CNBC’s Special on Porn Softporn Itself?
Last night CNBC aired “Porn: Business of Pleasure,” a documentary on the current state of the porn industry, hosted by Michelle Lee (this is about the only image from the doc I would be comfortable posting on this blog). The documentary did have some interesting statistics on the state of the pornography industry, and an interesting interview with former pornography addict Micheal Leahy about his book, Porn @ Work. But the more I watched the documentary, the more I appreciated the critique that CNBC occasionally does these kind of documentaries to “keep the lights on.”
To me, the documentary came off as a cross between an industry analysis and a paid advertisement for the porn industry. While there was mention of addiction and the harm that pornography can inflict, the main focus seemed to be on the personalities in the porn business rather than an in-depth look at the financial side of the industry. Most segments, before commercial breaks, entreated viewers to stay tuned so they could “get to know” a particular porn star.
I would be very interested to hear from any readers who watched the documentary and whether they thought it was appropriate for a channel like CNBC, and whether or not it should have been allowed to air in a prime-time slot.
Filed under: Internet Safety News
I did not see this particular documentary, but have seen similar docs in the past from other networks. That seems to be the MO of the media … “we are going to make it appear that we care about erradicating these issues, but deep down, we just want to see how far we can push the envelope and this is a great excuse for us to show more skin and get away with it.”
It’s quite frustrating. I think these documentaries cause more people to stumble than actually help them. I know they have caused me to stumble in the past which is why I just avoid them altogether now.
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