about the supposed availability of “obscene material harmful to minors” in educational databases in the state, and with a call to press criminal charges against the makers of those databases.
Top Digital Rights Organization Highlights Woodhull's Anti-FOSTA Litigation
Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), the leading digital rights advocacy nonprofit, released yesterday a comprehensive report praising the Woodhull Foundation’s ongoing lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of FOSTA-SESTA legislation.