In surfing the net these past few days I ran across theyshootstars.com which is an investigative exposé on the sex industry, in Porn Valley, and the recession written by journalist Susannah Breslin. I commend her for writing the most accurate non-biased accounting of the L.A. Mainstream Porn industry. Being in the adult entertainment business myself I found her accounting of the Porn Valley scene wonderfully articulated. Her ability to relate non-judgmentally to the reader how those working in the industry perceive what they do. There was one paragraph in particular which illustrated this beautifully… Jim [Powers an adult film director] isn’t the bad guy. He’s the good guy. “I sleep at night,” he informs me, his voice rising, “because I know, in my heart of hearts, I’m giving people money, that could not hold a job at fucking McDonald’s, for the most part. I’m paying people’s rent.” He waves his hands spastically. “It’s a lot more than I can say for a lot of the companies in America, pieces of shit, like Madoff, and Enron, all of these son of a bitches the Bush administration funded that do nothing but take, take, take! Here, I just give, give, give! And this is a fact!” he shouts, wild-eyed. “We are helping these girls! Anybody that comes into this business, for the most part, is a broken toy.” He leans towards me, earnestly attempting to make himself understood. “We’re giving them a place where they can make money, and get by, so they’re not standing on line in a welfare department. Thank God for people like me!” He bangs the desk. At what point does this perspective become detrimental? And society wonders why so much of the L.A. porn scene is filled with the stereotype of strung out, daddy issued, doing it for the money performers. Does anyone else see something wrong with this perspective of treating any human being? I believe it is this type of thinking that is the reason why Mainstream L.A. Porn propagates a negative psychological impact on it’s performers. Not all performers start out as broken toys. Many of them end up that way due to the treatment of directors and the hard situation that finds them there. Since when is it moral or ethical to continue knocking down those in a difficult situation. Aren’t we supposed to help them instead of treating them as though they are brainless monkeys making them do tricks just because they can. You may be thinking I’m crazy using terms such as moral and ethical in correlation with the porn industry but why not expect it. There are people not in the L.A. porn scene who are doing just that; treating their talent and co-stars ethically and morally with respect to their own sexuality. It’s called Indie Porn or Feminist Porn. Somehow being in the confines of Porn Valley gives you a get out of jail free card when it comes to treating people in the adult industry with decency. With the embers of Porn Valley still burning a new segment of the industry is rising. One that is respectful, acting morally and ethically, and one that seeks out those who use their sexuality as a form of personal expression promoting a sex positive culture. Something the L.A. folks make you think is impossible. The public and performers are demanding more responsibility from the industry and they are getting it through independent productions with a sex positive message. Only good will come of pornography made this way. Good for the industry and good for society.