Pornocalypse Now and the Price of Pleasure

The issue of pornography seems to be constantly fading in and out of the national (sub)conscious. It has been more at the forefront lately with controversy stemming from a public screening of a hardcore porn flick at the University of Maryland. Adult film giant Digital Playground made their latest feature Pirates II: Stagnetti's Revenge available for free to college campus across the country. When conservative politicians in Maryland got wind of this they attempted to pull the plug, which only sparked a fight by students on campus over the free speech implications involved. The film was eventually screened, but was preceded by debate over freedom of expression organized by the ACLU.

Porn is complex issue. To go beyond the narrow debate that is usually framed in black and white terms around the first ammendment, the producers of The Price of Pleasure: Pornography, Sexuality, and Relationships and its distributor, the Media Education Foundation, are countering Digital Playground's campaign by offering free screenings to colleges as well.

“The reason we’re doing this is simple,” said Sut Jhally, the Executive Director of the Media Education Foundation. “What’s needed on this issue is more discussion, not less, and this film is a perfect vehicle for achieving this. If students are serious about their defense of free speech and open debate, they’ll fight to make sure this documentary is shown as well.”

Check out MEF's full press release announcing the deal.

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The latest issue of Adbusters also weighs in on the contemporary debate around pornography and postmodern culture. Douglas Haddow explains in his piece "Pornocalypse Now:"

"...very little of this sexual media reflects reality in any way. When watching hard-core porn, one is struck by the message it so desperately attempts to communicate: sex is boring. And the more violent the porn, it seems, the more anti-sex its message. But could anything be further from the truth? Isn’t having sex with another living, human being the one thing that provides the most intense connection with the present moment?"

Porn is an excellent example of how the personal is political. From larger structures that profit from the objectification of women's bodies to the effect that porn addiction has on inumerable relationships, it's a complex matter that deserves a rich dialogue. Check back here for more on the politics of porn in the future.