Big Porn Inc: Exposing the Harms of the Global Porn Industry Paperback – 1 Sep 2011

Porn has become more popular, mainstream and misogynist in content over the last couple of decades. And we are starting to see an upsurge of criticism (Robert Jensen, Gail Dines etc). This book is a good addition to the growing body of work on this topic. Rather than focusing on one aspect of porn a range of contributors cover many different points. From the way porn effects culture, to the questioning of "porn addiction", the harms suffered by porn actresses and the connection between the porn industry and other parts of the sex trade to name but a few. The way porn effects children is also given considerable attention, not just as the victims of child pornographers but also as participants ("sexting") and viewers.

The broad scope of this book makes it a good introduction for those who aren't familiar with anti-porn critiques. But there is also a lot here for those who already a good grasp of the topic.

The message of this book is quite simple: porn is big business; porn is harmful; and porn must be resisted. In forty meaty chapters written by 34 experts, we get this message hammered home clearly, cogently, and convincingly. The authors make it quite clear that porn is now a big-time mainstream industry, and its greasy and destructive tentacles creep into every nook and cranny of life.

The Australian and international experts here provide a mountain of evidence on the reach of porn, the massive harm of porn, and the countless lives ruined by porn. Case studies along with academic essays combine to make a powerful statement on one of the most insidious and harmful businesses of our day.

Not only is there a copious amount of documentation here, there are plenty of real life stories and case studies which make for fascinating, if at times, sickening reading. Indeed, there is a lot of hard core stuff here, but sometimes we need to be shocked out of our comfort zones and back into reality.

Porn is an ugly, nasty business which enslaves people, dehumanises people, abuses people, and destroys people. At least 100 billion dollars a year are generated from this industry, so one can clearly see why its defenders will fight to the death to keep it going.

The editors in their introduction say this: "We live in a world that is increasingly shaped by pornography. . . . Big Porn Inc documents the proliferation and normalisation of pornography, the way it has become a global industry and a global ideology, and how it is shaping our world and the harm this causes."

They continue, "Our book provides a powerful challenge to liberation conceits that pornography is simply about pleasure, self-empowerment and freedom of choice. . . . The global pornography industry shows little concern for subordination, degradation or human rights violations; indeed powerful elements in the industry market the violation of human rights."

Like all destructive industries, it has nothing whatsoever to do with helping people or making society a better place. It is all about greedy and calloused people doing whatever they can to make a buck. And what they do to get rich quick is simply appalling. One writer examines 21 different porn sub-genres, and how readily available they are online.

Here are just a few, with the total Web pages for each: teen sex - 82 million pages; animal sex - over 50 million; bondage - nearly 30 million; crush sex (which involves the killing of small animals) - 8 million; vomit sex - 4 million; wired porn (involving electrical shock) - 1.7 million; snuff sex (involving actual death) - 1.3 million.

And all this is escalating and intensifying each passing day. Supply and demand feed off each other, and countless millions of people become trapped and addicted, even if they want to get off this destructive treadmill. It is as good a means to wreck individuals and ruin societies as any war has ever been.

If all the data and evidence presented here is not enough to convince the reader, then the personal stories should certainly be enough. We find one horrific and tragic story after another here, powerfully and graphically showing how porn damages women, children and others. It is pretty bleak reading.

Consider the story of Australian ex-stripper Stella: "Every day was long. Every day was hard. Every day someone forced me in some way. . . . My relationships suffered; I was becoming more and more isolated. I started using heroin to soothe the pain, all of the pain: the physical pain of my deteriorating knees and back; the emotional pain of being nothing, negative space, dirt, slut, whore, stripper, junkie. The fear and desperation rose."

What about "Amy" who was sexually abused by her uncle, a heavy porn addict? "My uncle started to abuse me when I was only 4 years old. . . . At first he showed me pornographic movies and then he started doing things to me. . . . Every day of my life I live in constant fear that someone will see my pictures and recognize me and that I will be humiliated all over again. It hurts me to know someone is looking at them - at me - when I was just a little girl being abused for the camera. I did not choose to be there, but now I am there forever in pictures that people are using to do sick things. I want it all erased. I want it all stopped. But I am powerless to stop it just like I was powerless to stop my uncle."

One writer, looking at the topic of pornography and animals, says this: "Some things are incomprehensible. Why would anyone derive sexual pleasure from seeing a video of scantily clad women in high heels squashing, stomping and torturing small animals (including puppies and kittens) who squeal in horror as they die?"

But critics will complain that these are "extreme" examples. What they do not want to admit is that the extreme cases always flow from the less extreme cases. Porn is like that: you get desensitised and bored with the soft stuff, so you move on to the harder stuff. That too soon becomes old hat and stale, and greater thrills are needed.

It is a downward spiral, and has happened to far too many people, including almost all of our sex offenders in prison. It begins with a few quick looks, but soon degenerates into a lifelong addiction, which gets worse and worse as the demands grow stronger and more diabolical.

Porn kills. And any critic who thinks this is some religious wowser book is just plain wrong. The publisher is a secular feminist outfit, and the overwhelming majority of authors here would fit into that camp as well. Indeed, there is not a shred of religious argumentation to be found in this volume.

And fortunately we don't just get the bad news here. A number of concluding chapters look at how Big Porn can be challenged head on, and a number of examples of this already happening are offered. So the reader is left not with despair, but hope, by the time they reach the end of this helpful volume.

The editors deserve a lot of praise for making this book available. Many of the individual essays alone make for a solid case against porn, but taken together this information and research offers an insurmountable argument: porn is bad, real bad, and it is time to reclaim women, men, children, and society from its horrendous clutches.

I bought this book based solely on the title, and I am glad that I did. The book is a collection of different international contributors who give a different angle on the harms, abuses and mainstreaming of pornography and sexualisation in our society. It covers all the major aspects of the industry from fetishism right through to child pornography. In some essays, the book also touches on exotic dancing and prostitution as they relate to the wider pornographic industry.

This book, it should be said, is not an easy read. For those sensitive to materials and descriptions of these materials, I would advise caution. On more than one occasion, I was quite sickened by what I read from a couple of authors' research. My hat goes off to the men and women who researched such difficult material, (it must have been a tough call), but they are also careful to limit what they include in the book to that which emphasises their points.

"Big Porn Inc" highlights the massive financial clout that the industry has and its successful positioning of itself as a model of progressive sexuality and lifestyle choices. It is also careful to establish with clear references, the harms that the material does to both performer and consumer, while also dealing with the cultural presence of the industry. The book is thoroughly footnoted, though I have not checked any of them, and will be careful in which ones I do follow up. The book is a solid sledgehammer and will be a hard read.

Readers may not agree with the conclusions of the book, but I still think it has value and adds a lot to the debate about pornography and its effects. The authors deal with opposing opinions and point out the flaws with it, as I am sure people may point out the flaws of theirs. As a student of linguistics and CDA, I can see a great deal of weight in what the authors are getting at. While you may not agree with this volume, whether for ethical or personal reasons, you will get a lot of food for thought from it. This is a worthy addition to the bookshelf.

Have you ever had one of those conversations with someone who will not stop talking until every point they want to make has been driven home again and again and again, regardless of any interjection you would like to make or question you might want to address? That's pretty much how this book reads.

I was quite excited to find this book and perhaps expected too much from it. I was hoping for a broad and constructive overview of the porn industry, how it works, why it works and who drives it. After only a few chapters in it becomes apparent that this book only has one recurring theme; porn is bad, bad, bad.

While I agree that porn, in general, is not a good thing, particularly with the ease that it can be disseminated amongst children, I was hoping to get some insight from the other side of the issue. I suppose that is the biggest let-down with this book because there is no other side.

Any opposing view to the author's foregone conclusion is lightly introduced and then thoroughly obliterated with endless statistics, quotes and cherry-picked examples of why there is only one side to a very important issue. In essence women are victims, men are the driving force behind it and by extension they are responsible for the fall-out the porn industry has on children. End of story.

You may question the role of female performers, scouts, directors, producers and consumers within the porn industry but you won't find any insightful answers within these pages. Basically these women, who are arguably some of the primary drivers within the porn industry, are victims of circumstance and have been channelled into a life where their sole purpose is to produce a product demanded by men.

This book is overtly feminist which is a shame because it really does detract from the message this book sets out to make. You can't help thinking there is an undercurrent to every chapter you read and at times you start asking yourself who the intended audience is. The author's bias is quite apparent and sadly undermines the content and readability of what could have been an outstanding book.

If you already think porn is bad, don't buy this book. It will not try to convince you otherwise and suffice to say your convictions will be reinforced over and over again. If you are hoping for a balanced look at the porn industry and some insight into how it operates and who the players are, don't buy this book. It can probably be best summed up as a one-sided argument between a loud-mouthed know-it-all and a mute.

Powerful information!