WASHINGTON, DC (May 4, 2023) – The National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE) said that Pornhub’s protest of Utah’s new commonsense law protecting children from pornography access may indicate that it stands to lose revenue if children are blocked from accessing pornography. Pornhub has banned users in Utah from accessing its site since the law went into effect on May 3.
“Pornhub’s protest of Utah’s law reveals an ugly truth: Pornhub will lose revenue if children cannot access pornography on its site,” said Dawn Hawkins, CEO, National Center on Sexual Exploitation. “This should concern everyone who is concerned about the well-being of children.”
“Utah is to be commended for passing a commonsense measure to protect children from accessing pornography. Research is clear that pornography can be extremely harmful to children, as it has negative impacts on the brain and relational development. Some studies show that pornography exposure is a tool in grooming and those exposed are more vulnerable to assault and predatory acts.
“Utah’s law simply requires adults who wants to access online pornography to verify that they are over 18. The verification process is easy, accessible, and private. Age verification for pornography is not a new technology or idea. There is an entire existing industry of age verification technology and standards that respect privacy. Our laws have long held those who distribute harmful material to minors liable for any harm they cause, and the internet should not be different.
“Age verification does not infringe on the privacy of adults, and is not unconstitutional. These age verification laws are carefully designed to prevent access by children to pornography that is harmful to minors, while allowing unimpeded access to the same content by adults. This is what the Supreme Court and the Constitution require.
“Pornhub is rife with child sexual abuse material, sex trafficking, rape, image-based sexual abuse, and other nonconsensual content. There are even genres on Pornhub that promote racism by portraying young black girls being violently raped and abused by white men in authority. What lesson does this teach our children? Kudos to Utah for protecting children from this known exploiter,” Hawkins added.
About National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE)
Founded in 1962, the National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE) is the leading national non-partisan organization exposing the links between all forms of sexual exploitation such as child sexual abuse, prostitution, sex trafficking and the public health harms of pornography.
