War on Sex Work
ACLU Asks FTC to Investigate Mastercard for Discrimination Against Sex Workers, Adult Sites
The American Civil Liberties Union on Tuesday filed a formal complaint asking the Federal Trade Commission to investigate Mastercard for discriminatory practices against sex workers and adult content websites.
Backpage Retrial Reaches Jury Selection Stage
The Backpage.com retrial is moving forward, following the death of co-defendant James “Jim” Larkin on July 31, with jury selection beginning Tuesday.
Spanish Feminist Leader Crosses Party Lines to Demand Porn Censorship, Sex Work Abolition
Veteran Spanish feminist academic and activist Amelia Valcárcel reaffirmed her alliance with the right-wing Partido Popular (PP) on Wednesday by issuing a demand for the adoption of 10 policy items, starting with censorship of adult content and the abolition of all sex work.
Pope Francis Condemns Adult Content as 'Commercialization of Love'
Pope Francis I condemned all pornography as “the crudest commercialization of love” during a meeting on Thursday with students and with bishops responsible for Catholic schools.
YouTube Censors Holly Randall Podcast Episode Debunking Anti-Sex Work Myths
YouTube removed on Wednesday an episode of the “Holly Randall Unfiltered” industry podcast, featuring an interview with Reason magazine senior editor Elizabeth Nolan Brown debunking myths about sex trafficking spread by anti-sex-work activists, mainstream media and politicians.
Bloomberg Probes Financial Discrimination Against Adult Performers, Creators
Bloomberg published a report today documenting how adult performers and content creators have become “collateral damage” in an ongoing campaign to make online platforms liable for user-generated content.
Retired Italian Performer Wins Employment Discrimination Lawsuit
A judge has ordered an Italian university to pay 4,000 euros ($4,290) to a prestigious academic after dismissing him, an action he alleged was prompted by his former career as an adult performer.
Spanish Activists, Human Rights Groups Denounce Ongoing Attempt to Outlaw All Sex Work
Spanish sex workers, including adult producers and performers, continue to denounce a government attempt to outlaw all forms of commercial sex, starting with a controversial law deemed “dangerous” by human rights advocates.
Edinburgh Court Rules in Favor of Sex Workers, Against Strip Clubs Ban
Edinburgh sex workers prevailed in their campaign today when a judge ruled that the city council’s attempt to ban all strip clubs was unlawful.
SW Groups Denounce Arizona's Fear-Mongering Around Super Bowl
Arizona sex workers, allies and activists have spoken out against a fear-mongering PR campaign by the state’s Republican governor, Doug Ducey, which promotes the discredited myth that the Super Bowl, which will take place in Arizona this year, is a magnet for sex trafficking.
Wired Publishes Opinion Piece Stigmatizing Adult Content, Sex Work
Wired Magazine published an online opinion piece today by Virgina Heffernan, who deploys a number of stigmatizing and stereotypical tropes about sex work and depictions of sex in the course of speculating about the future of Twitter.
FSC Meets With Congress Over Banking Discrimination
FSC staff this week met with key House and Senate offices in a series of meetings discussing banking discrimination against the adult industry.
Instagram Launches New Tool Notifying Users Who Have Been Shadow-Banned
In a move away from Meta’s longtime policy of denying the existence of "shadow bans," Instagram has launched a new tool to let users know if their posts are “barred from being recommended to other users.”
TikTok Sex Censorship Results in Rise of Euphemistic 'Algospeak'
Online trend watchers have been flagging a noticeable rise in the use of “algospeak,” euphemistic terms used to avoid sex-related censorship on popular platforms like TikTok and Instagram.
Elon Musk Announces New Shadow-Banning Policy for Twitter
Twitter owner Elon Musk this morning announced an official shadow-banning policy, aimed at limiting the visibility and profitability of what he termed “negative/hate tweets.”
Criminal Conviction Under FOSTA Triggers Adult Industry Worries
Wilhan Martono, a San Francisco-area man who owned the adult classified ads website CityXGuide, pleaded guilty and was sentenced by a Texas court on Monday to more than eight years in prison for violating FOSTA-SESTA, with a 60-month concurrent sentence for conspiracy to violate the Travel Act.
The Daily Dot Surveys New Efforts to Include Sex Worker Voices in Academia
A Daily Dot article out today highlights the movement to make sure academic research on sex work reflects the voices and experiences of actual sex workers, a goal of which mainstream academia has historically fallen short.
OnlyFans Creator Titus Low Jailed in Singapore for Obscenity
Titus Low, one of Singapore’s top OnlyFans creators, has been sentenced to a prison term and fined for violating the country’s draconian laws against “obscenity.”
Canadian Sex Workers Challenge Constitutionality of 'Nordic Model' Law
A coalition of sex workers and sex work advocacy groups is fighting in an Ontario court to have an anti-sex-work law repealed in Canada.
Pornhub, Adult Content Creators Confront Instagram Over Discriminatory Practices
Led by Pornhub, a group of adult content creators, companies, organizations and sex workers have co-signed an open letter to Mark Zuckerberg, Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri and other Meta staffers, condemning what the signers label as Instagram's discriminatory moderation practices.